Over the past week, our Reception children have been immersed in a heart-warming autumnal adventure inspired by the beloved story Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper. The children were captivated by the tale of Cat, Duck, and Squirrel and their journey of friendship, teamwork, and learning to share. Together, we explored the key themes of the story, particularly the importance of working together as friends and how being kind and thoughtful helps everyone feel happy and included. These discussions encouraged lots of wonderful ideas and reflections from the children, who were eager to share their own experiences of being good friends.
To everyone’s surprise, we then discovered a very special letter left behind in our classroom - from none other than the characters from Pumpkin Soup themselves! They asked for the children’s help with a very important task: to bake some delicious bread to go with their soup. With great excitement and plenty of enthusiasm, the children rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into the task. We mixed, kneaded, and watched in amazement as our dough slowly began to rise. The kitchen team kindly baked our rolls into golden pumpkin shapes, ready to enjoy the next day.
But that wasn’t the end of the surprise! When the children returned the following day, they were astonished to discover a pot of freshly made pumpkin soup had mysteriously appeared in the classroom. Who could have delivered it? Could it really have been the characters from the story? Surely, we would have seen them - or did they sneak in quietly? The mystery deepened when we began to find clues around the garden! With magnifying glasses in hand, the children set off to investigate and made some exciting discoveries: footprints in the sand, a few scattered feathers, some scratches on the climbing frame, a piece of string (perhaps from Cat's playtime?), and even a bowl and spoon! These mysterious clues inspired our literacy task for the week - writing a thank you note to the characters for their delicious soup. The children have loved putting their ideas into words and sharing their theories about what might have happened.
This wonderful cross-curricular experience has not only brought the story of Pumpkin Soup to life, but also supported learning in literacy, teamwork, problem-solving, and sensory exploration. We can’t wait to see where our next adventure takes us... could the characters return? Or will they write to us again?
One thing’s for sure - in Reception, there’s always a little magic waiting just around the corner!
