A - Apples

Aa Apples

Letter: Aa

Number: 1

Shape: Circle

Color: Red

This packet will guide you and your child through fun and exciting activities. It contains suggested activities for the Letter A, the number 1, circle shape and color red. It has hands on apple activities such as apple sequencing cards, apple lace up card, Johnny Appleseed Story, paper bag puppets, paper apple necklace, apple prints, apple t-shirts, apple puzzle, apple picture frames, apple pictures, apple wall poster and more.

Some but not all of the activities have patterns included. It is important for the parent or caregiver and the child to use their imaginations and create their own version of some of the activities described in this theme. That makes your projects unique and exciting. Creating and experimenting are much more fun than just following written directions.

Letter and Number Activities:
Using the provided letter A outline fill the letter A with items cut from magazines that begin with A or fill it with apple stickers or apple pictures.

Using the provided number 1 outline, glue one apple picture or one item inside the number 1.

Look at and feel a magnetic, plastic, textured or other three dimensional letter A and the number 1.

Hold up one finger on your left hand, now hold up one finger on your right hand.

Look around the room, what begins with the letter A?

Look around the room, how many things are there just one of?

Apple Sequencing
Place 3-6 apples of different sizes in front of the child. Have child place them in a row from small to big.

Using the provided apple sequencing cards, have child decide which order the apples go in.

Color and Shape Activity
Cut out an 8" red circle from poster board or use a paper plate. Have an assortment of small red items to glue on the large red circle or the paper plate. Ideas: red items cut from magazines, red pom poms, red stickers, red yarn or fabric scraps, red buttons, red beads, etc. Hang your creation on the wall or from the ceiling.

Physical Activities

Wormy Apple Game
If there are enough children have them all but one form a circle standing front to back (not side to side) the circle represents an apple. Have them stand with their feet spread apart. Have the child that's left crawl in and out and through the other children's legs, being a worm. Take turns. If there is only one child, you can use kitchen chairs or stools to crawl through.

Visit an apple orchard, hike through the orchard and pick apples.

Walk (if possible) to a local library and check out books about apples and Johnny Appleseed. Bob for apples.

Hands On Activities
Using the provided apple sewing card, have the child string green yarn in and out of the holes. When they are done tie the two ends together in a bow.

Johnny Appleseed Story
Using the Johnny Appleseed Story page, color the leaves green or glue on green paper leaves. Place red apple stickers around the outside of the apple. Read the story. Use a US map to see how close you live to the states where Johnny Appleseed planted trees. Trace a route out on the map that you think Johnny may have followed.

Johnny Appleseed Paper Bag Puppets
After reading the story, or one of your own stories about Johnny Appleseed, make a paper bag puppet to represent Johnny Appleseed. A lunch sack serves as Johnny Appleseeds body, use construction paper to add arms, legs, a stew pot cap, and an appleseed bag. You can glue real appleseeds to the appleseed bag and wiggly eyes on his face. Be sure to draw mouth, nose and eyes if not using wiggly eyes.

There Is A Worm In My Apple
Cut apple shapes from red poster board using an apple cookie cutter as a pattern (variations: you may prefer drawing freehand or purchasing preprinted apple designs). Cut two holes near the bottom large enough for fingers to poke through. The child places their fingers through the holes and make them wiggle like a worm. You can also glue on green leaves and a stem. Variation: Punch two small holes, weave a brown pipe cleaner through the holes to represent a worm.

Apple Necklace
Using the provided Apple Necklace Pattern page, follow the directions to make an apple necklace.

Apple Poems
Using the provided Apple Poem Sheet, have the child trace the dotted line in red, color the leaves green and cut the apple out. Glue to a piece of red construction paper. Read the poems written in the apple.

Apple Pictures
Using construction paper and your imagination, cut (or allow child to cut out) a brown tree trunk, a green tree top and red apples. Paste the picture together on another piece of construction paper.

Apple Picture Frame
Using the apple frame provided, glue a picture of the child to the back of the apple frame so it is centered in the opening.

Apple Puzzles
Color the apple on the provided puzzle sheet, cut out the square frame around the apple. Cut the apple picture into three or more pieces to make a puzzle. Store puzzle in a zip lock baggie.

Apple T-shirts
Using a clean white t-shirt, dip apple halves into red fabric paint and make a design by pressing them on the t-shirt. Paint on green leaves by cutting a sponge in a leaf shape and doing the same using green fabric ink. Add a cute saying with a fabric pen such as I’m one good apple.

Apple Prints
Cut an apple in half, dip the cut apples in poster paint and make a pretty picture by pressing them on paper. Cut an apple shape out of a sponge and do the same. When dry, glue on green stems and leaves.

Apple Tree with Sponge Painting
Draw a large tree on craft paper - cut a sponge into round pieces and attach a clothespin to the back of each piece. Give each child a clothespin sponge to dip into red tempera paint and dab on the tree to look like apples.

Pretend to Be Worms
Children can wriggle on the floor and be worms. Make a large apple cutout from poster board or cardboard. Cut the hole large enough for children to crawl through.

