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United for Success Middle School
I'm a little pumpkin,
Orange and round
Here is my stem,
And there is my mound.
When I get all cut up,
I won't pout.
Just open me up
And scoop me out!
That's exactly what the United for Success girls did this Halloween. However, it would not be a Techbridge project without a scientific spin. The students had been learning about circuitry and soldering, so Program Coordinator Laura Enman engaged them in a project that would combine circuitry with a holiday twist. How better to use their circuitry knowledge than to light up a pumpkin! Goggle-laden and soldering irons in hands, the students created a simple circuit using AA batteries, an LED, and a switch to turn their pumpkins on and off.
After wiring the electronics of the pumpkin they had to create a jack-o-lantern to light up. Messy scooping and diligent cutting led their pumpkins to develop toothy grins and scary frowns, as well as a hole for the switch and room for the electronics inside. In the end, the girls put their knowledge about circuitry to work and created pumpkin masterpieces to take home and share with their families!


