A Pumpkin Unit: An Integrated Project

MT: So, Kim, do you have a memorable early experience with computers?

Kim: This is going to sound kind of crazy, but my second year of teaching, probably 1984, someone placed a computer in our teachers' lounge. And there was just one program on it -- something about answering questions to find out how long you were going to live. And I said, "Ummm, a computer. Let me see this." And I answered the questions and it came out that I was living to the age of 84.

MT: Do you think some sly administrator thought this was a very non-intimidating computer experience for teachers?

Kim: Maybe so. But I just have always been interested in computers; we had an old Commodore 64 at home. And my husband would do a lot of his word processing on that. Then I picked it up from him. He had taken a course in college and I didn't. Most importantly I used it as a word processor because I don't have to retype it and it's like a saving grace. I just have always been interested. I'm a curious person by nature ñ just always been real interested in technology and always been real interested in the latest, the next, the new.

If something new would come out on the block and could be anything in education -- I would probably say, "I want to try it ." Because I want to find out about it, and I'm not afraid to learn. The fear of the unknown does not bother me because I feel there is just so much unknown. And going out there and finding out as much as I can probably is just curiosity and just like the computer in that lounge, "Oh, wow, I'm living to 84?" I just thought that was the neatest program.

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MT: How has using technology changed your teaching?

Kim: It has changed the way I teach because every time that I go to begin a new unit I go first to the Internet. No matter what unit I'm on or in, I first go to the Internet because I want the most current information and what's out there. Today one of the students said that the airplane was the most important invention, and he said that Wilbur and Orville Wright were the inventors of the airplane. And I said did you ever hear of Dr. Langley? And he said, "No, who is he?" And I said he actually was the first one to create an unmanned airplane and then the Wright Brothers got the idea from him. But you never hear about him. And I thought, "Well, I got that off the Internet."

You can get so much information on the Internet, and you just have to choose from that information what you what to work with. I think of it as a tool for me for word processing. But more than anything and and that's whatís important to me is how and I have changed enough to allow my kids to grow in the area of technology. I have this student at Broadway who loves Kid Pix Studio. So on Fridays I let him work with that program. But the first day I let him play. The next day I gave him an assignment. And he looked at me, "Gosh, Mrs. Price." And I said, " You have to create a product. You know, you have all of those tools and you have to create something for me." And he said, "Gosh, you're trying to make it hard." But it is a tool and it's not a toy. A lot of educators seem to think it is, and it saddens me that they still don't know how to use technology. I know the reason why and lack of training.

And in some cases a lack of self-initiative because there are so many computers in the schools today. That computer in the lounge in 1984 was the only one in the school. And it was in our lounge and I guess in a subliminal kind of a way it was like let's get the teachers to try it out and feel comfortable with it.

MT: What's been your biggest success with technology?

Kim: I think maybe it's the spread sheet. I use it with the pumpkin unit that I have done. I take the kids down to the computer lab so I'm teaching everybody at the exact same time how to do a spreadsheet. I give them all the information for the spreadsheet, and, finally, I give them a formula for averaging. Then I always say, "Oh now where are those calculators. Oh, man, I forgot them. They're back in the room. I really need to go back and get them." And I go, "Oh no, that's right. I can use the computer. I can use the spreadsheet caluculation." So I play this up. I show them how to, first of all, average. And then I normally tell them to put in the formula and scroll up so they collect all the information. Then it averages and they go, "Wow." I remember the first time. the kids were like, "This is magic. Do something else. Show us something else." They couldn't believe that we didn't have to input all of those numbers. And I said you did. Itís just like using the caluculator. You just told the computer what to do. And so they were all so fascinated with that.

MT: You do have a dramatic flair, Kim. [Students in Kim's AG class had been finishing up a lesson on inventions and becoming inventors themselves.] You know, I was so surprised that nobody listed computers as the greatest invention.

Kim: I was shocked that nobody did. In fact, I was a bit disappointed because the telephone was one of the first inventions we talked about in our discussion. And where did they all go?

MT: Back to the telephone. Well, it plays such an important role in their lives.

Kim: I guess so. I know those sixth graders spend a lot of time on the phone. [Laughter.] Sometimes children donít go outside the boxes.

MT: Well, maybe once they have had more experience with computers they will move beyond the boxes. Iíve heard that it is predicted that the computer will make as big a difference in human history as the printing press.

Kim: Oh, yea! I believe that.

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MT: Tell me something about how using technology may have affected the social interaction in your classroom and how you work with kids; how kids work with each other. Have you seen any changes that have come about? Planned or unplanned?

Kim: The good thing is if one child catches on then she will go to the next child and say, "She said get on this line; she wanted you to change the font. She wanted you to change the font size." And so forth. Immediately you see cooperative learning going on without your even planning for it to happen. They work cooperatively with each other. The biggest thing for educators is that they have to accept the level of talking that goes on because they just don't sit there and type it. They say, "Did you see what I did. Oh,man! Watch what I can do."

MT: Isn't that funny? Because you know the greatest criticism for awhile was that kids are going to become little robotics because they are stuck at these computers and they are going to be quite and they are not going to need human teachers or human contact. And I think that's very . . .

Kim: Very untrue [Laughter.]

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MT: What programs do you use most?

Kim: I only really need Microsoft Works so I can do word processing and spreadsheets and HyperStudio. I'm really product-oriented. I like products. I like for children to invest their time in a product because for me thatís where the true comprehension takes over. Everybody can read and answer this question but now can you create something from what youíve read. And to me. I try to look at my unit and say okay I want to use technology here. How can I use it. So I'm always trying to figure out how I can incorporate it. I pretty much just find a way to use it much like you use a pencil or scissors.

MT: Sounds like it fits very naturally.

Kim: It is very natural for me and it's the first thing I think of. When I'm working on a new unit, it's the first thing I think of.

MT: So tell me about this pumpkin unit? Everything that you think would be helpful to a teacher who sees this pumpkin unit on the web and go, "Let me try that."

Kim: It can be massive. It just depends on how much time you want to spend on it. I tend to spend longer than the normal person because I'm so interested in it.

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MT: How did you get interested in pumpkins?

Kim: I have no idea.

MT: It was that curiosity of yours!

Kim: That's right. It started a long time ago. Probably seven or eight years ago. I had taken course called Teach Stat. It was a course that all of the nine universities had, and it was on teaching elementary teachers to teach statistics in their math programs.

MT: Oh, I've met other teachers who have spoken of that staff development.

Kim: You do everything from A to Z with stat. Before then I had already done a pumpkin unit before but Tech Stat changed it a great deal. I took it over the summer, and when I came back I thought, "Well, what kind of a unit am I going to do?" Normally I think all summer long, and by August I write down what units I want to accomplish throughout the year. I came up with the pumpkin unit. And I thought, "Now students really liked that last year. I think I'm going to try it again." And I just started coming up with questions. You look at a pumpkin, and you think, "Well, what can I do with a pumpkin?" There are a lot of skills that you can cover. One of them is circumference. Thatís a skill that grades 4 through 7 have to have. Why not take the cirumference of a pumpkin and measure it? One of our lowest skills is always measuring. What else can I have my students measure? You could measure the weight of a pumpkin. That particular year, I decided to make it very real. We went out to a pumpkin farm. I took all the scales and all the measuring tapes. I had all of the kids divided up in groups with a parent to help each group. I had convinced this farmer to let us come visit his pumpkin patch. And it was so wonderful! The children were so excited. I had marked off the area the day before. Poor Farmer Jackson! Once they had finished in the field there was not much left, Iím afraid. [Laughter.] But the kids were so excited. They measured circumference while the pumpkins were still on the vine. They weighed the pumpkins. Oh, it was funny.

MT: Did you videotape this? [Laughter.]

Kim: No, I took a lot of pictures. It was just a really great unit. It was all about measuring. You measure circumference you measure weight. When even measured the temperature when we were out there. We measured the temperature before we left school. We had to drive about ten miles and we measure the temperature again. We measured this distance from our school to that pumpkin patch. We measure the time it took to get from the school to that pumpkin patch. So the students had this big work sheet with a lot of different measurements to do. Then, of course, we had to do these graphs. And they were so nice. I think the superintendent, who had not been hired at the time, came through our hallway when I had all of these graphs with the range, mode, medium, and mean. And had all of these pictures. And he asked, Who is the teacher who does all of this?" And my principal said, "Oh, that's Kim Price." And eventually we did meet ñ when he presented me with the math teacher of the year award for our system. And he just said, "I love all of your graphs. They are so incredible." And he said, "You know I have watched you graphs. I enjoyed coming through here about once a month and seeing the new ones."

