Apples
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Art
The Wormy Apple
Materials:   two paper plates (red, preferred) , brown or black pipe cleaner , 6 googly eyes , glue , green pipe cleaner , paper hole punch
Directions:  Cut three small "worm" holes in one paper plate side.   Set this plate, right
side up, on table and glue other plate upside down on top of it. If you need to paint the plates red, do this next. Punch a hole in top of paper plates and thread green pipe cleaner through for apple stem.  Cut brown or black pipe cleaner into 3 sections for the "worms." Glue googly eyes on each worm and bend them into shape. Glue worm in each hole.


Shiny Apple Sun Catchers
Draw a large apple onto wax paper with a black marker, cut out. Let
the children use colored glue (red, yellow, green) to paint the inside of
the apple. While still wet, use colored yarn to outline the shape and
then let dry. Once dry, peel the glue apple away, if thick enough,from
the wax paper and hang!

Apple Craft
Have children tear pieces of red paper. Glue on apple shape. Trace and cut
handprint out of green paper for leaf.
Add poem:
This apple that you see here
Was made just for you in my preschool year.
You'll never see another just like it in this great land,
Because for a leaf I used my own little hand.

Apple Prints
On a large piece of paper, cut out a large shape of an apple. Slice
apples in half vertically. Using red and green paint, have the children
dip the apple halves in the paint and then make their prints on the
large apple.

Paper Plate Apple
Use a small paper plate and have the kids glue scraps of red fabric,
paper, or tissue paper all over it. Add a construction paper green
stem. Real easy for even the youngest kids.

Dramatic Play
Set up a Apple Stand/Grocery Store

Fine Motor Skills
Apple Lacing
Construction paper or foam, hole punch, yarn, scissors and tape.
Make an apple for each child. Have red, green and yellow apples with
leaves on them and put holes all around the apple. Give each child
some yarn and ask them to lace around the apple (put tape on each
end of the string to make it easier for them to lace the apple).

Games
Apple Board Game
Cut out an apple tree shape from brown and green construction
paper; laminate for durability. Cut out apple shapes from red
construction paper. Make small cards and number from 1 - 5. The
children can take turns choosing a card and placing the correct
number of apples on the tree.

Language
Apples, apples,
One, two, three'
Apples for you,
Apples for me.

Way up high on the apple tree
Two little apples smiled at me
I shook the tree as hard as I could
Down came the apples
Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, they were good!!

5 red apples on the apple tree
The first apple said "look at me"
The second apple said "I'm as big as I can be"
The third apple said "I'm as high as a tree"The forth apple said "I'm red and sweet"
The fifth apple said "I'm a tasty treat"
5 red apples on the apple tree
"Yum, Yum, they are all for me"

Apple Butter Recipe

We peeled the apples
and sliced them small,
cooked them in water
then mashed them all.
We added some sugar
and cinnamon to taste,
back in the cook pot
till thick like paste.
We'll spread it on bread
you and I will share,
the apple butter I made
with love and great care.

Apple Sauce Recipe

Peel an apple
Cut it up,
Put it in a pot.
You will see
It's applesauce you've got!!

Story of Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed's real name was John Chapman. All his life,
Johnny loved apples. He loved to look at them and to eat them. And
he loved to take care of apple trees.
Johnny also loved to travel. One day he heard that there were no
apple trees out west. So he set out on foot, carrying a walking stick
and wearing his cooking pot on his head. On his back he carried a
bag of books and a bag of apple seeds.
As he walked, he planted apple seeds. Behind him he left a trail of
young apple trees. As time passed, people began to call him Johnny
Appleseed. He was greatly loved by everyone.

Math
Apple Match
Draw a large apple tree on heavy paper for a bulletin board, or on a
file folder to use as a game. Color the tree. Color apples of
different sizes on tree. Cut out apples of those same sizes on paper.
The children match the apples to those drawn on the tree. I use
velcro on them so they stick in place.

Measurement
Cut out apples from red, yellow and green contruction paper and use them to measure the height of each child. Then the top apple, Iput a close up of the child face , tand on the bottom apple I take a close of the child's feet.

Music
Picking Up Apples
Sung to "Paw-Paw Patch"
Pick up the apples, put 'em in the basket
Pick up the apples, put 'em in the basket
Pick up the apples, put 'em in the basket
Way down yonder by the apple tree.

