It’s the season for pumpkin books, pumpkin STEM activities, and pumpkin science experiments! One of the things I love the most about fall besides the cider and pumpkin muffins is bringing out all our fun pumpkin science and STEM books! Favorite pumpkin books pair perfectly with fun fall STEM activities. Check out these early elementary and preschool pumpkin books and science activities that young kids will have fun trying!

Pumpkin Science and STEM book activities for kids fall STEM ideasPin

Explore Pumpkin Theme For STEM

Below are some fun ideas for STEM activities to pair with your favorite pumpkin book.  We have listed simple pumpkin activities that you can easily do at home or with a group of kids.

There are many ways to incorporate STEM projects or Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math skills with a preschool literacy activity. These simple pumpkin STEM challenges below will get kids thinking and engaging with STEM this fall!

What Is STEM For Kids?

What is STEM? STEM sounds complicated, but it isn’t! Once you get how science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) mingle, you can see how it applies to many science and STEM activities you love.

The best STEM activities encourage your kids to use at least 3 of the four pillars of the STEM acronym (science, technology, engineering, and math) to tackle their projects head-on, challenge what they know, and build character. The lessons STEM can teach our kids are priceless!

Have you played around with science with your kiddos? If you haven’t, you are in for a real treat. And if you have, you already know how fun STEM activities are…

Unlock your kids’ curiosity and spark their inner inventor! The world of science and STEM is AMAZING with these hands-on science experiments and STEM activities!

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to share STEM with your kids. We have everything you need: simple-to-follow activities, low-prep ideas, easy-to-digest science information, and inexpensive supplies.

Helpful STEM Resources To Get You Started

Here are a few resources to help you introduce STEM more effectively to your kiddos or students and feel confident when presenting materials. You’ll find helpful free printables throughout.

FREE printable Pumpkin Project Guide and STEM Cards

7 Pumpkin Books & STEM Activity Suggestions

I have added Amazon Affiliate links for each of the book titles below. If you love pairing books with hands-on activities, check out our list of 30+ Books with Activities here.

1. Five Little Pumpkins by Dan Yaccarino

Book: Roll along with the pumpkins and their spooky friends as they get into some spirited Halloween fun. It has fun rhyming verses!

Project: Can you make a fence for your 5 little pumpkins? Check out our Five Little Pumpkins STEM Challenge!

2. The Legend of Spookley The Square Pumpkin by Joe Troiano

Book: One day in the pumpkin patch, the strangest little pumpkin hatched… Spookley the Pumpkin was different. All the other pumpkins teased him until Spookley proved that being different could save the day!

Project: How can you design and build a square pumpkin-like Spookley? Check out our LEGO Spookley and Friends activity.

3. How Many Seeds In A Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara

Book: Mr. Tiffin and his students explore skip counting and estimation in a fun pumpkin-themed classroom experiment!

Project: Clean out a pumpkin and dry the pumpkin seeds. Put the pumpkin seeds in a jar and practice your estimation skills or count them all.

Clean out two different size pumpkins and see if they have more or fewer seeds. Do different pumpkin varieties have different amounts of seeds?

Make a batch of pumpkin playdough and combine sensory play with simple counting activities.

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4. How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow? by Wendell Minor

Book: Every year, giant pumpkin contests occur at fairs nationwide. But what’s next? Why not think big? Award-winning artist Wendell Minor does just that as he imagines larger-than-life pumpkins decorating some of America’s favorite places—as immense as the Capitol Dome, Mount Rushmore, the Brooklyn Bridge, and even the Grand Canyon!

Project: Measure pumpkins at the pumpkin patch. Bring a soft tape measure or a piece of string and a regular tape measure to measure the diameter of different-sized pumpkins. Learn a little bit about diameter and radius, too!

Try these Pumpkin Math Activities with free pumpkin worksheets.

5. The Roll Away Pumpkin by Junia Wonders

Book: On a windy autumn day, Marla Little runs down the hill, yelling, “Help! My giant pumpkin is rolling away! Onward it goes, rolling and turning, with no sign of stopping!

Project: Try rolling pumpkins and set up pumpkin races using ramps to explore physics.

Check out our apple version too!

6. Pumpkin Jack by Will Hubell

Book: The first pumpkin Tim ever carved was fierce and funny, and he named it Jack. When Halloween was over, and the pumpkin was beginning to rot, Tim set it out in the garden and throughout the weeks, he watched it change.

Project: Make your own Pumpkin Jack! Carve a pumpkin and let it rot. Investigate what happens!

7. 10 Orange Pumpkins by Stephen Savage

Book: From a sneaky spider to a ghostly chef to a sly mummy and crafty witch, join your favorite spooky creatures as ten orange pumpkins disappear in a countdown to a Halloween surprise.

Project: Stack pumpkins 10 tall! What can you use for pumpkins? Mini pumpkins, cut-up pool noodles, bottle caps? Make your pumpkins and practice counting skills. Check out our apple stacking activity!

Pair this book with a simple pumpkin sensory bin!

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Alternatively, use a classic pumpkin candy or pumpkin chunks with toothpicks to build structures. Check out more ways to build structures.

Bonus: Pumpkin Art & Crafts

Click on each image below to enjoy this season’s pumpkin art and craft projects. Each pumpkin activity includes a free printable, too! 

Explore More Fall Science

Click on the images below for more Fall theme science activities.

Printable Pumpkin STEM Pack

Perfect for K-2/3rd Grade and homeschool! Many activities can be modified for preschool and older kiddos as well. 

Pumpkin is a festive and classic theme for fall and this pack is perfect for exploring pumpkins with a non-Halloween theme! Includes science, STEM, engineering, early math, and art projects.

The kids will have a blast trying 100+ pages of “totally doable” projects! Read more here.

Printable Pumpkin Preschool Pack

Need a younger version of our Pumpkin STEM Project Pack? Perfect for older toddlers and preschoolers to explore pumpkins this fall season. 14+ Pumpkin theme activities include instructions, templates, and a great book list.

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