Apple Tree Wall Poster
Cut a large trunk out of brown packing paper and cut a large tree top from white poster board. Have the child press their hands in green paint and then press their hands all over the tree top until it is pretty much covered. Add red apples to the tree using the Apple Prints ideas above. Allow to dry, assemble and display on a wall.

Numbered Apples
Make a felt apple tree and ten felt apples and place the tree on a flannel board. Number the apples from 1 to 10. Let each child in turn choose an apple, identify the number on it and place the apple on the tree. When all the apples are on the tree, count them as a group.

Apple Recipes
Make the fun and delicious recipes on the recipe page.

Apple Match Up Activity
Using the provided Apple Match Up Activity sheet, have the child draw straight lines from each set of two apples that match.

Make An Apple
Using the provided Make An Apple page, follow the directions to make an apple picture that shows what the inside of an apple looks like.

Make A Pair of Apple Glasses
Color and cut out the glasses on the provided Apple Glasses Mask sheet and follow the instructions on the pattern.

Apple Wreaths
Slice apples into 1/4 slices, dust lightly with powdered cinnamon and allow to dry on paper towels in a warm and sunny area. When the slices are dry, hot glue them a precut cardboard wreath making sure to overlap the pieces so the cardboard does not show. Attach a pretty bow or some nice leaves to the top, hang on the wall, it will smell wonderful!

Apple Seeds
Before cutting open an apple, ask the children to predict how many seeds there will be inside. Cut the apple in half horizontally and let the children observe the star that holds the seeds. Count the seeds with the children and have them compare the number with their predictions. Try the experiment with another apple. Does it have the same number of seeds as the first? Try the same experiment using a different colored apple. As you cut open the different color apples make note that the insides are the same even though the outside is different. You can make the same comparison with people different on the outside but all the same on the inside.) Extension: Set out apple seeds (with several of them cut in half) and let the children examine them with a magnifying glass. If desired, provide other kinds of fruit seeds for comparing

A is for Apples
Cut out an A shape from green paper. Have the children glue red circles to the shape or dip their finger in red paint and put red prints on the letter A.

Apple Printing
Cut the apple in half to reveal the star of seeds paint the apple

Apple Sizes
Cut out different sizes of apples... from colored construction 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

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.

Songs

Here's A Circle (using the red circle from the color and shape activity) (tune: Feres Jacques)
Here's a circle, here's a circle,
How can you tell, how can you tell?
It is perfectly round, no end can be found,
It's a circle, it's a circle.

Apple Song: (Tune: Itsy Bitsy Spider)
Once a little apple seed was planted in the ground.
Down came the soft rain, falling all around.
Out came the big sun as bright as bright could be
And that little apple seed grew up to be an apple tree!!

Little Appleseed (tune - Eensy, Weensy Spider)
Once a little apple seed
Was planted in the ground
Down came the raindrops
Falling all around
Out came the big sun
As bright as bright could be
And that little apple seed grew up to be a tree

Have You Ever Seen An Apple (tune - Have you Ever Seen A Lassie)
Have you ever seen an apple, an apple, an apple
Have you ever seen an apple that grows on a tree?
A red one, a yellow one, a red one, a green one?
Have you ever seen an apple that grows on a tree?

Have You Ever Ate An Apple (tune - Have You Ever Seen A Lassie)
Have you ever ate an apple, an apple, an apple
Have you ever ate an apple and heard it go crunch?

Fingerplays

I’m A Little Person Who’s Aware (tune - I’m A Little Teapot)
I’m a little person who’s aware (point at self)
Of the apple trees over there (point away)
The apples are red and ready to pick (picking motion)
Ummm, went my tummy I sure ate it quick! (rub tummy)

Way Up High In An Apple Tree
Way up high in an apple tree (look up high and point)
Two little apples smiled down at me (fingers at side of mouth, big smile)
I shook that tree as hard as I could (shake a tree)
Down came the apples, Um, were they good (rub belly)

Ten Red Apples
Here I have five apples (hold up five fingers on one hand)
And here I have five more again (hold up five fingers on other hand)
How many apples all together?
Well, five and five make ten!

Eat An Apple
Eat an apple (right hand at mouth)
Save the core (close fist)
Plant the seeds (touch the ground)
And grow some more (extend arms out)

Poems

Way Up High In The Apple Tree
Way up high in the apple tree
I picked an apple just for me.
I was about to take a bite but what did I see?
Five little worms looking up at me (repeat first 3 lines)
Four little worms looking up at me (repeat first 3 lines)
Three little worms looking up at me (repeat first 3 lines)
Two little worms looking up at me (repeat first 3 lines)
One little worm looking up at me Mmmm.

Apple Snack

Apple pizza
Ingredients: Pizza dough, apples, flour, sugar, cinnamon, shredded cheddar cheese.

Roll pizza dough out onto tray, sprinkle cheese on dough, put cut apples (presliced) on dough. Mix equal amounts of flour, sugar, cinnamon in a bowl (enough to cover pizza), sprinkle mixture on pizza, bake at 350 for 20 min.