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Got Art? Try Apple Stamping for Fall Language Development
Art activities like apple stamping are great tools for teaching language skills.
Think about it, children learn best when actively participating in hands-on activities. An apple-themed art activity is a perfect speech and language opportunity for fall.
But how do you elicit language with an arts and craft project?
Let me tell you, there are soo many ways! Start with laying out the materials. Talk about each item as you get it. Describe the supplies, and brainstorm what you can do with them. Oh, and before you actually open any paint, this is a good time to put a smock on your little guys! I use my husband’s old shirts.
Your conversation about your apple stamping art project may look like this:
- Today we’re going to make a picture using a piece of fruit. Can you guess what fruit we’re going to use? (category). Let your children name some fruit, then give additional clues.
- My fruit grows on trees. It can be red or green or yellow. We might bake it in a pie. We might peel it and eat it. It’s crunchy! What do you think it is? (naming to a description)
- Right! It’s an apple. An apple is a fruit.
- What do you do with an apple?(object function)
- I wonder how they taste? Let’s try a piece. What was it like? How did it taste? (sweet, crunchy, juicy) (Descriptive vocabulary).
- I like red apples, do you? What other colors can they be? (describing)
- Can you think of other things that are red? (category)
- Hmmm, where do you think apples come from? Do they grow on the ground? (in/ on-prepositions)
Continue exploring each item before actually making your picture.
- I have some paint too. What else do I need to go with paint? (associations)
- A brush? Why do I need a brush? (Wh? questions, object function).
Discuss the glue. scissors and paper. The vocabulary you introduce may include sticky, wet, sharp, cut… you’ll think of these as you go!
Cut an apple in half. Ask, “What do you think we are going to do with the apples?” (prediction).
Now it’s time to bring out a finished sample of an apple stamping picture.
Talk about how the children will make their picture. You’ll find there is a bushel full of vocabulary words you can target!
Next demonstrate what to do and include words like first, next, last. (sequence) You can easily target verbs like dip, push, stamp. Quantity words could be few, many.
Have your children ask for each item they need for their apple stamping art project.
This is great for requestiong and sentence structure practice too. Ask”Okay, what do you need first?”
You keep all the supplies under your control, out of your children’s reach if possible. Have the them ask for the supplies, and tell you what they are going to do with them. (requesting, re-telling, function).
Teach children to make specific requests by giving them exactly what they ask for.
If they ask for an apple, give them just the apple, not the paint to go with it. Say, “ok,, go ahead and stamp your apple.” If they don’t initiate a request, prompt with, “do you need something else? Ask me for it.
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Want to give it a try? Here’s what you need for apple stamping.
- Apples and a knife to cut them in half
- Large paper
- Red and brown tempera paint
- A smock!
- Paintbrush to paint branches
- Scissors and green construction paper to cut out leaves and caterpillars
- Black marker to make a caterpillar face.
- Glue
For this project, I painted the branches ahead of time for my littles. I also pre-cut some leaves and caterpillars, but older children can do that themselves.
After the apples are stamped, add the leaves and caterpillars with some white glue. Are the caterpillars eating the apples? Oh no!
As you can see, art isn’t just for fun- it’s seriously awesome for providing language expression and vocabulary learning opportunities.
More Apple Activities and a Freebie
Stop by my store to grab this open-ended apple tree freebie. It comes in 2 versions:10 and 20 apples. I created it that way so you can use it for data-taking as well as a motivational activity.
Just give one color marker when the answer is correct, a second color when it needs fixing. (You can also use dot marekrs or crayons.) When all the apples are colored It will be simple to see how many responses were correct and get a percentage!
There’s also a colored version which is fun to print and laminate. Use it with dry erase markers, magnetic bingo chips or even pom-poms and a pair of tweezers for fine motor practice. (Your occupational therapist friends will love you for that!)
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| Dot Marker Apple Freebie- Click HERE. |
Ready for more hands-on activities and an engaging story for your apple theme?
Check out my Apple, Apple Where can You Be? resource.
This pack targets where questions, basic concepts and more with plenty of apple activities for multiple speech and language skills. Great for prek-to first grade, you can easily get your planning sone with this one packet for a week or more of sessions!
Read more about this packet plus more ideas for your apple theme in this post: Apple Pickin Speech Therapy.
TI would love to hear about your favorite fall language activities, just leave a comment. Have fun!
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