Orange Octopus

Oranges are a great food to explore with kids and scoring the peel into sections and peeling them off (just like I started to for this octopus) is a great way to start exploring!Activity:Then, as a fun deconstruct food play activity, let your child peel and explore their own orange as you show them how you take apart another one. This lets kids be in control of their experience and gives them a step-by-step tutorial on the experience of an orange, tangerine, etc....Language and Senses:Talk about how the orange looks, feels and smells. As you break open the peel, show your child how you can smell the peel. Guess what you think it will taste like. How is the inside different than the outside? Explore the white pith and the round orange under the peel. Open a section and find where the juice comes from. Seriously, explore this orange like you've never even seen one before.If your child really don't want to touch their orange, they can definitely watch you and help you take apart yours. They'll still be learning a lot and since oranges have such a strong smell, they'll still  get that olfactory sensory experience!If you're looking for more activities about taking foods apart and exploring them, there are a bunch more in the 'deconstruct activities' category in the 'Activities' menu in the right-hand column (or just click the link).Or take this in a completely different direction and pretend play with your octopus...The Orange Octopus is also part of the Animal Alphabet e-book which you can get for FREE by signing up here for the free resource library! Enjoy and happy food play!