October Math Centers Made Fun with Pumpkin Candy

October is one of my favorite months to teach.  The weather is usually beautiful with leaves changing color and cooler temperatures after a long hot summer!  My students always loved talking about pumpkins and of course every child loves Halloween. 

  

However, most school are no longer celebrating this Holiday with a party.  That is why I created Pumpkin Candy Math Centers.  This is a great unit to use during the month of October or November.  

You will need 2-4 bags of Brach's Pumpkin Candy.  You can usually get a deal with 2 bags.  I think I paid $6.00 for four bags.  They do sell Brach's at the Dollar Tree, however I believe they are in smaller portions.  Also, the dollar tree brand of the pumpkin candy is too small for the centers.

One of my favorite centers is "Pumpkin Weigh Off."  The boys and girls not only identify numbers 1-10, they use 1-1 correspondence and compare the numbers/weight and determine which number/weight is greater.  There are several different forms for this one activity.  In the activity above they use the greater/less than symbols.  In a simpler version, they circle the number that weighs more.  This a great way to practice using the balance.

In "Lil' Pumpkin Measure Up," the boys and girls measure common school supply items with pumpkins.  Most of the students have these items in their desk or they are easily accessible.  These are items you most likely have around the house if you are using this unit from home.  Students  count the total number of pumpkin "units" long each item is and record it on the recording sheet.  

To prep for "Pick 5"  I purchased little white stickers from Target.  Then, I placed the stickers on the bottom of the pumpkins and numbered the pumpkins 1-10.  Each child needs 10 pumpkins labeled 1-10.  The children place the pumpkins in a cup, or miniature pumpkin and shake (or mix-them up).  They dump the pumpkins on the desk and count out 5.  Then, they put the pumpkins in order from the smallest to largest number and write the numbers on one of the pumpkin rows.

"Pumpkin Plus 1" is and easy one to prep.  Each child needs 7 pumpkins.  They roll the dice and count out pumpkins to match the number of dots on the dice.  Then, they add one pumpkin to the total.  Finally, they find a pumpkin with the matching number and color.  

"Lil' Pumpkin Shapes" is a great activity to work on shape identification, formation and one to one correspondence.  The boys and girls choose a shape and build the shape using the little pumpkins.  Next, they find the matching letter on their recording sheet and draw the matching shape in the .  Then, draw the matching shape in the box.  Finally, they count how many pumpkins it took to build the shape and write the number in the pumpkin.

Estimation is a blast with "Lil' Pumpkin Estimation."  The boys and girls grab a handful of pumpkins and estimate how many pumpkins are in their hand.  Then they write their guess on the first hand.  Next, they count out the actual amount and write the number on the pumpkin.  I usually don't encourage them to circle or put a smiley face in the boxes where they make an accurate "guess"  because they tend to always have an accurate guess:)


If your students are just learning how to tally, or you want to reinforce the skills, "Lil' Pumpkin Tally" will be helpful.  The boys and girls grab a handful of pumpkins and make a tally mark for each one in one of the boxes.  Then, they count the total number of tally marks and write the number in the pumpkin.


We are really starting to work hard on the concept of addition and really want kids to visualize the idea that numbers represent objects.  The boys and girls love "Pumpkin Patch Flip."  I purchased binder ring stickers (but any colored stickers will do-dollar store has many mini-circle colors) and chose two colors to use.  I put ten of one color on one set of pumpkins and ten of another on another set of ten.  Place all twenty in a pumpkin pail and have the boys and girls shake the bucket to mix.  They choose ten and color one set of the pumpkins to match.  There is also a recording sheet that has students write out the number sentence.


In, "Lil' Pumpkin Addition" the boys and girls roll two dice.  Then, they count out the matching number of pumpkins, count the total and then write the number in one of the pumpkins.  To hold students accountable have them draw the two sets of dots in the pumpkin as well.

A few of your students may already have a good grasp on addition. I like to have students "rescue" the pumpkins and help them return to the pumpkin patch.  Children place one pumpkin over each addition problem.  After they solve each problem, they can return the pumpkins to the pumpkins patch.  They can also use the pumpkins to solve the problems.

I hope your students love Pumpkin Candy Math Centers as much as mine did!  Click here to check it out!

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