End of the year activity: watermelon

Looking for a good end-of-the-year activity as the school year comes to a close? The end of the year can get to be quite challenging in a special education setting. While many other classes are having parties and cookouts, we struggle to maintain some sense of normalcy because we know, without it, our kids truly struggle. And with the end of this year looking and feeling so different, with some of us still doing distance learning or a mix of both, it can be even more challenging to keep your students engaged and eager to learn.

But, that does not mean we have to be boring, or can’t have fun!! Doing a unit on watermelon is a great end-of-the-year activity and a way to maintain your normal teaching routine without the pressure of particularly difficult content. Learning about watermelon can be meaningful, and it is easy to help our kids make personal connections to the material.

1. End-of-the-year activities in language arts?

There are some really cute books out there that talk about watermelons. I found a great list with good descriptions you can read HERE. If you check out my unit on Watermelons, you’ll find a link to a read-aloud of The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli. There is also a related activity. You can see my complete unit HERE.

Here are some good read-alouds to look for. I linked to a YouTube video if one was available:

• The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli
• One Watermelon Seed by Celia Lottridge
• Watermelon Day by Kathi Appelt
• Watermelon Wishes by Lisa Moser
• Peter Spit a Seed at Sue by Jackie French Koller
• Chasing Watermelons by Kevin White
• Icy Watermelon | Sandia fria by Mary Sue Galindo
• Watermelon for Everyone by Martha Rose Woodward
• Chestnut Cove by Tim Egan
• The Enormous Watermelon

2. End-of-the-year activities in math?

There are some great end-of-the-year math activities you can do with watermelon seeds. Of course, today it is harder to find a watermelon with seeds, but if you can, pass a slice to each student and have them count the seeds. I have a counting activity in my watermelon unit. That way, you can still practice counting seeds even if you cannot find a variety that is NOT seedless.

There are also great measurement activities you can do. Measure the circumference or measure the length. If you have a big enough scale, you can even weigh your watermelon.

3. End-of-the-year activities in science?

This is my favorite end-of-the-year watermelon activity. You can teach students how they grow from a seed into a fruit. You can also teach how some fruits grow on trees, and others grow on vines.

In science, we can also talk about the flavors of different fruits. Some are sweet, and some are sour. This complements any lesson on the senses, and, of course, a taste test is the best way to compare the sweetness of watermelon to the sourness of a lemon.

4. Life Skills?

Finally, we can weave watermelon into our life skills lessons even at the end of the year. How do you safely prepare a watermelon? What parts do you normally eat vs discard? Why do some people put salt on their watermelon?

Then, there are so many different ways you can prepare watermelon. In fact, I have the perfect picture recipe for Watermelon Smoothies, which you can download below for FREE.

Get your FREE picture recipe for watermelon smoothies here.

 Free Smoothie Recipe

If you are looking for more resources on watermelons, CLICK HERE to check out this unit in my store (print and digital activities included).