MT: Oh, didn't that make you feel good?

Kim: Yea, but you know, I'm just doing my job.

MT: But it's nice to be appreciated.

Kim: Yes, it's nice to be appreciated. When I added the technology part in the pumpkin unit, I would always "cheat." I would always use the program called Mac Stat and race to beat the kids in doing the calculating. They would have all their information and I would be back there at the computer, and Iíd say, "Ok, I'm done" And with Mac Stat I would have all of the measures of central tendency almost immediately. And they would say, "How did you know that?" One of the computer competencies for sixth grade is the spreadsheet. And I said, "Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding." [Motions excitedly.] "Spreadsheet here I come." So I took my unit and we measured circumference; we measured the weight. I even made them figure out the cost. The question I would pose is, "Can you describe the typical pumpkin?" And with seventh grade, I made them figure out the diameter. We take all the pumpkins that everybody brought in, and we line them up from smallest to greatest to find the mediam. It's a hands-on kind of thing. I think one reason Iím so into the pumpkin unit is because it's hands-on. I like manipulating because that's one of the ways I learned. Probably the reason why I like computers is because I am sitting there manipulating something. Iím touching and I'm feeling it and I'm not just reading it and picking up my pencil and going [makes writing motion.] Probably because itís so tactile to me.

MT: Yes, and very visually sensory, too.

Kim: Yes, and probably that turns my mind on. But in addition to the math, I added in creative writing. The students have to write stories for primary students. We had a primary school right below us. And we would walk down the hill, and we would read the books. This year we read to the kindergarten class. I have some pictures up there [motioning to bulletin board]. The children came back, and they were so elated to have an audience. And they were just like, "Wow!" I know, you think these children are academically gifted, and they have done it all. But they really felt adult; they really felt good about doing this. What happens is that these kids are older and the younger kids will ask, "You drew that?" "This is your story?" "You're the author?" And so that part of the unit has been very successful. The kids feel so good! Another part is the social studies. I had a wonderful partner a couple of years ago in middle school, and she had found the relative location where pumpkins grow the most in North America. Then she said, "Let's find a country in Europe that will probably grow the same pumpkin crop." So out of that came an prompt for a sixth grade paper: "You were a farmer in America who grew pumpkins and you are going to Europe to a certain country in Europe and you are going to tell them about the benefits of growing pumpkins."

So it's a real integrated unit that goes with the reading part, the writing part, the math, the science part of it. What I've always wanted to do, but we have never gotten a chance to do, is to grow a pumpkin patch. I spoke with my principal here, and I said, "You know, I really would like to till up some soil in June and plant a pumpkin field." So that when my fifth graders next year come they will already have a field.

MT: Farmer Jackson's patch will be safe.

Kim: Yea, that's right but this year I got really lucky. I had a grocery store and another farmer who donated the pumpkins. We didn't even go to the field. They donated them. And I thought, did Farmer Jackson talk to you or something? But it has just grown. It's really a good integrated unit and that it goes to math, it goes to science, it goes to the writing, to the reading.

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MT: Tell me about the parent or family involvement aspect of it. It sound like great PR for your school.

Kim: Oh, yea, we feed the entire school. the other math part is that you have to cook a recipe. You have to create a recipe or get a recipe that includes pumpkin. It can be the the most simple one or it can be the most complex. And we say, "You're invited to a Pumpkin Festival." So their parents are invited in and their teachers are invited in. There is so much pumpkin to eat. You would be amazed! One memorable recipe was the "Turkey Pumpkin Bake"

-- inside the pumpkin and turkey, string beans, onions, and other vegetables.

It was delicious. And so we have this big pumpkin feast and you know it really works out well. The Internet has hundreds of recipes, too. And so much information about pumpkins. But when you do your search, be sure to type in "gourd + pumpkin." Because when you put in just pumpkins and you get Smashing Pumpkins, the rock group. [Laughter.] That is really it in a nutshell. The pumpkin unit is just a wonderfully integrated unit that anybody could do.

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