The Apple Tree

Sing to the tune of :Rock-a-bye Baby"
Here is a tree with leaves so green.
Forearms together, elbows to wrists, hands spread.
Here are the apples that hang between.
Clench fists for apples.
When the wind blows the apples will fall.
Wave arms in the wind and let apples fall suddenly.
Here is a basket to gather them all.
Make a basket with both hands, fingers interlocked.

Recipes

Basic Apple Pie Recipe
CRUST (recipe makes one double crust):
2 1/2 cups white flour
2 tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cold butter, broken into small pieces
5 tbsp. cold vegetable shortening
8 tbsp. ice water

Measure the flour, sugar and salt togetherl.  Stir to combine.
Add the chilled butter pieces and shortening to the bowl. Cut them in with a pastry cutter or knife.  Don't over mix them.
Add the ice water. Mix until the dough holds together (add a bit more water, if necessary).
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead it together, then divide in half.  
Flatten each half into a disk, wrap in saran wrap and chill for at least half an hour.
Roll out one of the disks on a lightly floured surface until you have a circle that's about 12 inches in diameter.
Put the circle in a 9" pie plate, trimming any extra dough from the edges with a sharp knife (parents only). Return it to the refrigerator until you are ready to make the pie.
Add filling (see below)
Roll out the second ball of dough and cover top.  Use a fork or your fingers to pinch the edges together.  cut a couple slits in the top.

FILLING
1/3 to 2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
8 medium sized apples (a medium apple = about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons margarine

Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Peel, core and slice the apples.  Try to keep the size of the slices even.
Mix sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt in large bowl.
Stir in apples.
Pour into pastry-lined pie plate.
Dot with margarine.
Cover with top crust and seal the edges. Cut slits in the top. 
OPTIONAL:  Cover edge with 3-inch strip of aluminum foil to prevent too much browning.  Remove foil during last 15 minutes of baking.

Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust.
APPLE CINNAMON DOUGH
Ingredients:
1 cup ground cinnamon
1 cup applesauce
1/4 cup white school glue (optional)
Directions:
Add the cinnamon to the applesauce until you get a clay-like consistency. You may add glue for added thickness. Once the dough is mixed, create shapes with your hands or roll the dough out and use cookie cutters. Add glitter for fun! Let the dough dry. Store unused dough in a bowl with plastic wrap as a cover.

or

Ingredients:
1 cup ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons white glue
3/4 cup water
Mix until the consistency of cookie dough. (Add more water if needed.) Sprinkle cinnamon on the cutting board and knead the dough. Roll out 1/4-inch thick. Cut into ornament shapes using cookie cutters or popsicle sticks. Punch hole in the top with a straw or pencil before drying (so you can string ribbon through later for hanging). Bake in 350° oven for 30 minutes or until firm. Let them cool, then decorate!

Worm in an Apple
Red apples, knife/corer, crunchy peanut butter, gummi worms.
Core out the middle of the apple. Let the kids help by spreading in
enough peanut butter to fill apple, then place a gummi worm or two in
the middle of the peanut butter filled apple; place the worm so it is
peeking out of the apple.

Dry Apple Rings
Peel, core, and cut apples into rings. Dip into salted water for 15
minutes. Dry for two weeks. Enjoy! You can make raisins from grapes
the same way.

Apple Smiles
Cut washed apples into 1/4 's or 1/8 's. Spread peanut butter on one
side of the slice. Place mini marshmallows on the peanut butter
(teeth). Place another peanut butter apple slice on top to complete
your smiling apple mouth.

Apple Treats
Peel and cube pieces of apple - enough so each child has about a
tablespoon of cubes. Give each child a refr. biscuit found in tubes at
the grocery store. They should smash it pretty much flat. They'll
love doing that!! Spread the biscuit with a little butter. Add the
apple cubes to the middle and sprinkle with a little sugar and
cinnamon. Fold the biscuit in half and seal with a fork or fingers.
Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes of until the biscuit is golden
brown. The apples will be hot, so tell them to be careful.

