* Apple Mural
Cut out a lg apple shape from a lg paper roll.  Let the children do apple
printing on the shape during art time.  Use a variety of sizes and shapes
and
colors - red, green, yellow.  Tack apple print to wall and play a variety of
games with the mural.
         1 - count the apple prints
         2 - find the print that is the largest/smallest
         3 - find the print that is the darkest/lightest
         4 - do any of the shapes look the same/different?
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*Tissue Apples

Supplies:
•Round Balloons
•Vaseline
•Red Tissue Paper
•Diluted Glue (or liquid starch)

Inflate balloons to the size of an apple. Cut red tissue
paper into strips(about 1" by 4"). Cover the balloon with
a light coat of Vaseline. Dip stripsof tissue paper into
diluted glue, don't let them soak. Stick them onballoons.
These take about 24 hours to dry. When they are dry, you
can pop theballoon with a pin and remove the balloon.
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*Magic Picture - Make a stencil for apples and worms and let the student
make a rubbing over the  stencil with crayons to make the magic picture
appear.
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*Paper mache Apples

Blow up small balloons.  Tie a green
piece of yarn to the knot of the balloon.
Tear newspapers into narrow strips.
Dip the strips into paper mache mixture,
and have the children wrap the balloons
with the wet strips.  Hang the balloons
to dry. Once dry, have the children paint
the "apples" with red tempera paint, and
add a green construction paper leaf.
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*Ornamental Apples

Large Red Apples
Wire ornament hangers
Ground Cinnamon
Green and red ribbon
Paper towels
Wire coat hangers

1. Cut the apples into slices that
are about 3/8" thick.
2. Blot the slices on both sides with
the paper towel to absorb as much
juice as possible.
3. Sprinkle both sides with cinnamon.
4. Attach the wire ornament hanger to
the top of each slice.
5. Hang the slices from the wire coat
hangers in front of a sunny window until
they dry (about two or three days).
6. Tie a green or red ribbon bow around
the base of each hook and hang them from
the tree!
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*Make Dried Apple Wreaths.  Cut a  wreath
shape from cardboard. Glue dried apples rings around
the wreath overlapping them. Gather  some dried
flowers & leaves to fill in the wreath. Add a bow at
the top if you like.
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*Paper Plate Apples

Let the children paint the back sides
of paper plates red to make 'apple
halves.' When the paint has dried,
attach precut construction paper
leaves and stems. Then let the
children each glue a few apple seeds
in the centers of the white sides of
their plates. (Use seeds from other
activities in this unit.)
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*Apple
red strips of paper about 1 1/2 ins wide
green strip about 3 ins long and 1 in wide
brown strip about 2 ins long 1 in wide

Take the red strip of paper and bend the ends together.
should resemble an apple.  bend the green strip and add
to the apple.  DO NOT FOLD PAPER. then stick the brown
strip in the top.  then stick a stapler inside the
apple and staple.
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*APPLE COLLAGE - Small paper plate and a peice of red
paper children tear the paper into small pieces then glue
the pieces all over the plate add green paper stems and hang up.
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*FINGERPAINT APPLE - Use red, green or yellow to fingerpaint
an apple that has been cut out.
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*BARNEY TREE - Roll up crinkled old butcher paper from the
floor up to 3/4 of the wall take branches and extend it up
the wall and the ceiling, make handprints for leaves and
start out with green leaves... with palmprint apples next
month... green starts coming down a few of the yellow and orange
go up November - all green are gone and brown appears by
Dec brown only January no leaves and tree comes down.  To
make the apples for it paint only the palm of the child's
hand red cut out and post.
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*Mosaic Apples:

Great small motor.  The kids love tearing.
I usually do this with my 4-5's.  They
need small paper plates, scraps of red
construction paper, construction paper
apple stems or small twigs or pipecleaners,
whatever.  The kids tear the red paper
into small pieces and glue on the back
of the paper plate.  Top with a stem.
You can also add real apple seeds or
paper "seeds" on the other side of the
plate to make it seem more like a real
apple.
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*Spin art (old record player)

Spin a paper plate on the record player
while the child holds different colored
markers on for a great look. Then cut a
small wave on the top and bottom for an
apple look. Then, they pasted green leaves
and brown stem in the middle !
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*Paste a red apple shape with a smaller green
shape inside. Place an even smaller white apple
shape inside the green. Then, put apple seeds
in the middle with green leaves and brown stem.
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*Fingerprint Apples

Cut large apple shapes out of white
butcher paper.  Give each child an
apple shape and a small amount of
red fingerprint.  Let the children
paint the apple shapes. Attach precut
green leaves to the top of each apple
when the shapes have dried.
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*Apple Prints:

Cut some apples in half vertically and
others in half horizontally.  Show the
children the hidden star inside the
apples cut horizontally.  Pour small
amounts of red tempera paint onto
several sponges set in shallow containers.
Let the children dab the apple halves on
the sponges and then gently press the
apples on pieces of construction paper
to make prints.
When the child has made
as many prints as he wants, help
him dip his thumb into green paint
and make a thumbprint on the top of
each apple.  That is the stem.
(This is a great activity to follow the
story, "Little bear's star.)

