An apple preschool theme is a classic for preschool teachers to plan for every year. These hands-on apple activities for toddlers and preschoolers are new and creative and will fit in perfectly with your apple theme preschool lesson plans.
Below you’ll find 20+ of the best activities for an apple unit, including sensory bins, apple crafts, play dough activities for fine motor skills, and science and math activities.
You can add these apple activities to your preschool apples theme, your preschool autumn theme, or even your preschool farm theme.
“I can’t wait for apple picking! I love the smell of all the apples!” exclaimed my son as he walked down the aisle at his local grocery store.
It’s nearly September we’re getting geared up for apple season. Like my son, I love walking through the grocery store–or better yet, a fruit stand–and seeing so many different kinds lined up on the shelves. I love the variation in color and size and sheen.
We have a wonderful hybrid apple tree in our back yard and I have no idea what varieties are on it. All I know is that I love seeing my kids go outside and pick a fresh apple for a snack. Our tree apples are not quite ripe, so my son asked to take home a few bags of apple…and how could I say no? He’s already decided what we’ll make first: an apple pie from scratch, including the crust, and shortcuts allowed!
Now, apple pie is my jam! Actually, pies in general. So it definitely warms my heart to hear my youngest ask if he can try his hand at making his own apple pie.
FAQ About Teaching an Apple Preschool Theme
You can teach your preschooler anything about apples. You can teach them about their life cycle and how to bake apple pies with them. Apples can also be used to teach other science concepts as well as math concepts such as counting, one-to-one correspondence, color sorting, and measurement. They can also be used to teach preschoolers about the five senses.
An apple preschool theme can be taught at almost any time of the year with a food and nutrition theme. It’s great in the fall when apples are generally ready to pick! But it can also be taught in the spring with a garden or weather theme.
This is a good question, especially since we often do apple seed activities in preschool. If a child eats an apple seed, stay calm. Although apple seeds can be poisonous when chewed, it takes a large amount to be dangerous. But apple seeds can also be a choking hazard. To avoid these issues, don’t use apple seeds at all in your preschool apple activities. Instead, use beans painted black or black buttons instead of real seeds.
Hands-On Apple Science Activities
Preschoolers can learn so much about science in a hands-on way with these fantastic apple activities! Learning about science and apples will be fun with these STEM challenges, experiments, crafts, and activities.
Make an Apple Boat
Can an apple float? Test the buoyancy of apples with this fun science experiment. Kids can then test the limits of their apple boats with boat races or a float contest.
Simple Preschool Science Activity that Makes a Volcano
Are you looking for a simple science activity for fall? Make an apple volcano! Kids will love this classic science activity with an apple themed twist!
Explore Parts of an Apple Through Craft
This simple craft provides a great opportunity to teach preschoolers all about the parts of an apple. It would pair well with hands-on exploration of an apple and a good science book about apples.
5 Senses Activity: Apple Taste Test
Tasting different varieties of apples is an excellent way to incorporate the sense of taste into your lessons. It's also a great way to include vocabulary, science, and math in one yummy lesson!
Apple Science Experiment for Preschool
For this science experiment, preschoolers will test apple slices with different liquids to see how they affect the apples. This activity covers counting, writing, vocabulary, and the scientific process at a level appropriate for preschoolers.
Apple STEM Activity for Preschoolers
This apple STEM activity is going to be a hit with your preschoolers. They'll have so much fun building a cardboard tube for the apples to fall down into the basket!
Building Apples STEM Activity
The little engineers in your home or classroom will love the challenge of building different apple shapes with Duplo bricks. This would be a wonderful activity to add to your block center.
Hands-On Apple Math Activities
Math activities lend themselves perfectly to a preschool apple theme. There's so much learning that you can do with apples, including counting, color sorting, patterning, weight, and measurement. Check out these apple themed math activities for some great ideas!
Preschool Apple Count and Stack
I just love a good playdough activity! For this hands-on math activity, preschoolers will make playdough apples and count them as they stack them up as high as they can.
What weighs more than an apple {preschool math activity}
This is a great activity to introduce preschoolers to the balance scale. Preschoolers can compare the weight of an apple to other household items or math manipulatives.
Apple Color Sort Activity for Toddlers
This is such a fun apple themed math activity for toddlers! Your littlest learner will practice color recognition and sorting with popsicle sticks and apple tubes!
Apple Drop Counting: A One-to-One Correspondence Math Game
Preschoolers will love this apple counting game! It's a fun, hands-on activity for kids to practice counting, one-to-one correspondence, the concept of more or less, and subitizing.
Apple Seed Counting and Subtraction with FREE Printable
This hands-on counting activity is the perfect way to teach preschoolers counting and subtraction in a fun apple theme. It's a great activity because it shows kids math visually and kinesthetically.
Six Apple Themed Math Activities for Preschoolers
These six apple math activities are perfect for quiet time or to include in a busy bag. These hands-on activities cover counting, addition and subtraction, estimating, and making shapes.
"Farmer Brown Has Five Red Apples" Song with Printable
Combining song and a hands-on activity is a great way for preschoolers to learn. This musical counting activity does just that! With this fun math activity kids will practice numbers up to five. Plus it's a great activity for circle time!
Apple Themed Math Activity
Here's a simple apple tree themed math activity. This hands-on activity will help your preschooler practice number recognition and addition.
Fun Hands-On Apple Activities
Cooking with Preschoolers - Applesauce Bread
If you want to cook with your preschoolers this fall as part of your apple theme, you've got to try this easy-peasy recipe for applesauce bread. Kids will have just as much fun making it as they will eating it!
Tips for Making Apple Pies With Preschoolers
So you want to make some delicious apple pies with your preschoolers? Getting kids in the kitchen provides many wonderful learning opportunities. Just follow these tips and everyone will have a fun experience!
Bobbing for Apples Fine Motor Activity
This fun idea combines sensory play and fine motor skills into one fantastic activity for preschoolers. Kids will have fun splashing in the water and trying to grab the bobbing apples with their hands, tongs, or any other kind of grabber tool.
Apple Themed Writing Tray for Preschoolers
I'm not sure there could be anything more fun for a preschooler than writing in applesauce! This is the best activity for kids to practice letter formation, and it's perfect for an apple theme!
Alphabet Apple Lacing Craft
This idea combines letter recognition, fine motor skills, and a craft to make the perfect hands-on learning activity for an apple theme. The best part about this idea is that it can be reused for more practice.
There are so many fun preschool apple activities! I can’t wait to plan some of these fantastic activities for my son’s preschool apple theme. I’m sure they’ll enjoy the fall crafts and sensory play activities. Which apple themed activities and crafts for kids are you planning for this year?
Try this Printable Apple Pack!
Looking for something educational to keep the kiddies busy learning for the coming harvest season? This Apple Activity Pack includes six super fun activities and multiple variations of each! It’s perfect for any fall or autumn theme in preschool.
Whether you’re looking for something to supplement your preschool or homeschooling curriculum, or looking for something to keep the children busy while you cook and can that last bit of applesauce, this activity pack will not disappoint!
It’s loaded with fun preschool apple theme activities your little one is sure to adore.
I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.
