Ways to reuse or recycle your Halloween decor
What happens to all the pumpkins people use to decorate their homes in the fall? Most end up in landfills, where they break down and release gases that are bad for the environment. Here’s what you can do instead of tossing your pumpkin in the trash!
Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/AP Images (Lion Cub); Courtesy of Hudson River Park Trust (Smash); Shutterstock.com (All Other Images)
1. Compost It
Pumpkins make great compost—rich soil made from food scraps and natural waste that helps plants grow. You can throw your pumpkin into your compost bin at home or take it to a local composting center.
2. Smash It
Bring your pumpkin to a Pumpkin Smash event, where people dump their pumpkins in a pile and smash ’em to bits! The smashed pumpkins are then turned into compost.
3. Donate It
Ask local farmers if they want to use your pumpkin as food or toys for their animals. Zoos may take pumpkins too!
4. Eat It
If your pumpkin is still fresh, you can roast its seeds with a pinch of salt for a yummy snack. Or roast and blend your pumpkin to make puree, which can be used to make pancakes.
5. Plant It
Plant pumpkin seeds to grow another pumpkin. You can use it to make a jack-o’-lantern next year instead of buying a new one!
Write to Win
It’s the day after Halloween, and your friend has leftover pumpkins. Write your friend a letter explaining what they can do with the pumpkins instead of throwing them away. Use ideas from the infographic and add your own! Send it to “Pumpkin Contest” by December 1, 2022. Five winners will each receive a Storyworks prize. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.
This infographic was originally published in the October/November 2022 issue.
1. Reading and Discussing
Project the infographic as students follow along in their magazines.
Prompt students to use the headline, subhead, and central image to identify the topic of the infographic.
Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to
Have students look over the labels and images surrounding the central image. Ask:
Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, or convincing.
Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.
2. Writing
Preview the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box.
Download and distribute the guided-writing activity that goes along with the infographic.
Have students respond to the writing prompt. If you wish, send their responses to our infographic contest.
3. Ideas to Engage and Inspire
Have students create their own infographics! Download our “Make Your Own Infographic” activity from Storyworks Digital.
