🍏 Baking Apple Pies
A hands-on literacy and life skills activity for toddlers
Baking with toddlers isn’t just about the treat at the end — it’s a powerful learning experience filled with sensory exploration, sequencing, motor skill development, and language-rich moments.
This apple pie activity is inspired by the book Amelia Bedelia’s First Apple Pie and is part of our Falling Into Learning September curriculum for 3-year-olds.
🎥 Watch It in Action
Here’s how this activity looked when we made it at home together!
🧠 What Your Child is Learning:
- Literacy: Connects directly to the storybook Amelia Bedelia’s First Apple Pie
- Sequencing: Understanding steps in order (first peel, then cut, then mix…)
- Fine Motor Skills: Scooping, sprinkling, and pressing dough
- Sensory Exploration: Smelling spices, feeling textures, tasting apples
- Life Skills: Kitchen independence and following directions
🛒 What You’ll Need:
- Apples (we used 3–4)
- Store-bought pie crust (or use a toddler-friendly dough)
- A little sugar + cinnamon
- A small baking dish or cupcake tin
- Child-safe knife (optional but great for motor skills)
- Mixing bowl + spoon
👩🍳 How to Set It Up
- Read the story together
Start with Amelia Bedelia’s First Apple Pie to build context and excitement. - Prep your ingredients
Let your child help with peeling or cutting apples (with supervision), pouring in the cinnamon and sugar, and mixing everything up. - Build the pie
Help them line the baking dish with crust, scoop in the filling, and top it with another layer or fun shapes. - Bake together
Pop it in the oven and let them watch it bake! Talk about what’s changing while it cooks. - Enjoy and reflect
Eat together and talk about their favorite part of the story — and the baking!
💬 Extend the Play
- Pretend Play: After baking, set up a pretend pie shop!
- Writing Prompt: Have your child “write” a letter to Amelia Bedelia to tell her what kind of pie they made.
- Math Add-On: Count how many apple slices go into the pie or line them up by size.
🧺 Pair It With:
- Amelia Bedelia’s First Apple Pie (Book)
- Apple-scented playdough for a literacy + sensory tray
- Apple Sun Catcher Craft for a full apple-themed week