Build My Name Apple Tree Game

Apples are a favorite Fall theme around here! Before we dive into Halloween mode, check out this Build My Name Apple Tree game we created to explore and have fun with the letters in my preschooler's name. Make sure you scroll down to see how we adapted this for my toddler as well.

We also did Apple art and an Apple stomp alphabet game if you need a few more fun Fall activity ideas to try. 

For this activity we didn't need too many materials and we got our bodies moving and learning, so this was an awesome activity to share as part of this week's Move and Learn Series.

Materials needed:

• construction paper (green and brown)
• apple Post-it notes (we got ours at Office Depot)
• scissors
• thin cardboard
• painter's tape

Prep Ahead

Before we played the game I cut out trees from green paper and cardboard. Then I taped them to our wall with painter's tape. I also cut out little buckets from brown construction paper and labeled them with the letters of my preschooler's name.

If you want these to last longer, you can laminate them.

Once I set up the trees and the buckets, then I added apple Post-It notes to the trees and wrote the letters of my daughter's name on them. I tried to include a variety of letters on each tree.

To play

Once everything was set up it was easy to play!

The goal is to pick the letter apples off the tree and put them in the proper lettered bucket. While we did this we talked about the different letters we were exploring and noticed where they went in my daughter's name. This activity was purely about exploration and fun, not drilling her on how to spell her name. If she put the wrong apple in a bucket then I would just say, "Whoops, the A apple goes right here." and I'd move it. I didn't make a big deal about any mistakes but just reinforced what she did when she put the apples in the right spot.

While she put the apples in the right buckets she had fun stacking them... just like we did when we read and did Ten Apples Up on Top themed activities.

Toddler Version

My toddler got in on this activity in two ways. 

1. First, he had fun picking the apples off the tree and just moving them around before I put the alphabet letters on them.

2. Next, I stuck apple Post-its to the floor and gave my toddler a little apple bag and he picked the apples off the ground and put them in his apple bag. The apple bag is from the Target dollar spot.

I also have an entire pinterest board filled with Name Activities and Craft Ideas if you want to delve into this concept further.

This post is part of our weekly Move and Learn Series. This year I am back joining with Hands On: As We Grow, The Pleasantest Thing, and Coffee Cups and Crayons to share some awesome (and active) learning ideas with you each week!

Do you love activities that get your kids moving and learning? If so, here are a few more activity ideas from my favorite blogging friends:

Pumpkin Shape Game from The Pleasantest Thing

ABC Active Learning Game from Coffee Cups and Crayons

Unscramble and Fill in Your Name Game from Hands On: As We Grow

Need more activities for toddlers or preschoolers? Make sure to check out our awesome e-books! 

Zero to Two: The Book of Play is full of wonderful sensory, play-based ideas for our youngest learners. It comes with a set of printable puppets and stroller cards, and is just right for babies and toddlers. See more details of the book here and buy it now for just $8.99.

Three to Five: Playful Preschool is packed with hands-on, creative ideas, including math, literacy, science, art and play. It comes with ten fantastic printables including My First Journal, a city-scene for pretend play, recipe card, and math and alphabet game cards. See more details of the book here and buy it now for just $8.99.

You can buy the ebooks wherever you are in the world. You pay via PayPal.