Making Applesauce--a Mix of the Olde and the New

Two high school classes for students with autism combined this morning to make applesauce--peeling the apples, coring them, combining sugar and spices and putting them in crockpots for a nice, long soak.  Lots of opportunities to practice:

• Hand washing
• Safe use of sharp equipment (apple peeler, pie-shaped apple slicer)
• Reading directions
• Recalling which step the group is currently on
• Using words and even whole sentences to request what you need
• Using voice output devices to request what you need
• Reading the volume description on the measuring cups and spoons
• Feeling skinny apple peels accumulate on your hand while turning the peeling crank
• Sniffing cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar while adding the ingredients
• Not touching your face while you're working with food (so hard!)
• Coughing, sneezing away from the prep surface (double so hard!)
• Washing everything afterwards

I had never used a mechanical apple peeler before and it wasn't easy to figure out.  Good thing I had some experienced teachers nearby.

This activity was planned and directed by our school's Transition Coordinator and it was such a pleasure to be able to just be a "helper" and work with many different students--some on my OT caseload and some not.  Boy, did I ever see a lot of fine motor skills, sensory preferences (or not...) and hygiene habits.  Some of the students could probably have jobs in the food service industry one day and some, well, maybe not so much.