10 Apple Activities for Preschool That are Simple & Fun

All About Apple Activities for Preschool & PreK

Apple activities for preschool mean Fall is in the air and it is time for apple tasting, apple counting, apple books and literacy activities, and apple FUN! As a result, in my classroom, we bring apples into our math, literacy, art, sensory, and science centers. I cannot wait to share some of my favorites with you!

Apple Activities for Preschool: Apple Math

Apples go hand in hand with math! Therefore, we count apples, sort apples, measure with apples, and more. In fact, my favorite Apple math activities link with literacy! The classic ‘Ten Apples Up On Top” provides several fun activities with counting. One activity I like is just adding apples to the characters as we read the story. But, for my PreK class, I take it a step further…we balance bean bags on our heads and walk down the hall for counting and gross motor fun! The book ‘Ten Red Apples’ by Pat Hutchins is another fun counting book to use as a math center.

We also played a game called ‘Feed Johnny Appleseed’ with dice to count and die-cut apples as Johnny’s food. Last but not least, we have an apple tree and ten frames of play-doh mats! As you can see…it’s only the tip of the iceberg!

Apple Activities for Preschool: Science & Art

As well as meshing math and literacy during our apple week, we also mix art with a bit of science. Part of our study is to learn the parts of an apple. so, I like to make what I call ‘inside-out apples’ to make it more hands-on. Included in my All About Apples 5-day lesson plan is a poster illustrating the parts of an apple.

To make our inside-out apples, we start with apple shapes cut from red, yellow, and green construction paper. Brown stems, pinto beans for seeds, and puffy paint made from shaving cream, liquid glue, and a dash of yellow paint for color. We talk about the parts of an apple while the kids paint in the ‘flesh with the puffy paint. Add the pinto bean seeds and the brown stem. The paper apple itself becomes the skin.

Another one of my favorite apple activities for preschool with an art/science connection is apple stamping. For apple stamping, I like house 12 x 9 white paper. Then, red, green, and yellow paint in shallow pans. Next, I take apples and cut them both lengthwise and widthwise to show 2 distinct inside prints. A fellow teacher taught me the trick of stabbing plastic forks into the apples to make a little ‘handle’ to make it less messy. The kids just stamp away and make some really beautiful pictures in the process!

Apple Activities for Preschool: Apple Literacy

With the math and literacy links, you already have a great start on your literacy centers for the week. That being said, I have 2 name apple activities for preschool that I just LOVE to do with the kids during our Apple unit. The first one is Apple Name Strips. At our school we have a wonderful apple die cut, so I prepare by cutting out a LOT of apples in red, yellow, and green for my week’s activities.

For the name strips, I will have the kids write the letters in their names on the apples and glue them to a strip of paper or a sentence strip. We have also made door hangers from them as well. The best name activity is what I call “Apple Picking”. I write the letters of all of the kids’ names on die-cut apples. Next, I place them on our rug to make an ‘orchard’. In small groups, we make a ‘basket’ out of a trimmed-down lunch sack and a handle. The kids will write their names on their baskets and go to the orchard to pick their letters until they find their entire name! It is a great activity!

Apples in the Sensory Bin

During our Apples unit, I turned the sensory bin into apple cinnamon oatmeal! First I empty 2 big canisters of rolled oats into the bin. Next, I add cinnamon sticks, and glitter in red, green, and gold. To finish it off, I add mini apple manipulatives, magnifying glasses, scoops, and tweezers for some fine motor work. It can be a bit dusty, but the kids always love it! Check out PreK Wolfpack‘s Instagram feed for some great sensory bin ideas!

I hope you have enjoyed exploring apples with me! Pick some great apple activities for preschool activities and have your best unit EVER!

If you liked the activities in this post and want the templates and printables, you can find them all in my All About Apples 5-Day Lesson Plan for Preschool, PreK, Kindergarten, and Homeschool. You will find all these activities plus a lot more!