Get ready for a delightful fall adventure with The Berenstain Bears and the Prize Pumpkin readaloud by the talented duo Stan and Jan Berenstain. Join the lovable bear family as they journey through a pumpkin-growing experience filled with competition, teamwork, and valuable life lessons. Enjoy listening to the read-aloud of The Berenstain Bears and the Prize Pumpkin below. Then stick around for fun pumpkin crafts and free pumpkin coloring sheets!
In this charming tale, Papa, Brother, and Sister Bear sign up for the small town’s annual giant pumpkin contest, hoping to grow the biggest pumpkin ever. But as they face bigger-than-a-pumpkin challenges, they quickly realize that winning isn’t the only thing that matters.
Through their experience, young readers will learn the importance of perseverance, cooperation, and the true spirit of Thanksgiving.
With its vibrant illustrations, engaging storyline, and relatable characters, this book promises to be a hit among parents, teachers, and children.
So, grab your pumpkin seeds and get ready for an adventure packed with heartwarming moments and a valuable lesson perfect for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.
The Berenstain Bears Prize Pumpkin ReadAloud
I love how The Berenstain Bears and the Prize Pumpkin is such a great story for that transition time between Halloween and Thanksgiving.
It offers a refreshing perspective on pumpkins, allowing children to appreciate their beauty without the pressure of carving them into jack-o-lanterns. This is a wonderful way to extend the Halloween spirit while also embracing the upcoming season of gratitude and thankfulness.
The story offers a much-needed break from the frantic shopping days of Christmas, reminding children and adults alike to slow down and enjoy some wholesome fun. It gently encourages readers to reflect on the meaning of gratitude and appreciate all that they have.
After reading this heartwarming tale, children can engage in a variety of pumpkin-themed crafts to further explore the book’s themes. One idea is to try no-carve pumpkin decorating, where children can use paint, stickers, and other craft materials to transform pumpkins into unique works of art. This activity allows them to express their creativity while also appreciating the natural beauty of pumpkins.
Another fun craft idea is making pumpkin suncatchers, where children can use orange and yellow tissue paper to create beautiful translucent pumpkins that can be hung in windows to catch the sunlight.
Next, children can enjoy making pumpkin play dough, using orange food coloring and pumpkin pie spices to create a sensory experience that celebrates the season.
Finish off the fall crafting activities with free printable pumpkin pictures to color!
These crafts not only provide a hands-on activity for children but also serve as a reminder of the book’s message of gratitude and thankfulness.
Let’s get started!
No-Carve Pumpkin Decorating Craft
- Age range: 5-12 years old
- Time required: 45 minutes
Craft Supplies needed:
- Small pumpkins
- Craft supplies such as paints, markers, glitter, stickers, ribbon, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, pom poms, sequins, yarn, bottle caps, buttons, and any other desired decorations
- Glue, glitter glue, decorative tape
Directions:
- Gather a variety of craft supplies for pumpkin decorating.
- Let the child choose their desired decorations and help them decorate the pumpkins.
- Encourage creativity and guide as needed.
- When the children feel their work is complete, display the uniquely decorated pumpkins as festive fall decorations.
Pumpkin Suncatchers Craft
- Age range: 4-10 years old
- Time required: 40 minutes
Craft Supplies needed:
- Orange and green tissue paper
- Contact paper or transparent adhesive film
- Scissors
- Hole puncher
- Ribbon or string
Instructions:
- Cut the orange tissue paper into small squares or shapes.
- Cut the green tissue paper into small stems or leaf shapes.
- Next, you’ll cut two pieces of contact paper or transparent adhesive film in pumpkin-shaped outlines.
- Peel off one side of the contact paper or adhesive film and lay it sticky-side up.
- Demonstrate to your kiddo how to arrange the orange tissue paper squares onto the sticky surface, covering the pumpkin shape. The green tissue paper can be used on the top of the pumpkin, for the leaves and stem.
- Once finished, peel off the backing of the other piece of contact paper or adhesive film and carefully place it sticky-side down onto the tissue paper arrangement.
- Use a scissors to trim the excess contact paper or adhesive film around the edges of the pumpkin.
- Punch a hole at the top of the pumpkin and tie a ribbon or string through it for hanging.
- Finally, hang the bright and colorful pumpkin suncatchers on a window where sunlight can shine through.
