Where not a bough once swayed in the breeze,
The answer still comes, as they travel on,
“These trees were planted by Apple-seed John.”
—Lydia Maria Child, in St. Nicholas
Tuesday
Have the children tell back to you the story of Apple-seed John. Ask the following questions, or similar questions. What did Apple-seed John look like? Was he old or young? What did he wish that he might do for people? How did he get his apple cores? How did he carry his apple cores? How did he plant the cores? What did he do when his bag was empty? Why was he called “Old Apple-seed John”? What happened to the cores that he planted? What kind of trees grew from the apple seeds? Who could eat the apples? Do you think his plan of planting apple-trees, a nice one?
Wednesday
Write five sentences about Apple-seed John.
Thursday
Write a letter to a friend, telling about Apple-seed John.