And although this year may look different, one thing that has stayed the same is that kids need the opportunity to get creative and learn how to problem solve.  

This is why STEM activities for kids have become so popular.  STEM gives kids a chance to get creative, think outside the box, and problem solve, all while having fun.  

With fall approaching, and the return to school, this apple wrecking ball STEM challenge is perfect to do with your child this month.

They will have lots of fun designing and engineering their very own wrecking ball with an apple.  

Fall is the perfect time for apple activities for kids.   It’s one reason preschool and kindergarten classes tend to do”apple units,” with a variety of activities, all with an apple theme to them.  

When my own kids were that age we had fun with this apple-themed sight word game.    

Even though they are older now, they still enjoy doing activities with a theme…and this apple activity was a favorite.  

For more fall-themed STEM fun, check out our catapulting pumpkins.  

Apple STEM Challenge

Why is this a challenge and not an activity? 

Instead of a predetermined structure the kids are supposed to build, this is an open-ended STEM challenge that encourages kids to get creative in order to solve the problem.  

It’s possible that each child will have a different product at the end of the challenge.  

You can easily change the level of difficulty by varying the materials you allow them to use.  

You might choose to allow younger kids to use the cardboard tubes, wood skewers, yarn, and tape without limits.  Or, you may limit them to 1 foot of tape per person/group.  

For older kids you could choose to eliminate the cardboard tubes, and even the skewers.  You might include a hot glue gun instead of tape.  This would encourage them to design something that would be more challenging, using the craft sticks and hot glue to form the main structure.    

You could also have students design a wrecking ball that needs to knock smaller objects, like Lego figures, from the cardboard blocks, without disturbing the blocks.  This would pose a whole different level of difficulty as they work to get the string length just right on the hanging apple.  

Apple Wrecking Ball 

When it comes to engineering a wrecking ball with an apple, there are a variety of materials you could use.  Below you will find the materials we found most effective, but feel free to substitute as you see fit.  

Affiliate links have been used below.  See my full disclosure for more details. 

Suggested Materials:

• Apples
• Wood Skewers or Small Dowel Rods
• Variety of Cardboard Tubes
• Yarn, Twine, or Heavy String
• Pipe Cleaners (Chenille Sticks) 
• Drinking Straws
• Craft Sticks  
• Tape & Scissors
• Hot Glue Gun
• Small Cardboard Boxes or Cardboard Blocks (to knock down)

Decide which materials you plan on allowing your child to use, and if you will limit the amount of each item they can use.  

As a side note, I had to laugh at myself when we did this challenge. 

I left the materials for the wrecking balls on a couple of our kitchen chairs.  My daughter took it that the chairs were part of the materials…and designed the idea below, based off the pendulum painting we had done previously.  

While the top portion was fairly simplified.  I was impressed by how she hung the apple — using the wood skewer to poke a hole through the fruit, and then sticking a straw through the hole so she could thread the yarn through it.   

Teaching Kids the Engineering Design Process

If your child isn’t familiar with the engineering design process, this is the perfect time to go over this child-friendly version with them.

• Ask Questions (Identify the problem.  What are the constraints?)
• Brainstorm Solutions
• Plan (Draw a picture of your idea.  Make a list of materials needed.)
• Create (Build a prototype.)
• Improve  (What works?  What doesn’t?)

Present the problem to your child.  “You need to figure out how to make a wrecking ball, using an apple, that will knock over these blocks.”

Let them know what materials they are allowed to use.  Will they be limited in how much tape they can use?  If so, they will need to plan wisely!  

Give them a few minutes to brainstorm ideas and then sketch down a picture of what they think their finished product will look like.  

Then comes the fun part.  Give them time to build.  

As they build, they may discover their original idea doesn’t work.  That’s okay! 

Remind them that that is part of the engineering process.  They can always change their design if they discover it doesn’t work the way they thought.  

Once your child has finished building and troubleshooting, make sure they have plenty of time to demonstrate their wrecking ball.

You could even take the challenge further, and have them make adjustments so it is able to knock down smaller objects (like Lego figures) without knocking down the cardboard blocks.  Or, see if their wrecking ball can knock over heavier items.  

Once you’ve finished with the apple wrecking ball STEM challenge, try a few of these fall STEM activities:

• Build an Apple Tree
• Make a Pumpkin Pulley
• Pumpkin Sink or Float (perfect for toddlers and preschoolers)
• Pumpkin Volcano
• Vanishing Ghosts
• Build a Candy Tower

The post Engineer an Apple Wrecking Ball — Simple STEM Challenge first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

When it comes to apple activities for kids, this skip counting activity with apples is perfect for preschool and kindergarten.  

Practicing skip counting helps kids in math later on when they start working on multiplication and division facts.    We also had fun with this outdoor skip counting activity.

