Apple Orchard Field Trip

Visiting the apple orchard is one of my all-time-favorite autumn activities and it’s a perfect field trip for preschoolers. An apple orchard is an excellent introduction into understanding where our food comes from, and how fruits and vegetables are grown and harvested. There are so many topics that a trip like this can lead into, and it has the added bonus of great snacks!

If you’re planning a visit to the apple orchard here are some things to prepare young children for before you go:

• It’s a very large space, talk about staying together and work on resisting the urge to run down the rows and rows of trees – or let them know that you’ll make sure they get a chance to do that at the appropriate time.
• There will be bees and bugs. Bees are necessary when we grow anything, and they love the sweet apples too. Talk about how they should react if a bee gets a little too close for comfort.
• Who doesn’t want to pick an apple off a tree and take a bite? Discuss whether this is ok, or if you’ll wait until you get back to taste test.
• You might get to try some foods or drinks that they aren’t familiar with – like cider, or apple baked goods. The children may or may not like these items, so it can be helpful to explore how they should share their thoughts and feelings about new foods.

Some topics that can be explored in relation to an apple orchard field trip are:

• Plant life cycles
• Different varieties of apples
• Products that apples are used in
• How the apples get from the orchard to the store
• Other types of fruits that grow on trees

If you aren’t able to visit the orchard in person there are still a lot of creative ways to experience many of these same situations in the classroom! Sesame Street has an excellent clip from Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck segment where Cookie visits the orchard and then makes a pie – that video is available on Youtube. You could also have the children help create an orchard in your dramatic play space, which is a great way to consider all of the components that you would need to include.

Of course the best part of visiting an apple orchard is leaving with a load of apples that you can make amazing things with. Check back this week for more posts about using your apples for fine and gross motor activities, including some recipes!