This post may contain affiliate links, meaning we get a commission at no cost to you if you decide to make a purchase. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a small commission on qualifying purchases.
We had so much fun with our summer themes that we decided to continue the fun into the fall! We have a full week of apple themed activities and ideas. Whether you are a parent looking to create fun fall memories or a speech-language pathologist wanting to increase language production, we have an engaging apple activity for your little one! Check out what apple activities we did. Plus be sure to grab an apple direction following game freebie!

Themed Week of Apples Activities!
Each summer I pick nine different themes. Each theme is broken down by day of the week. Then every day has a focused activity to encourage vocabulary development, language in natural contexts, and create hands-on experiences. Here is the daily schedule we followed for the entire summer regardless of the theme! We have continued the fun into the school year this fall!
- Make It Monday
- Take A Trip Tuesday
- Water Wednesday
- Thinking Thursday
- Foodie Friday
- Scavenger Hunt Saturday
- Sensory Sunday

Too many other things going on this fall? Don’t stress! Pick only a couple of activities, or do it all. Incorporating vocabulary and language into even just one activity can help increase your child’s retention and application of concepts. Most importantly, just have fun together! For all the SLPs out there, these activities can all be modified to target a variety of goals!
Make It Monday
For our first activity of the week, we made homemade apple pie play dough. If only smells could come through the screen!!! This stuff smelled sooooo good!!! It was a good consistency for smashing, rolling, and stretching. We followed this easy, peasy recipe from Emma Owl. Click here to see what we did and grab the instructions.




After we played at home, I brought the play dough into school for round two. Since it is gluten-free, I was able to use it with all my students! This was the perfect play dough to pair with our Phonological Processes Apple Smash Mats. I printed a black and white copy of the appropriate target sound and put it into a page protector. My students not only loved the apple pie scent, but enjoyed smashing and practicing the phonological process of final consonant deletion. Click here to grab these comprehensive smash mats to target final consonant deletion, stopping, fronting, cluster reduction, and gliding.
I put the play dough in a sealed container for repeated use throughout the week. Both my son and students loved it! Really filled the room with a yummy fall scent plus created a fun sensory experience!
Also read: How To Effortlessly Plan 15 Activities For Final Consonant Deletion
Take A Trip Tuesday
It’s probably no surprise that we headed to the apple orchard this week! I took my boys to a local orchard, and Mandy took her girls to a different orchard closer to their house. All four kids had a blast running up and down the rows of trees, filling their bags, and of course eating apples!



While some of our students are able to go apple picking with their families, some unfortunately are not. During a large group language session, I had my students help “build an orchard” on the smartboard. We used these BOOM cards by speakandteachph. Although a digital scene is not the same as a trip to the actual orchard, we were able to discuss lots of vocabulary and formulate expanded utterances. Plus those that went to the orchard were able to retell their apple adventures to the class!

Water Wednesday
This week’s water activity was so much fun! I did this with both my son and my students. First, I laid out a variety of different types of apples (freshly picked from our take a trip Tuesday!). I had my son make a simple prediction as to whether or not he thought each apple would sink or float. His mind was blown each time the apple floated!

With my students, I filled a large, clear bucket with water. Then I gave them each a picture of an apple. They had to place their apple picture under either sink or float on the front board. Once everybody made a prediction, I let each student place an apple into the tub of water to see what would happen. Again, minds blown! Got so much spontaneous commenting and natural language during this activity!


Thinking Thursday
There are so many good apple themed books out there! For this week’s book and activity, Mandy had her daughter and students up and moving! She read Apple Picking Day by Candice Ransom. During the cute rhyming story, there are lots of great apple vocabulary words included too!

For the Thinking Thursday activity, Mandy was able to use these FREEBIE Following Directions Apple Chase game to target direction following, spatial prepositions, and apple themed vocabulary. To play, print and cut out the apple vocabulary cards. Lay them out on the floor around the room. Then give each student a short direction from the included lists such as “Jump toward the apple basket!” or “Spin next to the apple pie!”. Have students do a little apple chase around the room!
Download this fun and easy FREEBIE Following Directions Apple Chase game here!


Also read: Direction Following Strategies & Practice Ideas
Foodie Friday
Ah the food part of the week…arguably my favorite activity! Since we had lots of leftover apples, I decided to make homemade crockpot applesauce. I simply peeled and chopped roughly eight apples. I filled the crockpot with the apples and added roughly 1/2 c. of water. Just sprinkle the apples with 3/4 c. brown sugar and 1 tsp. of cinnamon. Set on low for 6-8 hours, then use an immersion blender to mix to desired consistency. Easy as apple pie!




Sadly, we are a food free school due to our post-COVID world. But here is the recipe below if you are lucky enough to work in a setting that allows food! We love using recipes to work on direction following, sequencing, and experiencing new textures!

Scavenger Hunt Saturday
One of our kids’ favorite activities is a good old fashioned scavenger hunt! My son loves anything from seek and find books to playing “I Spy” while driving in the car. So Mandy put together the perfect themed scavenger hunt to target apple vocabulary. I laminated the checklist of vocabulary words, so my son could use a dry erase marker to check items off the list. He enjoyed finding items throughout the apple orchard!



Even though it was NOT on a Saturday, I also was able to use this awesome Apple Vocabulary Scavenger Hunt with my students during large and small group sessions. I had students chose a vocabulary word card and locate it within the scene. With a whole class, I projected the orchard scene on the smartboard and had students circle the hidden words. Great activity for expanding utterances and expressive vocabulary!
Like this Apple Vocabulary Scavenger Hunt? Click here to grab yours today!


Sensory Sunday
Mandy made an epic apple themed sensory bin this week! She included red, green, and yellow pom poms, colored apples (we like these from Learning Resources!), small pie tins, scoops, pinchers, and dry oatmeal. Her daughters enjoyed mixing and scooping!


While playing with the items, her students were also able to categorize the apples by color, size, and description. To help with this, she used these freebie describing apple attribute cards from Primary Punch! Perfect visual to go with the perfect apple sensory bin!


How ’bout them apples!? Such a fun week of apple themed activities and ideas for not only encouraging language at home but for also keeping speech students engaged during back to school and fall sessions. To all you fall lovers out there, share your favorite apple activities below! We would love to hear what you are up to this fall season!
Happy fall, fellow mamas & SLPs!
Talking Mama Bears