Apple STEM Activities for Back to School

August 24, 2023 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

I don’t know if there’s much that’s symbolic of fall and back to school time like apples, so let’s play with our food and do some learning while we’re at it with these apple STEM and STEAM activities.

Why not make an apple bird feeder and keep a log of the different kinds of birds and other animals you see using it? Messy Little Monster has this simple DIY.

Since apples are alive they can decay, so you can use them to learn about mold (on a smaller scale than the classic decaying pumpkin experiment). Share It Science has a post about a kid’s book you can read about observing mold and decay, plus all the details for setting up your own kid-led experiment to see what happens when apple slices are left to rot and how well different preservatives help them stay fresh.

On the other end of the spectrum you can dry apples, which is another means of preserving them. Adventure in a Box has all the details for turning apple drying into a science experiment for kids that you can eat when it’s done!

While you’re slicing apples, make some apple boats with this idea from A Dab of Glue Will Do. Let the kids decorate their sails (and/or make them different shapes, sizes and materials) and have them use the worksheet in the post to hypothesize whether their boats will float and why.

Kid Minds has a fun experiment using an apple where you investigate the center of gravity by balancing an apple off the edge of a table. Head to the post to see how and why this one works (and definitely consider doing the stabbing of the apple yourself instead of having a kid do it).

And then of course there’s the classic apple volcano experiment, speaking of things done on a smaller scale than using a pumpkin. Homeschool Preschool has all the details on this fun project that kids of all ages enjoy.

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Bird Learning Activities for Kids

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Learning about Snow

Not all of us live where there is a lot of snow in the winter (or even where it is winter as I write this, but it can still be fun to learn about snow, what it is and why it falls, so let’s get into it!

First, let’s talk snowflake science with The Homeschool Scientist. They have a free prinatble snowflake science less that’s more than 60 pages long and good for multiple grade levels. The blog post linked here includes some fun snow facts, information about how snowflakes form and why they are both six-sided and (probably) all different.

Expressive Monkey has a great post about how snowflakes are formed and why they have six arms, and also shows some of the pictures taken by W. A. Bentley in the 1920s (more on him below).

You can also grab a free snow facts worksheet with space for kids to draw their own unique snowflakes from Education.com. Simple Living Creative Learning also has a paid snow study resource set that includes things like different types of snowflakes, the snow cycle, symmetry drawing with snowflakes, tips for snow safety, snow-related vocabulary and more.

Homeschool Superfreak has another great page for learning about snowflakes, which includes information about Snowflake Bentley, a great book to read (and person to learn about). It includes lesson plan ideas and links to activities.

Speaking of activities, if you happen to have snow around you can make snow ice cream or maple candy, paint on snow or with snow, or do some snow science experiments. If you get a ton of snow you could maybe even build an igloo or snow structure.

If you don’t get snow you can learn about how animals keep warm in the snow and cold temperatures with this experiment from I Can Teach My Child. Frugal Fun for Boys and Girls can help you learn why big paws (or snowshoes) make it easier to walk in the snow. Or make a snowstorm in a jar like this one from MomBrite.

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