Hay River (Oct 27/03) - What is the perfect look for a jack-o'-lantern? Students in a Grade 1 class at Hay River's Harry Camsell School have definite ideas on the subject.

And they enthusiastically offered their opinions as teacher Pat Helmer carved a face into a gigantic 147-pound pumpkin on Oct. 22 as the class prepared for Halloween.

According to almost all the six-year-olds, a jack-o'-lantern has just got to be scary.

"I know a really good face," said Jesse Mackie.

"It's got to be a spooky, spooky face." Almost all his classmates shared that opinion.

So Helmer consented to the will of the majority and agreed the jack-o'-lantern would look spooky. "We'll make it a scary face," she told the class.

As she began to carve the massive pumpkin, the suggestions continued to come from her class, sitting excitedly around their teacher and the pumpkin.

One youngster suggested a scary mouth "with sharp teeth."

Others took up the scary mouth theme, with one opining the pumpkin should look like a vampire. That apparently puzzled another child, who noted, "I can't see the vampire teeth."

Only Martina Norn seemed to run counter to the scary theme for the jack-o'-lantern. "I want a happy smile," she said, in voicing the minority view.

However, there was unanimous agreement the pumpkin needed a triangle nose.

There was tangible excitement in the class, even 'oohs' and 'aahs', as Helmer cut the first eye hole into the pumpkin, and a scary face actually began to take shape.

Jack-o'-lantern 'Wolf'

Helmer used the carving session to educate the children on the history of the jack-o'-lantern, explaining people once used them to help see in the dark.

"They didn't have electricity, so they used them for light."

Prior to the carving, the kids took turns scooping out the pulp inside the pumpkin, which was donated to the school by the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development.

The pulp was to be made into two pumpkin cakes for the class.

The kids also decided on a name for the jack-o'-lantern. They rejected such monikers as 'Ghost' and 'Vampire', settling instead for 'Wolf'. "That's the final winner," said Helmer. "I don't know how that ties in, but that's what they chose."