Variation:  Instead of using tempera paint for
this, I use a fairly large red stamp
pad.  It dries more quickly.  I also
find if I cut the apple several minutes
before using it, it dries more and makes
a better print.  I also use a small
knife to "score" the star after cutting
the apple horizontally.  Just enough to
deepen the impression.
***********************************************************************
*Make a huge apple tree and have the children
make their own apples to go on the tree.
They can be green, yellow, pinkish, yellow
colored with red crayon, red, etc. to
represent the many types of apples.
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*Apple collages

Give each child a small paper plate
and a piece of red paper.  Let the
children tear their papers into
small pieces.  Then have them glue
the pieces all over their paper
plates.  Add green paper stems and
use the "apples" as room decorations.
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*Cut out green trees and have children
dip the fingers in red paint and dot
apples all over the tree.
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*Apple book

Cut a red construction paper cover and
newsprint pages into an apple shape.
As a group, make a book about apples
by having the children each dictate
a story for you to record on one of
the apple-shaped pages.  Let each
child illustrate his or her story.
Then staple the cover and pages
together to make an Apple book.
Variation:  Make a separate book
for each child's story.Another
variation:  Instead of a story,
have each child dictate one thing
they learned about apples.
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*Apple bag:

Apple
Plain canvas tote bag or
brown paper bag with handles
Red fabric paint
Used pie tin
Old newspaper
Paper towels

1. Cover the table with the old newspaper.
2. Have a parent cut your apple in half.
3. Use the paper towels to dry the cut
side of the apple.
4. Pour a thin layer of red fabric paint
into the pie tin.
5. Dip the flat side of the apple into
the paint.
6. Press the apple flat side down onto
your bag to make apple prints.

Use the apples on brown paper bags;
then cover your books with the apple
printed paper.
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*This is done in pairs with one child behind the other. The one in back does
the work, then they can  reverse directions, and repeat with the other child
doing the "work".
Criss-cross applesauce (make an X on the child's back)
Spiders crawling up your spine (finger walk up child's spine)
Cool breeze (blow on child's neck)
Tight squeeze (gently squeeze the child's shoulders)
Now you've got the chillies! (You get a funny feeling like goosebumps)
***********************************************************************
*Make apple name tags and apple name plates
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*We read Apples on Top (a Dr. Suess book).
Apples on top project: (great for beginning of year
to get to  know names) -Cut out a skin colored oval
out of construction paper -Color in face -Glue googly
eyes  and yarn for hair. Cut several pieces of 12x18
white construction paper in half On the top of each
write  "4 Apples on top of Jill" or whatever the child's
name. Make apple prints (apple cut in half) to make the
appropriate number of apples for each letter of the
child's name. Hand them around the  name ....looks great
for displaying a piece of work from everyone at Open House!
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**Label a bulletin board: "Apeeeeling Work"   "You are the Apple of my Eye"
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*Apple estimation vs marble estimation: try to estimate how many seeds are
in an apple and how  many marbles are in a clear jar....which is easier to
estimate??/ why??????
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*Apple circumference - measure the circumference of different sized
apples..line up the apples from  biggest to smallest
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*The Star in the Apple

Once upon a time there was a little boy
who couldn't find anything to play with.
He was tired of all his toys and asked
his mother if she could please help him
find something to do.  She thought and
thought and finally said, "Why, I know
what you can do.  You can go outside
and look for a little red house that
is red and shiny, has no doors, and
windows, and has a star inside."  He
thought it sounded like fun, and easy
to find, so outside he went.  He looked
and looked, but there was no such house
to be found.  The little boy met a dog
and said, "Mr. Dog, would you help me
find a little house that is red and shiny,
has no doors, and windows, and has a star
inside?"  The dog said, "Surely," and they
went together to find the house. (They meet
a cat, horse, cow, and a chicken and go
through the same routine.)  Then they met
a little old woman who had a knife in her hand.
The little boy asked her if she had seen a
little red house that is red and shiny, has
no doors, and windows, and has a star inside.
She answered, "Why yes, come along with me
and I will find it for you."  The little old
woman said, "This is where the house is,
little boy."  The little boy and his friends
looked and looked, but could not see the
little red house.  The old woman picked an
apple and asked, "Isn't this round and shiny?
It has no doors and no windows.  I wonder if
there is a star inside." With her knife, she
cut the apple horizontally.  There was a star!
So the little boy found the little red house
that is red and shiny, has no doors, and
windows, and has a star inside.  It's an apple!!
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*Apple colors

