Four Seasons of the Apple Tree

A chill is in the night air, children are returning to school, and another season is turning.  Fall is perhaps my favorite season of all.

Children seem to tap into the change in the seasons.  They pick up on the weather and the rhythms of nature and enjoy exploring all the new wonders.

We created a “Seasons of the Apple Tree” craft.

Materials:

• White or blue sheet of paper
• Glue
• Scissors
• A cotton ball
• Brown non-toxic paint
• Green paper for leaves
• Pink tissue paper for buds
• Red tissue paper for apples
• Orange and yellow paper for autumn leaves
• White puffy paint (flour recipe from One Crafty Mumma or shaving cream recipe from No Time for Flashcards) and/or glitter for snow

Instructions:

1. Prepare your materials ahead of time, tearing up green paper for leaves and cutting up orange and yellow paper for leaves. Pour brown paint into a paper plate.
2. Fold the white paper twice, length-wise and then width-wise, to form quadrants.
3. Place the hand and part of the arm into the paint and then make four “tree prints”, one in each of the four quadrants.
4. In the first “Spring” quadrant, paste crumpled up pieces of green paper. Then, roll up small pieces of pink tissue paper into little “flower buds” and glue onto the tree.
5. In the second “Summer” quadrant, paste crumpled up pieces of green paper. Then, roll up small pieces of red tissue paper into little “apple” balls and glue onto the tree.
6. In the third “Fall” quadrant, spread glue along the branches and at the base of the “tree”. Sprinkle the orange and yellow “leaf” confetti onto the areas with glue and shake off.  You can also add a few apples to the tree and on the ground.
7. In the fourth “Winter” quadrant, use a cotton ball to apply puff paint to the tree and ground.  Sprinkle on glitter, if desired.

Educational Connections:

• Arts / Photography: Take a photograph of a favorite outdoor spot during the height of each of the four seasons.
• Science: How does the apple tree change with the seasons?  Discuss the role light, warmth, weather, and pollinators play.
• Science / Geography: What causes the seasons? Are the seasons the same everywhere on the planet? Study how the Earth’s orbit around the sun and your latitude affect the seasons.
• English Language Arts / Literature: Read and write nature haiku or other poetry about each season.
• History: Visit local historic properties and farms and find out how what the change in seasons meant to people in earlier centuries.
• History / Global Studies / Cultural Studies: Which of your family or cultural traditions mark the change of the seasons? How do other cultures throughout the world celebrate the change of the seasons?

While our craft dried, we sang Songs About the Seasons and read Books About the Four Seasons of the Apple Tree:

The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall: Two sisters describe how their apple tree grows during the seasons until there are ripe apples for a delicious pie. The mixed-media collage pictures are perfect for illustrating the rich textures of nature. A lovely family of robins, some helpful bees, and other fauna also play a role in this tale.  A page at the end describes the role bees play in pollination and shares a recipe for apple pie.  My kids find the whole idea of an “apple pie tree” very amusing and this simple tale keeps their interest throughout the whole story.

The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons: Arnold enjoys the seasons in his own special apple tree. As he watches flowers bud and blossom and ripen into fruit and observes his tree with his five senses, he also hangs a swing from his tree, builds a tree house, juggles, weaves a wreath, and decorates his apples and tree, all in their proper season.  Insets describe the process of pollination, give a recipe for Apple Pie, and show how Apple Cider is made.  This simple book is a clear illustration of the seasons of the apple tree.  I love the idea that the gifts of nature keep Arnold “busy”–his play is his work.

I’m sharing this at Story + Art (stART). Check out all the great ideas linked there!