A few days before Halloween, out for a stroll with the dogs, I observed two girls–about nine years old–constructing a DIY pumpkin coach.  Seated on a house’s front steps and using the porch as a workbench, they toiled away, surrounded by a giant pumpkin, an assortment of knives, a well-used skateboard, half a roll of duct tape, a pair of scissors, six Barbies (in party clothes), a green mixing bowl, a ball of yarn, a majestic team of plastic horses, and a stack of newspaper.

As the girls shouted greetings to the dogs. I asked the obvious question: Are you building a pumpkin coach so the Barbies can get to the Halloween Ball?

“How’d you know,” asked girl one.

“Just a guess,” I answered.

“Finding all the stuff we needed took forever,” girl two shared.

They shared a bit more about their coach-building plans and asked if the dogs could be convinced to pull it.

After confiding that I would love to see my pups pull their DIY pumpkin coach, I admitted they were not well-behaved enough for such an honor and would probably try to eat the Barbies. Agreeing we best not try the experiment, they decided to make do with the horses.

I wanted to stay, watch, help with the engineering, and see the final product. More than that, I didn’t want to interrupt their play, creativity, exploration, and learning any more than I had already. I wished them luck and hit the bricks.

DIY Pumpkin Coach Wrap Up

One way we adults can support DIY pumpkin coach creation and other creativity is to ensure kids have ready access to a wide variety of supplies and loose parts, so it doesn’t take ‘forever’ to amass the needed gear.

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