Preparing to teach an elementary fall-themed unit can be easy. These fun, hands-on activities are simple to pull together and are sure to be a hit with all children!
Sorting Nuts, Leaves and Pine Cones
If possible, have students participate in collecting a variety of nuts, leaves and pine cones from outdoors. If no suitable place is available, then bring in a variety of these fall objects and have students use them in sorting exercises. Nuts can be sorted by shape, colors or sizes as can the leaves. Pine cones can be sorted by size as well.
Leaf Rubbings
Take students on a walk to collect fall leaves. Students then make leaf rubbings using peeled crayons and white paper. Students place the leaf under the paper and then rub the side of the crayon over the hidden leaf. The leaf’s texture will show through the paper.
Five Fall Senses
Prepare a small book for each student with pages that say, “My favorite fall smell is ______.” and so on, with one page for each of the five senses. Help the students fill in the blank and draw a picture to accompany the sentence. If desired, brainstorm a list of possible words to use and put them in a word bank on a piece of chart paper or on the blackboard.
I Know It’s Autumn Book
I Know It’s Autumn by Eileen Spinelli [HarperCollins, 2004] is the fun story of young girl who shares all the ways she knows that autumn has arrived. The signs of the season include everything from Daddy getting her jacket out of the storage box to making zucchini bread with an elderly neighbor. The book has large illustrations and simple text, making it an excellent read-aloud.
Apple and Pumpkins Read Aloud
Apples and Pumpkins by Anne Rockwell [Aladdin, 2005] tells the story of a young girl who picks apples and pumpkins with her mother and father. After they arrive home, they carve jack-o-lanterns and enjoy trick or treating. The colorful illustrations and simple text make it a great read-aloud for kindergarten and first grade students who are learning about fun fall activities.
Apple Farmer Annie
Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington [Puffin Books, 2004] is a brightly illustrated book with cheerful pictures and simple text. Annie is an apple farmer and the book follows her through her fall activities of collecting the apples from her orchards, making apple goods, and selling everything at the farmer’s market in the city. This book lends itself to starting many different fall activities.
Fall is such a wonderful time to teach kindergarten and first grade students. They thoroughly enjoy the various autumn activities, including bringing pieces of nature into the classroom. Preparing an autumn themed unit can be fun and easy by including just a few of these activities and a variety of apple three themed books for read alouds. Students of this age also would enjoy apple units and meeting Miss Suzy, a sweet gray squirrel who enjoys collecting acorns and fireflies for her lamps.
Sallie Schaaf Borrink - Sallie Borrink is a professional writer with extensive experience with business clients, the consumer market, and online destinations.
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