Do you like Pumpkin Latte?

Imagine going to your local coffee shop and this was the only drink on offer during October and November because it’s Autumn/ Fall? I know I for one would be really fed up because I love a latte but am not interested in one tasting of pumpkin and I really dislike the taste of cinnamon.

Just because it’s pumpkin spiced latte season it doesn’t mean that that should be the only choice. Agree?

Now let’s take that analogy and think about Autumn and pumpkins. Pumpkins (or any other theme) should not be the only experience on offer. Just because we ‘do’ pumpkins in October not every child will be interested in them. We all have different tastes and likes- some children will love all things pumpkin, others will not. Ensure you offer other natural resources of the season, such as conkers and autumn leaves. Listen to the children, observe them. The children should be the ones who determine the invitations on offer whether it is Autumn or not.

If the invitation doesn’t entice children to come and explore then we need to think why not? Was it because it appealed to the adults, because an adult had set it up with no regard to what the children have been showing or telling them about their current interests or fascinations?

Let’s pause and consider WHY we offer certain invitations and provocations to learning. 

Do you have a child who has a transformational schema and loves watching things transform and change ?

Maybe children just want to experiment with pipettes and colours ?

Maybe you have children that have  containment schema and just like to fill and empty ? They love exploring MUD ?

Let’s not get caught up in the theme of pumpkin crazy and remember we all have different tastes, interests and urges 

This blog was written by Diane Hetherington and collaboration with Stephanie Bennett