Apple Science in the Classroom: A Sweet Treat for Elementary Teachers

Apples, apples, everywhere! It's fall, and that means apples are in season. What better time to bring some apple science into the classroom?

Apple science is a great way to teach elementary students about a variety of science concepts, including teaching about the life cycle of an apple tree!

Looking for a no prep teaching resource for your apple unit? We've got you!

Using a PowerPoint on my display board has solved the problem of searching for the perfect book and it allows for all students to see the photos. This has been a game changer for teaching whole group lessons on science topics.

If this sounds like something you must have too, you can find this Life Cycle of an Apple Tree resource here. 

Here are some other ideas for your apple lessons:

• Reading nonfiction books about apples
• Watching videos about apple trees
• Planting an apple tree in the classroom or schoolyard
• Visiting an orchard or taking a virtual field trip
• Creating a diagram or model of the life cycle of an apple tree

After all the apple fun is nearly done, you want your students to review what they have learned and demonstrate understanding.

My students LOVE reading their little Life Cycle of an Apple minibook! It's made from a lunch bag! 

It's an awesome project and a really cute take home book and portfolio work sample. You can check it out here! 

Looking for hands-on science experiences? Here is a simple activity that you can use to teach your students about the life cycle of an apple tree:

1. Gather a variety of materials, such as apple seeds, cotton balls, water, and plastic cups.
2. Have your students plant the apple seeds in the cotton balls and water them regularly.
3. Place the cups in a sunny spot and watch the seeds germinate and grow.
4. Once the seedlings have sprouted, transplant them into pots.
5. Send them home or continue to care for the seedlings and watch them grow into a small apple tree that can be planted in the schoolyard.

Other apple science activities:

In addition to learning about the life cycle of an apple tree, there are many other apple science activities that you can do with your students. Here are a few ideas:

• Apple taste test: Have your students taste different varieties of apples and record their preferences.
• Apple dissection: Have your students cut open an apple and identify the different parts of the fruit.
• Apple drop: Take your students outside and drop apples from different heights to see how gravity affects them.
• Apple browning experiment: Have your students experiment with different ways to prevent apples from browning.
• Apple nutrition: Have your students research the nutritional value of apples and create a presentation or poster to share their findings.

Making apple science fun and engaging!

No matter what apple science activities you choose, make sure to provide your students with plenty of opportunities to explore, learn, and have fun! You might even include a treat!

Apple Experiment~ Simple Second Grade Science Fun!

Apple week is so much fun! One of my favorite activities is to introduce the scientific method to my kiddos with a quick and easy science experiment. It takes just a few easy-to-find materials and a few minutes of time~ the perfect combo for the busy teacher!

We wanted to see which liquid would keep our cut apple slices from turning brown. You know the experiment and the results! In a perfect world, each student would ideally have their own apple slices and materials, but we did it whole-group instead. This was such a great way to set up the table and all of the credit goes out to my student teacher, Liz, for this one!

A while ago, I came across this great recording sheet to use.

 It's from Sarah's First Grade Snippets. 

  Each child came up to the table to make their observations. 

 We also put the apple under the document camera and displayed it on the SMART Board so everyone could see!

This was super simple, apple~icious science fun!

 The kiddos loved being little scientists and I loved watching their excitement! 

Fall Teaching Resources for Apples and Pumpkins

Sweater weather will be here in the blink of an eye and that means classroom fun with apples and pumpkins! We begin with apple week in September around Johnny Appleseed Day. My student's favorite project is making a little apple facts minibook out of lunch bags.

This PowerPoint on the life cycle of an apple tree is a big hit with my class. What I love best about using slides on a big screen is that every student can see the pictures. This one has amazing photographs of apples, orchards, apple products and more. Because we don't have much time devoted to science, I teach with a few slides a day for a week of apple learning.

My class loved putting together the lunch bag book for apples so much that I made one for our pumpkin theme too!

If you think you might like to create these fun books with your class, click on the pictures to grab them!

We always have a project hanging from the ceiling or on a bulletin board for our themes. 

Introducing... Johnny and Jenny Appleseed!

Aren't they sweet?
The kiddo's choose a hair and skin color that matches their own and then write their name in the pot!
 You can find this craftivity here.

If you're looking for a cute new bulletin board for the Halloween season this year, you can find this little guy here.

So that's all for fall y'all!

Apple Life Cycle Lunch Bag Book

Hello Friends!  With the forecast calling for the first snow tomorrow, it's time to say goodbye to some favorite fall things but not without something for my favorite unit~ apples! 

I know you too have probably long said goodbye to all things apple, but perhaps you can file this idea away for next year! While I had life cycles on the brain with the pumpkin lunch bag and was on a roll, I made this for apples!

If you'd like to read more about what's included, click on the image to see it at my shop. Since it's a little out of season, its on sale for a limited time! 

I hope you were able to enter the Fall Favorites Giveaway last week! I'm late with this here apple post, but I just went to the cider mill for one last time a week ago!

I'll leave you with some of my personal apple favorites!

Cooking up crock pot apple sauce in the classroom!

doodle apples from Doodle Art Ally

Rice Crispie cuties with tootsie rolls and laffy taffy.

 mom's homemade applesauce

And the best ever fresh, warm cinnamon donuts and hot cider from our local orchard!

 

Goodbye apples~ until next year!

Johnny Appleseed Main Ideas and Details

Hey, it's a reading lesson and a cute display! I LOVE this great project from Natalie's Nook all about main idea and details! It's a freebie at her shop! Thanks Natalie for the cute project for our apple unit!

It's a tall craft for a tall tale!

 This student won the "Wow Work" award for her masterpiece that was so beautifully colored!

Maybe you can file it away for next year! :) 

Freebie Linky and a Laminator Giveaway!

Happy October! I just wanted to let you know that there's still time to enter the Papermonster laminator giveaway! It ends on October 5th. See my previous post to enter! Fingers crossed for you!

My Little Darlins are all coughing and sneezing! I usually escape the bug, but not this time. I had to leave work with a fever on applesauce day which was so sad for me. I lasted long enough to peel and slice them, so these are the only pics I have! One sweetie brought me three lunch-sized applesauces today because I missed out! They're so cute when teacher is sick!

The kids loved the homemade applesauce and were asking for seconds! In their words~ it was the best day EVER! I love when they say that!

They wrote words to describe the applesauce as they ate it. My favorite was PHENOMENAL!  Today we used sequencing words to write about how to make applesauce. I add brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon in my recipe~ Yum. Apple fun continues this week!

I found this great site with all kinds of free doodle art. I love doodle art for classroom decorations and to develop fine motor skills. You've got to check it out!

I decided to mount our doodle apples on black to match our room theme. This is the winning apple from the coloring contest!

Here's a freebie apple poem!

Freebie offered under Scrappin Doodle license #TPT50174

I'll try to post more pictures of our apple week activities soon!

I've joined up with awesome blogger Lisa from Learning is Something to Treasure for her first Linky Party. If you're here and reading this, you've probably already grabbed my freebies from my blog and TPT store, but more are on the way! :)

Head on over to Lisa's cute pirate-themed blog to find a few flashback freebies! Join in the fun and link up too while you're there!