Skip Counting Activity with Apples

You can make your very own apple-themed math manipulatives with plastic bottle caps and a black permanent marker.    (You can also do lots of fun apple-themed math activities with pom-poms.) 

Plastic bottle caps and lids are super handy when it comes to inexpensive learning materials.  I have a small box where I toss them until I want to use them for something.  

For this apple math activity, you will want to use bottle caps that are red, green, and yellow to match the colors of apples.  (If you can’t find caps in those colors, the caps can be spray painted red.)

Don’t have a big lid collection?  You could also cut apples from cardstock.  Draw simple circle apples and your child can even help cut them out for some built-in scissor practice!

To create manipulatives for skip counting, determine what your child needs to work on.  

I decided to make one set of apples to practice counting by 5’s up to 100 because both of my kids were working on this.  I simply wrote the numbers on the lids with a black permanent marker (5, 10, 15…)   

Of course, you could make a set to work on counting by 2’s, 10’s, or any other number as well.  And, you don’t have to go all the way to 100, or you could make your set go further.  

Make this skip counting activity fit the needs of your individual child.

There are several ways you can use your “apples.”  

First, have your child put them in order to practice skip counting.  

Then, try setting up the numbers in order and removing some of the plastic bottle caps.  

Have your child tell you which numbers need to go in the empy spots.  

You can also use the lids to practice skip counting backwards.

Want to make it more challenging?

You can throw in some random numbers that would not be used when counting by 5’s, such as “12.”

More Apple Themed Skip Counting Activities for Kids

Add some movement to the activity by placing the “apples” around the house and have your child “pick them” in the correct order.

Use the apples to work on comparisons.  On a white board draw a greater than/less than sign and have them choose two apples to put on the white board to make the greater than/less than statement true.

Like this idea?

You might want to check out our other apple-themed learning activities!

• Apple-Themed CVC Word Scavenger Hunt
• Apple Tasting
• Apple-Scented Bubble Dough

The post Apple-Themed Skip Counting Activity first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

And when it comes to an apple unit, this apple pie recipe for kids is sure to be a big hit. 

Cooking with kids is a fun way to work on math skills and following directions.

You’ll also want to check out this simple homemade butter recipe to try! 

Apple Pie Recipe for Kids

Ingredients:

• 6 large Granny Smith apples
• pre-made pie crust  (or make your own)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspooon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 tablespoons butter
• milk, cinnamon, and sugar (for crust top)

How to Bake a Homemade Apple Pie

1.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

2.  Place bottom crust into pie pan.

3.  Peel and cut 6 large Granny Smith apples.  (When working with kids, peel the apples first and cut them into thick slices.  This makes it easier for them to then cut the apple slices into cubes.)

4.  Mix 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves.   (Lots of great measuring opportunities for the kids here!)

5.  Carefully toss the flour and spice mixture with the apples, making sure each apple is coated.

6.  Pour apple mixture into bottom pie crust.

7.  Top apples with 2 tablespoons of butter, cut into small pieces.

8.  Fit top crust over apple mixture and press crust edges together to seal.  We used mini play dough cutters to cut some cute shapes into our top crust first!  If you don’t do this, then make sure you cut slits in the top crust to create steam vents.

9.  Brush the top crust with milk.  (At this point we opted to shake a  mixture of cinnamon and sugar on the top.  Kids LOVE to shake ingredients!)

10.  Bake 40-45 minutes.  The pie should be golden and the apples fork tender when finished.

The hardest part is waiting for it to bake!  (And to cool off afterwards!)  We used the time to clean up the kitchen, always an important step in baking, and then to run some energy off outside on the swings.

Baking apple pie with the kids was a perfect (and sweet) way to end our apple unit.

You may also like:

• Apple-Themed Skip Counting Activity 
• Easy to Make Apple-Scented Bubble Dough 

The post Baking with Kids: Simple Apple Pie Recipe first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

With the leaves beginning to change, we just couldn’t resist making a batch of this super soft apple scented playdough, perfect for the start of fall.

There are so many fun ways to make shampoo playdough.   Each recipe creates a super soft homemade play dough your child will want to play with again and again.

This apple playdough is perfect for an apple unit in preschool or kindergarten. 

It would also be fun to make as an after school activity with your kids at home.  

Affiliate links have been used below.  See my full disclosure for more details. 

Apple Scented Playdough

Before mixing up your dough, set up your play area with a few apple tree leaves, small sticks, and fall-shaped cookie cutters.

This will help inspire your preschooler when it comes to exploring the dough.  

Materials Needed:

• Apple Scented Shampoo
• Corn Starch
• Green Food Coloring (optional)
• Bowl 
• Measuring Cup
• Spoon 

To make your no cook apple playdough, begin by measuring 1 cup of corn starch and dumping it in your bowl.  This is the perfect time to work on measuring skills with your child! 

Add 1/2 cup of your apple scented shampoo and stir.  You can also add in 3-4 drops of green food coloring if desired.  