Have the children sort different colors
of apples (or apple shapes cut from
construction paper) into baskets.  Let
them count how many red, green and
yellow apples there are. Then ask them
to line up the apples in each group
from largest to smallest.
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*Have a taste test of different types of
apples.  On a large sheet of paper have each
type of apple listed horizontally and placed
not directly next to each other.  Get apple
stickers, rubber stamp of an apple, or have
the children draw a picture of the apple they
like best above the name of the apple.  Talk
with the children about which apple the class
liked best and why the children liked that
apple better than the other apples offered.
***********************************************************************
*Apple Magic

Perform a little science magic with
this simple experiment. You will need
a large bowl of water, a carrot and
an apple.
First, ask the children what they
think will happen when an apple or
a carrot is put in the bowl. Place
the carrot in the bowl first; then
remove it and place the apple in the
bowl. What happens?
Why? Explain to the children that
foods like carrots and apples vary
greatly in the amount of air they
contain. Carrot matter is packed very
tightly and is very heavy, making the
carrot sink. The apple is not packed
as tightly and has many air spaces,
which allow it to float. Slice the
apple and carrot for more observation.
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*THE EARLY WORM GETS THE APPLE (Game)
"Sometimes seeing a worm in an apple isn't so bad-- especially if
you're the worm! Divide your group into thirds. Designate one group
to be the worms. Pair the students in the remaining two groups.
Ask the students in each pair to face each other and hold hands
to represent an apple. Play some lively music as the worms move
and wiggle around the apples. Then stop the music and direct each
worm to find an apple in which to hide. Continue the game until
everyone has had a chance to be a wiggle worm!"
***********************************************************************
*Cut a big apple out of poster board. Cut
in to pieces. Cut as many or as few for your
age level. Have a group of 3-4 to try to put
it together.
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*ASSORTED SIZES - Cut out different sizes of apples... from
colored contruction paper or color them on white ones..
arrange them from small to large made them a flannel board
exercise also if you have small children..only do 3 toddlers
and preschoolers do 6.
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*Apple match

Cut out apples out of green, yellow and
red paper. Glue them on a file folder.
Then have the kids match them by color.
Or you can draw shapes on the apples and
they can match them. Numbers, Size,or
Letters work also.
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*COUNTING - Count the seeds. cut out 10 red and 10 white
posterboard apples on each of the white draw one to ten
seeds in the center number the red apples from one to ten
identify the number on the red apples and place on
the white apples laminate them for flannel board usage.
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*I made an interactive chart with the
"Apple Tree" poem.

Way up in the apple tree,
----------little apples smiled at me.
I shook the tree as hard as I could.
Down came the apples,
Mmmmm, they were good.

In the --------space, I wrote the numbers
1-5 on separate index cards along with
the corresponding number of apple stickers
on each.  We plug in the different number
cards as we read the poem from the pocket
chart.  When we use number one, we cover
the s in apples and use "it was" in place
of "they were".  They children really enjoy
reading this on their own!
***********************************************************************
* We play "Pass the Apple"  (like hot potato), when the
music stops and the child is holding the apple, he goes
into the "applepot" (the center of the circle).  When
all the "apples" are in the pot, we make applesauce, stir,
add sugar, add cinnamon, taste, etc.  Kids giggle a lot
when they have to start jiggling and boiling.
***********************************************************************
*Apple counting game

