Visiting a Hat Shop

Visit a hat store or shop. You can look at the different varieties of hats (shape, size, color, style, etc), and talk about or ask about what different uses the hats have.
We really lucked out on our field trip. I found a neat little hat shop, where this man custom makes hats for people. There were lots of styles and shapes he could make. This is an old art that is dieing out, but this man is still practicing. It was so interesting and neat for the adults and the kids. We all learned a lot about hats!

He uses this tool to measure the size and shape of someone's head, so that the hat he makes for them fits them perfectly.

Starting the hat shaping process.

The hat on the right is the base that he starts from and the hat on the left is the finished product.

At the shop. What a fun and interesting trip we had!

“Weather” or Not to Wear a Hat

Discuss the different kinds of hats that are worn in different types of weather (hot, cold, sunny, rainy, windy, snowy,..). Ask questions, such as “What parts of our body does a hat keep warm?”, “How does a hat keep us cool?” “What type of hat would we wear in the rain?”

Caps For Sale Dramatization

Read the story "Caps For Sale" with your children. Act out the story with different hats that you provide,follow one child, the others throw their caps down when the main actor throws his cap on the floor all of the other children do the same and then they pick them up as a class).

"Caps! Caps for sale! Fifty cents a cap!"

"You monkeys, you, you give me back my caps!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk!"

Hat Bean Bag Toss

Lay several large hats on the floor upside-down. Encourage the children to stand about two feet from the hats and try to throw bean bags in the hats.

Hat Textures

Provide several different types of hats and wigs for the children to explore. Encourage them to feel the different textures and to describe how differently they feel when they wear them on their heads.

Custom Fit Hat

Place three pieces of newspaper around a child's head. Wrap masking tape above the child's ears three times, roll the newspaper up tightly to form the brim of the hat. Children can decorate their hats (paint, buttons, macaroni, feathers, glitter, etc). When they dry, the kids will have a fitted hat.

Three Cornered Hat

My hat it has three corners (point to head, hold up three fingers). Three corners has my hat (hold up three fingers, point to head). And had it not three corners (hold up three fingers). It would not be my hat (shake head, point to head).

Hat Muffins

Heat oven- 400° & grease muffin tins. Beat 1 egg. Stir in 3/4 c. milk, 1/2 c. vegetable oil, 1 Tbs grated orange peel, 1 c. cranberry halves. Stir in 2 c. flour, 1/3 cup sugar, 3 Tbs baking powder & 1 tsp salt all at once. Stir until moist. Fill cups very full, for a big top . Bake 20 minutes. Eat upside-down as hats.

Hat Store

Provide cash register, pretend money, purses, wallets, checkbooks, etc., and a variety of hat boxes and hats (firefighter hats, bonnets, top hats, hard hats, baby hats, graduation caps, cowboy hats, helmets, wigs, etc.) for the children to pretend play buying and selling in a hat store.

Hat Seriation and Grouping

Collect a variety of hats. The children can arrange them from smallest to largest and largest to smallest. Also, they can classify hats by the colors and uses.

Hats Journal Page

Talk about and explore the different materials that hats can be made out of. Provide magnifying glasses for the children to take a closer look at the materials and at the construction of the hat It might be fun to let the children try sewing with a needle and thread on some felt, with adult assistance.

Click on the image to view and/or print.

Hat Materials

Talk about and explore the different materials that hats can be made out of. Provide magnifying glasses for the children to take a closer look at the materials and at the construction of the hat. It might be fun to let the children try sewing with a needle and thread on some felt, with adult assistance.

Hats Lesson Plan

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Exploring Pumpkins

Carve pumpkins and explore the inside and outside of the pumpkin pointing out the different parts (stem, seeds, pulp, skin, meat, ribs, etc).

Pumpkin History

Read a book or talk about the history and uses of the pumpkin. Discuss how people compete to grow big pumpkins. The largest pumpkin ever grown was from seeds of the Dill's Atlantic Giant variety. It was 1,458 lbs. and grown by Bruce Whittier from Henniker, NH.

Roasting Pumpkin Seeds

Salt seeds, spread on a cookie sheet and bake 45 min. at 300°.

Five Little Pumpkins

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate, (hold hands up)

The first one said "oh my its getting late," (hands on cheeks)
The second one said "there's a chill in the air," (hug self)
The third one said "but we don't care," (shrug)
The fourth one said "we're ready for some fun," (jump)
The fifth one said "lets run, run, run," (run in place)
So woo went the wind, and out went the lights, (wave hands and clap)
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight (sit down).

Pumpkin Patch Trip

Visit a Pumpkin Patch and let the children observe how pumpkins grow and the many shapes and sizes of pumpkins there are. If possible, let each child pick out and purchase a pumpkin.

Pumpkin Muffins

1 package yellow cake mix
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.

Mix ingredients together and scoop into a greased muffin tin. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 350°.

Pumpkin Face

Take a paper plate and color a face on it with crayons. Paint over it with orange paint. Once it's dry, hang it with green yarn.

Pumpkin Puzzle

Clean out a real pumpkin and then cut various shapes out of the pumpkin to make a real pumpkin puzzle. Let the children explore taking the pumpkin apart and putting it back together again.

Pumpkin Toss

Take a few pumpkins, varying in size, and line them up. Give the kids some sort of ring that will fit over each pumpkin; such as a hula hoop, an embroidery hoop, or metal rings. Have the children take turns trying to toss the hoops over the pumpkins.

Pumpkins Sensory

Place in the sensory table: pumpkin seeds & measuring cups, insides of the pumpkin or straw and small rakes.

Pumpkins Journal Page

Read a book about pumpkins then hand out a journal sheet with this question on it: "If you had a pumpkin, what would you do with it?" Record the children's responses and let them draw a picture to go along with their response.

Click on the image to view and/or print.

Pretending Pumpkins

Create a pumpkin patch in your dramatic play area. Set out pumpkins (real or artificial), hay, wagons, etc. You can also create a store area where children can pretend to by the pumpkins they picked out from the pumpkin patch play area.

Pumpkin Seed Count

Make paper or plastic pumpkins with different numbers on them. Have the kids count pumpkin seeds and place them on the pumpkin with the correct number on it.

Pumpkins Lesson Plan

Click on the image to view and/or print.