How many seeds in a pumpkin?

The anticipation of cutting open a pumpkin to see the transformation to a jack-o-lantern is a favorite yearly activity. Touching the “slimy” inside and watching the faces of the children is priceless. The next day after cleaning and drying the seeds, the counting begins! Following predictions of how many seeds are inside, the students use their math skills of counting by tens to chart the actual number of seeds. Repeatedly placing 10 seeds into cups, then placing the seeds into squares on the chart, the students calculated the final count of 481 seeds inside our carved pumpkin!  This count well surpassed the 100 to 200 seed predictions by students and staff.  ​