Pumpkin Provocations

To provoke someone is to stir up or arouse a feeling or action.  It is an intentional act to draw someone out.  Often we think of it in a negative term as in to provoke anger. 

A provocation is meant to inspire another to investigate.  With this in mind I provided white pumpkins, decorative gourds and squash for my class.  I put out hammers, golf tees, rubber binders and sticks.  Nature provided the leaves and tomatoes that joined the provocation.

Once set up on the table children were drawn to it like magnets.  They came and went as they pleased.  I stood by but did not offer any suggestions or aid; unless help was requested starting a golf-tee or removing a golf tee.  A few children remained at the table for over 2 hours never once heading anywhere else to play.  

Being outside meant that there was no concern of what kind of mess the exploration would create.  The sun danced over the table creating fun shadows and lighting while the exploration was going on.  The breeze blew leaves around the activity in swirls.

Once done the loose parts were gathered up for another day and the pumpkins, squash and gourds were left outside for further perusal at another time.  

Fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination were put to work while trying to hold a golf-tee and use a hammer to pound it into the gourd. There was focus, muscle memory and language
developement, while manipulating the loose parts.  

Science, language and literacy came into play as observations were made.
*"The pumpkin shell is cracking the further I push the nail in."
*"The outside of the pumpkin is hard to poke."
*"These binders stretch easier than those little binders."
*"Tomatoes poke easier than the pumpkins."
*"These brown spots are softer than the rest of the pumpkin."

Art was explored as rubber bands were added like spider webs, and leaves and twigs were braided into the rubber bands.  Gourds and tomatoes were stacked to create 3 dimensional art.

Social skills were developed as children took turns with hammers, helped each other problem solve issues and discuss what their plan was with the

gourd they were working on.  Cooperation was developed as several children worked on one pumpkin together.This provocation was rich in learning and so much fun to just observe.

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