Looking for a fun way to celebrate fall? These apple activities are great for kids to learn about apples in the fall time! This post includes an apple sensory bin, apple books, crafts, and even a recipe to make an apple pie!
Apple Pie Recipe
Pie Crust
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup boiling water
- 3/4 cup crisco
- 1 tsp. salt
Apple Filling
- 8 Large Apples, peeled and sliced (I used Honey Crisp and McIntosh)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- Milk and sugar for top of pie
Directions
- Boil water. Put Crisco in a bowl then add water. Stir until creamy. Put flour in mixture with salt. Just use enough flour to mix well. You might not need all the flour.
- Put half the dough on pastry towel dusting with flour. Roll out dough to the size of pie pan. Make sure there is enough to go up the sides. You may need to add flour while rolling it out if dough is sticky.
- Use the other half of pastry dough to roll out the top crust. Add a few cuts to vent the pie or do a lattice crust.
- In a separate bowl, add apples, sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice. Mix together.
- Add apple mixture on top of the bottom crust in the pie pan. Make sure to not add any extra liquid, just the apples.
- Add top crust on top on the pie, pinching around the edge to make a crust.
- Brush top of pie with milk and sprinkle sugar on top.
- Bake at 400 degrees for about 40 to 45 minutes.
Tools Needed
- Pie pan
- Rolling Pin
- Mixing Bowl
- Pastry towel or wax paper/parchment paper
Tips
- 8 large apples is enough for a deep dish pie or two small metal tin pies.
- If you want to make two smaller pies, you will need to double the crust or make it twice. The crust recipe makes enough for one bottom crust and one top crust.
- Firm apples are best to use. A mixture of tart and sweet apples is also best to use.
- Roll out crust on a pastry towel, or you can use wax paper or parchment paper. Make sure to lightly dust flour on top before rolling so it doesn’t stick.
- When cooking with children, measure out ingredients and let your child mix them together. My toddler poured all the apple filling ingredients in the bowl and mixed it up. She also helped to mix the crust and rolled a little bit of the crust. If your child is older, this is a great time to learn to measure themselves.
- While cooking, talk to your child about what you are doing. Include them in the process. Name everything and introduce words to younger children and even incorporate math with measuring cups for older children!
Apple Sensory Bin
For younger children, sensory bins are great! This is a sensory bin for an apple pie. Children can make their own apple pie using this sensory bin and practice scooping and pouring.
Materials:
- Plastic apples
- Oats
- Cinnamon Sticks
- Felt crust
- Pie Pan
- Measuring cups/spoons
- Plastic tub
Directions:
- Put oats in a big plastic tub. Next, add in apples, cinnamon sticks, and measuring cups/spoons to scoop.
- Make pie crust from tan felt. I just cut a circle to fit in the bottom of a pie pan. Then, I cut 6 strips of felt and made it look like a lattice crust.
Apple Books
Here is a list of books to read about apples! These are some of my favorites and make great read alouds and sources to learn all about apples!
Fall Apples: Crisp and Juicy
This is a great book to learn about apples. The book talks about the apples in fall at apple orchards, how apples grow, and how to use apples. This book has a glossary and a recipe!
Apples
This book is great to learn all about the apple: the history of the apple, how it grows, harvesting, and even ways to use apples.
Hello World, How Do Apples Grow?
This is a great board book for younger children to learn all about the apple. This book is simple but also gives a lot of information. The text is clear, simple and the illustrations are wonderful.
How to Grow an Apple Pie
This is a story of a little girl that has apple trees planted when she is born. After both growing for six years, the trees are ready to grow apples. The story tells how the apple trees are prepared, how the apples grow, how to harvest the apples, and how to make an apple pie. The story ends with a recipe to make an apple pie!
Apples and Pumpkins
This is a simple book about going to pick apples and pumpkins. It’s great for younger kids. It ends with going trick or treating so this could also be read during Halloween.
Apple Craft
This is a super easy craft that younger kids would enjoy. Make an apple by tearing or cutting red construction paper and glueing it to a paper plate. Add a stem from brown paper and a leaf from green paper and you are done!
I hope you enjoyed this post all about apple activities to do with your child!
If you are looking for more fall activities to do with your children, along with some great fall read alouds click here.
Thank you for Continually Learning with us!
Kyle and Sarah
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