Apple Picking

Today we went to visit Chapin's Orchard and the children had such a great time! We had perfect weather to learn about apples, apple trees and bees. The first thing we did when we arrived at the orchard was walk down to the apple orchard.  We learned that we aren't the only ones who enjoy apples!  The mice do too.  They like to nibble at the bark of the tree, which can damage the tree.  So, the farmer at the apple orchard places wire guards at the bottom of the trees to prevent them from nibbling at the bark.  We also learned about graphing, which is when a variety of apples are growing on one tree.  After, we picked and tasted Liberty apples.  The children were so excited to pick apples and to eat one!  While we were enjoying our apples, we learned that there is a star inside the apple, which holds the seeds. Your child has brought 2 apples home to share.  We will be using the other apples for baking and art projects. 

Another part of the field trip the children were excited about was watching how apple cider was made using a cider press.  During this process (thank you to our two volunteers for helping), the children were memorized with how quickly the cider came out.  We used 35 apples to make enough cider for everyone, including the adults, to each have a small cup of cider. 

We then headed into the classroom to learn about the bees and how important they are to the orchard.  We learned that a bee has the same body parts as a butterfly.  The children sang a song about the body parts of a bee.  See if they can sing it to you (it's sung to the tune of "head, shoulders, knees and toes").  We also learned about a beekeeper and what that job entails.

Thank you to our chaperones for coming with us on this field trip!

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