1-2-3 come do Some Apple Activities With Me
Because apples are a big deal here in Michigan, I've spent a lot of time designing quick, easy and fun apple activities that teach a variety of standards.
I'm featuring 3 of my newest creations on the blog today, along with a special FREEBIE.
“Real Stuck, Way Up”, by Benette W. Tiffault, is my Y5s’ favorite apple stories.
A boy wants to eat an apple “way up” in the tree, so he tosses his baseball to knock it down and it gets stuck; so he tosses his shoe, a baseball glove and a variety of other items ‘til all of them are “real stuck, way up”, including himself when he decides to climb the tree.
It’s a perfect “sequencing” story and super-fun way to practice retelling a tale.
With that in mind, I designed a story “slider” craftivity, along with 4 worksheets to test comprehension, plus 4 interesting writing prompts, that I think your students will really enjoy.
The slider patterns come in BW as well as color, so that you can quickly & easily make a pattern to share. There are also 2 size options: full-page or 2-on-a-page.
For an independent center activity, there’s a set of colorful sequencing cards. Make a double set to use for a Memory Match game.
I’ve also included a set in BW, so that children can color, cut and make their own sequencing game.
You could use these as a whole-group assessment to check comprehension.
Later, have students pick a partner to see who can be the first to sequence the story correctly.
Afterwards, have them add the cover to make an “Itty Bitty” booklet.
To make reading the story especially fun, pass out the picture cards to your students.
When you get to that item in the story, the child holding that card places it on the apple tree poster.
After the story, pass the cards out to different children; challenge the class to put them in the correct order.
You can also use these patterns as an independent math center.
Children roll 1 dice to place picture cards 1-6 on the tree, then roll 2 dice. add them together to place picture cards 7-12 on.
Make a double set and have children play against a partner, to see who can be the first to get all of their items “real stuck”.
Next up is a set of "Life Cycle Of An Apple Number Puzzles", which are a simple way to not only learn the life cycle, but some of that science vocabulary as well.
Students also practice sequencing numbers from 1-10, counting backwards from 10-1, as well as skip count by 2s, 3s, 5s & 10s.
There are 14 different kinds with 65 puzzles in all. Some are vertical, while others are horizontal.
Print, laminate & trim the full color options and use as an independent math or science center.
Use the black & white ones, so that students can color & cut up their own puzzle.
Doing a bit of singing at the end of our day, is something my students really enjoy and look forward to.
One of their favorite songs is B-I-N-G-O. The song is an easy-peasy & great way to practice letter recognition, spelling and subtraction! Woo Hoo!
With that in mind, I made up a little “B-I-N-G-O” song for each month. These apple & cider ones are for September.
My Y5s were recognizing lots of letters and understanding “taking 1 away”, before we even got to specifically studying those letters or the concept of subtraction, all because of the simple BINGO songs!
The A-P-P-L-E one is now there personal favorite. You know you've got a "winner" when your kiddos break out in song while working on their apple-themed morning work!
Today's featured FREEBIE is a super-fun Name Map. It's a nice icebreaker for the first week of school and a great way to get to know your new students.
The completed activity makes a wonderful back to school bulletin board too!
Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by.
We've had quite a few record-breaking, hot and humid 90-degree days, so it's time for a dip in the pool.
So in need of that energizing refreshment. Wishing you a fun-filled day.
"It's never to late to be what you might have been." - George Eliot
