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Florence teachers use Halloween to engage students in learning

Florence teachers use Halloween to engage students in learning

FLORENCE, Alabama (WAFF) – Teachers organized a pumpkin drive today in collaboration with the Florence Fire Department to engage students.

Students observed and recorded data as pumpkins fell from various heights.

Teachers said they wanted to provide students with a fun way to learn outside the classroom.

“I hope they learned that education and learning, it’s all a little more fun than they think,” explained history teacher Andrew Frank. “A middle school student doesn’t always see school as the most fun and entertaining place. That’s why I saw a lot of smiles and excitement today. The most important takeaway is that learning can be fun.”

The tallest pumpkin was thrown from a height of over 30 meters, right from the ladder of a fire truck. This lesson was mainly intended to explain gravitational potential energy. The pumpkin splatter pattern told students how many pumpkins they had at each distance.

Florence student Emma Jeffery said seeing the project in action helped her better understand the lesson.

“I like seeing visuals when I’m studying, so in science she gave us labs that helped us, but that really helped me like watching it,” student Emma Jeffery said.

Jeffery said the students were very pleased to see the project come to life with the Halloween aspect. She added that this is certainly one way to get rid of pumpkins after Halloween.

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