*Helpful Hint: If you don’t have contact paper, wax paper can also be used for the pumpkin suncatchers:
Alternative Instructions for Pumpkin Suncatchers Using Wax Paper and an Iron:
Craft Materials you’ll need:
- Wax paper
- Tissue paper (orange, green, and any other desired colors)
- Scissors
- Pencil or marker
- Glue stick
- Iron (with adult supervision)
- String or ribbon
- Hole punch
Instructions:
Step 1: Clear a flat surface and gather all the materials needed for this craft.
Step 2: Using a pencil or marker, draw a pumpkin shape on a piece of wax paper. You can either freehand the shape or find a template online to trace.
Step 3: Carefully cut out the pumpkin shape from the wax paper. This will serve as the base for your suncatcher.
Step 4: Next, cut your orange tissue paper into small squares or rectangles. The size of the squares can vary, but around 1-2 inches should work well.
Step 5: Apply a thin layer of glue all over the pumpkin-shaped wax paper. Make sure to cover the entire surface.
Step 6: Press the orange tissue paper squares onto the glue-covered wax paper until the entire pumpkin shape is covered.
Step 7: Cut small squares or rectangles from the green tissue paper. Apply glue to the top of the pumpkin shape and stick the green tissue paper pieces to create the stem
Step 8: Allow the glue to dry completely, around 15-20 minutes, depending on the type of glue used.
Step 9: Once the glue is dry, carefully trim off any excess wax paper around the edges of the pumpkin shape.
Step 10: With adult supervision, place a clean sheet of wax paper over the pumpkin suncatcher and iron it on low heat. The heat will melt the wax slightly, sealing the tissue paper inside. Be careful not to leave the iron in one spot for too long to avoid burning the wax paper.
Step 11: Once the wax has cooled and hardened, cut out the pumpkin shape from the wax paper, following the outline you initially drew.
Step 12: Finally, punch a hole at the top of the pumpkin suncatcher and thread a string or ribbon through it to create a hanging loop.
Now your pumpkin suncatcher is complete! Hang it near a window or in a sunny spot to enjoy the beautiful colors when the sunlight shines through.
Pumpkin Playdough Craft
- Age range: 2-10 years old
- Time required: 15 minutes
Supplies needed:
- Orange playdough (store-bought or homemade, see recipe below!)
- Green pipe cleaners or craft foam
- Optional: Googly eyes, buttons, or other decorations
- Optional: green and black play dough for face and stem
Directions:
- Provide the child with orange playdough.
- Encourage them to mold and shape the playdough into pumpkin forms.
- Assist them in adding a stem using a green pipe cleaner or craft foam.
- Optional: Decorate the playdough pumpkins with googly eyes, buttons, or any other desired decorations.
- Let the child play and explore with their pumpkin playdough creations.
Tip: For an extra special boost of spicy pumpkin scent, try adding a few drops of Woolzies 100% Pure & Natural Holiday Pumpkin Pie Essential Oil Blend to your Pumpkin Spice Play Dough recipe! (** Only for children old enough to not try eating the dough!)
This pumpkin spice essential oil blend combines cinnamon, clove and nutmeg to give that yummy fall scent to not only play dough, but room diffusers and homemade body products, as well. Try it in a sugar scrub you make at home, then make extras to share as holiday gifts! See directions for making sugar scrub, here:
Pumpkin Spice Play Dough
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup salt
- 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- Orange food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, cream of tartar and pumpkin pie spice.
- In a small bowl, combine the boiling water and oil.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 3-5 minutes, or until it is smooth and elastic.
- If desired, add a few drops of orange food coloring to the dough and knead until the color is evenly distributed.
- Store the playdough in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. If it is too dry, add more water.
- To make the playdough extra soft, add a tablespoon of cornstarch.
- To make the playdough extra glittery, add a few drops of glitter glue.
Free Printable Coloring Sheets and Craft
Thank you for reading “The Berenstain Bears Prize Pumpkin Readaloud” blog post. I hope you enjoyed the story of the giant pumpkin contest and the valuable lessons on sportsmanship and Thanksgiving.
Have fun using the pumpkin craft activities with your kids and make this fall season unforgettable.
Don’t forget to grab your free printable pumpkin coloring pages by adding your email address in the form below. We appreciate your support and wish you a joyful fall and Thanksgiving season!
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