Family Apple Tasting

[20 Minutes]

Plan this activity for a family dessert or a mid-afternoon snack. It can lead to a discussion of each person's uniqueness.

You'll need:

• 1 each of several varieties of apples: Macintosh, Delicious, Granny Smith, Gala, Cortland, etc. • knife (ADULT USE ONLY) • string • ruler • paper • pencil

What to do:

1. Place one of each kind of apple in a bowl. Invite each person to choose an apple.
2. Encourage your child to look and talk briefly about the similarities and differences between the apples. Compare them in many categories and record the "winners" on a sheet of paper. Some categories are:

   color (reddest, greenest, shiniest, etc.)
   size (largest, smallest)
   largest stem
   most (or least) bumps on the bottom
   largest circumference. (To measure circumference, wrap a separate piece of string around the center of each apple, cutting where it meets. Then lay the strings alongside each other to compare.)
   Cut the apples open and compare color (lightest, darkest) and number of seeds (most, least).

3. Invite everyone to taste a piece of each apple and record the favorites.

Let's Talk: Ideas to Explore Together.

• Based on our taste testing, what kind of apples should we buy on our next shopping trip?
• What are some of the ways people in our family are the same? Different?

Useful information:

While you are having fun together, this activity helps your child develop language skills, sorting skills, and an understanding of same and different.