Apple Cakes
Ingredients
2 apples (or 1 cup of chunky applesauce)
2 cups pancake mix
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cooking oil
1. Wash apples. Leaving the skins on, either grate them or chop
them finely (or use 1 cup chunky applesauce)
2. Mix all the ingredients except the oil. Mix until smooth.
3. Heat an electric skillet to about 325 degrees F. Coat the cooking
surface with about 1 tsp of the oil.
4. Drop two tablespoons of batter for each apple cake into the
skillet. Fry two minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Recoat
the pan with oil and make the next batch.
5. Drain apples cakes thoroughly on paper towels. They should be
eaten while warm. Top with applesauce if desired.

The Star Inside
Slice apples in the middle horizontally and you will find a "star". Dip
the apples in a mixture of lemon juice and water to keep them from
turning brown.

Applesauce

Applesauce is easy to make. Five pounds of apples yield about 2
quarts of applesauce. Peel, core and slice apples into quarters. Put in
a pot and partcially cover with water. Then boil the apples until they
are soft. Using a potato masher or a blender, mush the apples into
suace. Add sugar and cinnamon to taste.

**  I have made apple turnovers, apple pie, apple sauce, I have made the carmel apples dipped in milk, dark, white, and peanutbutter flavored chocolate with my students and auctioned them off in gift baskets before. 

**  I have thought about making an apple cookbook with my students, but time just gets away.

Crock Pot Apple Sauce
Cut up apples and place them in a crock pot on high. I pour in 1/4 c. water and add 1 c. sugar, 2 tsp. cinnamon and sometimes put in a stick of butter.  Enjoy  with a cup of vanilla ice cream on the  warm applesauce.

Cut up apples (with peels) and puree them in a blender.  Cook them down in a crockpot. Add some sugar and cinnamon to taste. Great on homemade bread and butter.

Sensory
Apple Play Dough
Use red, yellow, and green colored play dough, adding cinnamon spice
to it. Lay out apple cookie cutters and tools. Show the children how to
create a play dough ball to resemble an apple. Add a pipecleaner for a
worm!







































































Have you Tried?. . .

A little boy asks his grandmother what he could do because he was  bored. 
She told him to go out and find a little red house without any  doors or windows
but had a star inside.  So he went.  He asks a  neighbor, a farmer, a cow
etc... who finally tells him to ask the wind.   The wind blows, and the boy
follows.  He finds himself in an apple  orchard.  He thinks to himself, "I
wonder".....so he pulls off an apple,  and says, "it's a little red house, it doesn't
have any doors or any windows...  I wonder".....

At this point, the room is deathly quiet.  The children are completely 
mesmerized as you pull out a red apple and a paring knife and cut the apple 
sideways and as you "Ahhhh".... show them the star inside.

You can use red paint to make apple prints, to retell the story.
The kids love it
Jane in NC

Apple Theme Door

Decorations
Cover the door with white paper. Then using an apple shaped sponge,
sponge on red, yellow, and green apples. Allow to dry. Make a large
posterboard apple and put on a green worm coming out of the apple.
On the Apple write, "Hi!". On the worm, write, "Wiggly Worm
Welcomes You". You could also put up an apple border around the
edge of the door. Use a black marker to write the children's names on
the sponged apples.

Variations of Apples
Talk about the different kinds of apples. Have cards made up with
these adjective words: dark red, yellow, green, red-green, round,
round, five buttons on bottom, oval, oval, slightly tart, tart, sweet,
sweet, Have one of each of these kinds of apples to discuss the
color, shape, and taste. Match each card with the apple it belongs.
*Red Delicious - dark red, five buttons on the bottom, oval, sweet
*Golden Delicious - yellow, oval, sweet
*Granny Smith - green, round, tart
*McIntosh - red-green, round, slightly tart


























































c.2004 - 2007
Prop Box Ideas
Include the following collections of objects and materials for children to create, discover, and use for imaginary play. Store collections in boxes or baskets to be accessible at any time (indoors or outdoors) for children to enhance their dramatic play.



apples of every colour



Idea Web
Introduce and explore the following topics to expand and inspire new activity ideas.

autumn
leaves
harvest
apples
pumpkin





Holidays
Thanksgiving

"Our truest responsibility to the irrationality of the
world is to paint or sing or write, for only in such
response do we find the truth."
- Madeleine L'Engle