Mix thoroughly with your spoon.  Or, your child may decide to just start mixing it by hand.  

For a bit of added fun, you can add some “apple seeds.” 

For our apple seeds we used watermelon seeds that I had I saved for crafting.  It would take a lot of apples to get that many seeds!

Melting Playdough

Shampoo play dough is a very soft play dough, and when mixed together it will hold its shape for a bit before slowly “melting.”   That’s because it’s a non-Newtonian fluid, much like Oobleck.  

Your child will have lots of fun playing with their fall scented playdough and watching their creations slowly melt down.  

Apple Play Dough

Here are a few more playdough recipes you may love this fall.  

• Apple Pie Playdough — This homemade play dough smells just like an apple pie.  
• Apple-Cinnamon Dough — Discover how you can use real apples to make your very own scented playdough.  
• No-Cook Apple Dough — Preschoolers will love this apple and cinnamon scented dough. 

Apple is one of my favorite fall-inspired scents.  I think we may need to make this apple scented playdough again before the end of fall.

You may also like:

• Apple Themed Skip Counting Activities 
• Preschool Apple Themed Activities from Teaching 2 & 3 Year Olds
• Apple Themed Sight Word Game 
• Taste-Safe Cloud Dough 

The post Easy to Make Apple-Scented Bubble Dough Recipe first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

Along with reading plenty of fun apple picture books, we’ve enjoyed a variety of apple activities for kids, including plenty of fun math and science.  

After a recent trip to the grocer we headed home for a bit of delicious apple tasting activity.

We all agreed, this fun apple sensory activity was the most delicious one yet.  

Apple Tasting Activity 

To do your own apple tasting activity, you will want a variety of fresh apples.   Try Honey Crisp, Gala, Granny Smith, and Red Delicious, to name just a few.  

Start by looking at the different varieties and discussing their different colors and sizes.  

Have your child make a hypothesis about which apple will be the sweetest, the most tart, and which will be the crunchiest.  If you want to get serious, have your child write down their guesses so you can compare them later to your results.  

Next, carefully use a knife to slice into your first apple.  Place your apple pieces into a bowl and use a small notecard to label the bowl so you know which apple variety it is.  

Do this with each of your apples.  

Now for the fun part… Time to sample all the apples!

As you taste each apple, ask your child to describe it.  

• What color is it?  Red?  Light green?  Pink? 
• Is it sweet?  Tart?
• Is it very crunchy?  A little soft?  
• How does it smell?  

While your child describes the apples, write down their answers.  (For older children you can have them record the results all on their own.)

You can stop there, and see how close your child’s earlier hypothesis was about which would be the crunchiest, sweetest, etc.  

Or, take your apple sensory activity a bit further and choose two to compare in a Venn diagram.  

Simply draw two large circles that overlap on paper or a white board.  You can also find pre-made Venn diagrams online you can print out.

Choose two apples to compare, and label each circle with one type of apple.  

Then write down words that describe each apple in the correct circle.  Things the apples have in common go in the middle.

We compared Granny Smith and Red Delicious apples.   My first grader was able to use our descriptions we had written down earlier to fill in her chart.  

We had so much fun with this simple apple tasting activity.  It’s definitely one of our favorite fall sensory activities.  

More apple activities:

• Apple Stamping Craft
• Apple-Themed CVC/Sight Word Game
• Baking with Kids: Apple Pie Recipe

The post Apple Tasting first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

Each morning we have read an apple-themed book followed by one of our apple activities for kids that ties in with the book.   

After reading our latest book, I knew we HAD to do apple stamping that day!

Affiliate links have been used in the post below.  

I’d always done apple stamps with the apples cut in half vertically, which makes an apple print that looks like an apple.  Apples, Apples, Apples is a cute book that talks about a variety of apples and includes a yummy apple recipe as well as directions to stamp with the apples in a different way…making star shapes!

Following the book’s directions, I used the cores from the apples we taste-tested in the morning and cut across them horizontally, allowing the star pattern to appear.

I also cut one small, spotted apple in half vertically.

These apples became our stamps.   I poured red, green, and yellow paint into some shallow dishes and called the kids to the kitchen for our apple craft.

We learned quickly that if you got too much paint on your apple it would leave a gloppy print behind.  Using a few paper towels to blot some of the excess off before stamping the paper really helped!

My son was excited to see the star shapes appear on his paper, just like we saw in the book!

My daughter goes with “you can never have too much” when it comes to painting.   She made some lovely yellow stars with the apple stamps.  Then she got a paintbrush and got creative!

You could use the apple stamping to create some lovely homemade wrapping paper and gift cards.  Or just make some pretty pictures to decorate the doors this fall!

Be sure to check out some of our other apple activities!

• Apple-Themed Math Activities
• Apple-Themed CVC Word Game
• Ten Apples up on Top! Activities

The post Apple Stamping Craft first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.