Pumpkin Pre-Writing Activity with Chalk Markers

The  Virtual Book Club for Kids is featuring Five Little Pumpkins by Dan Yaccarino this week. We used chalk markers to paint pumpkins. The cool part is that you can erase the chalk and decorate the pumpkins again and again. This makes for a fantastic pumpkin pre-writing activity for preschoolers. Be sure to check out all of the pumpkin themed ideas at the end of the post. I get commissions for purchases made through the affiliate links in this post.

Five Little Pumpkins by Dan Yaccarino

Five Little Pumpkins is a classic Halloween rhyme and song. This board book version is great for little hands. Listen to the pumpkins and watch them roll away. My kids love reading it over and over again.

Pumpkin Pre-Writing Activity with Chalk Markers

Every year we head to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins. The kids always choose a big one and usually a little one or two. We also get pie pumpkins to make pies and cookies. (Pumpkin cookies are currently in the oven.)

We’ll carve pumpkins closer to Halloween, but today’s pumpkin pre-writing activity can be done without affecting the ones that will be carved. Chalk markers easily write on the pumpkins. And they easily wipe off. This means you can erase the chalk markers and draw again or erase the chalk and carve them. The only downside to the chalk markers is that little ones can erase your pumpkin art.

Let your child select a chalk marker to begin. Then, encourage her to draw on the pumpkins. What kinds of marks will you make? Can you make a straight line? How about an X? Can you make a circle or some dots.

Try following the lines of the pumpkin. Can you make stripes on your pumpkin? Try drawing other shapes or even letters.

Lily had so much fun erasing the pumpkins and drawing on them over and over. We found a wet paper towel erased the chalk markers more easily than dry one. The chalk also wipes off with your hands. Little brother erased a few of our masterpieces! I guess that just means we get to draw some more.

We also traced around the top of the pumpkin stem. Here’s the one I painted with chalk markers while Lily drew on hers. We thought it would be fun to add a giant googly eye.

Last year we played a Pumpkin Rocks Alphabet Matching game inspired by Five Little Pumpkins. It’s a fun way to practice letter recognition, letter sounds, or even spelling words.

More Activities from the Virtual Book Club for Kids

See more pumpkin themed activities inspired by Five Little Pumpkins:

Name Pumpkins on a Gate – Preschool Powol Packets
Dabber Pumpkin Count – My Storytime Corner
5 Little Pumpkins Playdough Counting Activity – Clare’s Little Tots
Healthy Jack O Lantern Snack – Messy Little Monster
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies – Mama Smiles
Stacking Pumpkins STEM Activity – The Educators’ Spin On It
Pumpkin Solar System- Teach Beside Me
Tracing Worksheets with a Pumpkin Theme by JDaniel4’s Mom
Puppet Craft Activity and Acting Out the Story – The Moments at Home
Pumpkin Shape Memory Game – Rainy Day Mum

Also stop by the Virtual Book Club for Kids Facebook group to see what others are sharing!

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