Glue a felt tree shape to each of
five cardboard squares.  Write a
number from 1 to 5 under each tree.
Cut fifteen apple shapes out of
felt.  To play the game, have the
children take turns identifying
the numbers below the trees and
placing the corresponding numbers
of apples on them.
***********************************************************************
*Have the students work in small groups to design their own 'Mini Apple
Orchard". Fill a pan with  dirt, twigs, toy tractors, green sponges for
apple trees with red tissue for apples, or anything the  children can come
up with
as ideas for their orchards.
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*Counting: Divide apples in halves or
fourths. Let your children decide how
many apples will be needed for
everyone to receive a piece.
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Counting: When you cut open an apple,
let your children count the number of
seeds inside.
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Feeling: Place three different fruits -
such as an orange, a banana, and a apple-
in a bag. Let your children touch each
fruit without looking in the bag. Can
they identify the apple by its
characteristics?
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Smelling: Cut open three different
fruits. Have your children close their
eyes and try to identify each by its smell.
***********************************************************************
*What can an apple do?  Set up an apple
activity center.  Provide a variety of
items for the children to explore such
as red, green, and yellow apples; apple
seeds to examine with a magnifying glass;
and foods made with apples (applesauce,
dried apples, apple juice, etc.)
***********************************************************************
*How many seeds?
Hold up an apple and ask the children
to predict the number of seeds that
will be found inside.  Cut the apple
open and count the seeds with the
children.  Have them compare the number
of seeds with their predictions.  Try
the experiment with another apple.  Does
it have the same number of seeds as the
first one?  Try the same experiment using a
different colored apple.
***********************************************************************
*Apple Observations

Observing changes
Observe and discuss with the children what
raw apples look like.  Ask them to predict
what will happen when the apples are cooked.
Bake a whole apple.  Slice and simmer another
one.  Have the children compare the results
with the raw apples.

Ask them to describe the changes that occurred
in color, texture, and taste.  How many seeds?
Hold up an apple and ask the children to predict
the number of seeds that will be found inside.
Cut the apple open and count the seeds with the
children.  Have them compare the number of seeds
with their predictions.  Try the experiment with
another apple.  Does it have the same number of
seeds as the first one?  Try the same experiment
using a different colored apple.
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*Plant the apple seeds from the apples you eat.
Chart their growth (if they grow!)
***********************************************************************
*Dissecting Apples

Show your children three apples -
one red, one green, and one yellow.
Ask them to name the colours. Then
discuss how they are all apples
despite their different colours.
Take a knife and cut each one open
side-ways. Point out how the seeds
inside from a star. Discuss how the
apples are all different on the
outside, yet the same on the inside.
Turn your discussion to people. Talk
about how people, like apples, are
all different on the outside, yet the
same on the inside.
***********************************************************************
*Not all apples are the same size!  Set out
some apples and encourage the children to
place the apples from smallest to largest
and vice versa.
***********************************************************************
*Apple Orchard

Visit an apple orchard. Observe
the apples being picked and
processed. If possible, let the
children pick their own apples
from a tree.
***********************************************************************
*BOOKS
Red Is An Apple and The Little Red House (both are teacher made big books
from The Color Box)
Blocksma, "Apple Tree! Apple Tree!"
Bourgeois, "The Amazing Apple Book"
Caseley, "An Apple Pie and Onions"
Dodd, "The Apple Tree"
Eberle, "Apple Orchard"
Gibbons, "The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree"
Gleitner, "Johnny Appleseed"
Greenaway, "A Apple Pie"
Greene, "John Chapman: The Man Who Was Johnny Appleseed"
Heuck, "Who Stole the Apples?"
Johnson, "From Appleseeds to Applesauce"
Kellogg, "Johnny Appleseed"
Lindbergh, "Johnny Appleseed"
McMillan, "Apples: How They Grow"
Maestro, "How Do Apples Grow?"
Micucci, "The Life and Times of the Apple"
Noble, "Apple Tree Christmas"
Norman, "Johnny Appleseed"
Nottridge, "Apples"
Parnall, "Apple Tree"
Rockwell, "Apples and Pumpkins"
Scheer, "Rain Makes Applesauce"
Schneiper, "An Apple Tree Through the Year"
Selsam, "The Apple and Other Fruit"
Watson, "Tom Fox and the Apple Pie"
***********************************************************************
* Climbing Up the Apple Tree

Climbing up the apple tree, (climb in place)
Swinging on a limb! (Raise arms above head, sway left and right)
If I hear a robin, I may (cup hand near ear)
Sing along with him! (sing tra la la)
"And Robin, if you fly away, (Put hands over eyes)
Here's what I think I'll do: (Point with index finger)
I'll wish a pair of sparrow wings (gently flap arms at side and move
around)
And fly away with you!"
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* Ten Red Apples
Here I have five apples. (hold up five fingers on right hand)
And here are five again. (hold up both hands)
How many apples altogether?
Why, five and five makes ten.
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*Eat an Apple
Eat an apple;   (Bring right hand to mouth)
Save the core. (Close right hand in fist)
Plant the seeds. (Bend down touch hand to ground)
And grow some more. (Extend both arms out)
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*AN APPLE SURPRISE (fingerplay)
Way up high in the apple tree
A little brown worm smiled at me
I winked my eye
And what do you suppose?
A shiny, red apple dropped on my nose!