Pumpkin Geography    During the month of October, I take advantage of the pumpkin harvest to bring hands-on geography to my students. After spending a month becoming familiar with the location of the seven continents and the major bodies of water, each student is given a pumpkin to turn into a globe. Students paint the entire surface of the pumpkin blue to represent water. Next, they use pushpins to position and trace the outline of each continent onto their pumpkins. They use actual globes as models and are careful to place the continents in the correct hemisphere. Then they paint and label each continent a different color. They label the major bodies of water and use white paint to represent the North and South Poles. While they work on their globes, I take pictures using the digital camera. We complete this project by importing the pictures and adding text on the computer to make a class book titled 'Pumpkin Geography,' which we all enjoy enormously. (If you want to see more of the finished product, click on the picture. Cherise Croff Perry, Ohio

If you happen to live in Florida where the leaves do not turn colors, ask someone to mail you some from up north.   Have them laminated and the colors will last for years.
Chris Gulotta
Tallahassee FL

Fall Tree Bulletin Board
Paint or cut out a tree and place on bulletin board.  Paint the children's hands a fall color and press on and around tree to make leaves.
Bobbi Hammett
Tallahassee, FL

Red Ribbon Week Ideas
Here are some ideas of activities to do during Red Ribbon Week which is a 'Just Say No To Drugs' program during the last week of October:
 (1) Have students trace one of their feet on red paper, cut it out, and sign it. Then, glue the feet on a huge white banner and spell out the words 'Take A Stand Against Drugs' with the feet.
(2) Have students participate in a Planting of Promises. Ask a local nursery to donate several hundred red tulip bulbs and bulb food. Have the students plant a piece of paper with a promise to be drug free. On top of the paper, plant the bulb and the bulb food. In the spring, there will be a beautiful garden of red tulips to remind the students of the promise they made. Purple crocuses can also be planted among the tulips to spell out the word NO.
(3) Get a local grocery store to donate paper grocery bags. Have the students decorate them with a 'Say No to Drugs' slogan and return them to the grocery store to be used.
Michelle Welch , Bakesfield, California
Karen Lovell , Huntsville, Alabama: