This fall my son has been enjoying reading Ten Apples Up On Top by Dr. Seuss to me instead of the other way around! So we decided to come up with a bunch of fun new activities to go along with this new chapter in our life. These homemade apple squeeze balls are the perfect stacking activity for Ten Apples Up On Top as well as an awesome stress ball for kids! Check out more cool Ten Apples Up On Top activities!
HOW TO MAKE A SQUEEZE BALL
SQUEEZE BALLS
Homemade, DIY sensory balls, calm down balls, or stress balls are perfect for little hands to squeeze! Although they are often used for anxious kiddos, we like to use them for simple play and learning.
We first made these sensory balloons a couple years ago. Make sure to check out our Jack O’ Lantern ones for Halloween or our Easter Egg sensory balloons!
They are stronger than you think too! My son loves to smack them on the floor! You can fill these with a bunch of different things as shown in our balloon texture post. For this one we just filled with them with sand for our stacking activity.
Start off your fall or apple themed lesson plans with this simple activity. Have everyone make their own apple squeeze ball and then count and stack them all. Both kids and adults love playing with squeeze balls. Adding simple activities to favorite books is perfect for young kids!
TEN APPLES UP ON TOP ACTIVITY
So now that you have made your apple squeeze balls (see full instructions at the end), what can you do with them? Squeeze them of course! Stack them or splat them, as well!
Count and stack or subtract and stack. Can you stack all 10? Check out what happened when we tried to stack real apples or balance with our paper apple craft!
Apple squeeze balls are much easier to stack but they still take some effort. He had to experiment a bit with the shapes and contours and finally discovered that he could flatten them out pretty nicely for better stacking!
It took some effort to get all ten stacked up for a few seconds before the tower collapsed. Apparently animals in books have much more success with balancing apples. Though it’s quite a bit of fun to try it! We also love apple races for quick science too.
These DIY apple squeeze balls are so easy to make and great for little hands. Maybe they will even last until Christmas!
HOW TO MAKE A SQUEEZE BALL
YOU WILL NEED:
- Play Sand {sandbox sand}
- Balloons {we chose red and green balloons for apples}
- Ten Apples Up On Top by Dr. Seuss
- Small Funnel and Tablespoon
STEP BY STEP APPLE SQUEEZE BALLS
1: Blow up the balloon and hold it for a few seconds to stretch it out a bit. Release air {always a hit}!
2: Attach balloon to end of funnel.
3: Use a tablespoon to add sand.
4: Tie off balloon after the main part is filled with sand. Don’t fill the neck part or you won’t be able to knot it and it will look like a pair instead.
5: Read the book!
Looking for easy to print activities, and inexpensive problem-based challenges?
We have you covered…
Click below to get your quick and easy STEM challenges.
AWESOME APPLE SQUEEZE BALLS FOR FALL!
Click on the photos below to find more awesome apple themed ideas.
Thank you for all of your amazing ideas!! My four boys love them!!!
Awesome so happy to hear! That’s what it’s all about, kids having fun and learning a little too.
Easy instructions incorporating stem and science to this classic book math color recognition this is a winner.