- Dec 20, 2019
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Estimated reading time: 12 minutes
Are you looking for an alternative to giant bunnies and too much sugar this year? We have some great ideas for Easter activities to help you give your children a Christ-centered Easter.
Eggs have been part of celebrating the resurrection since medieval times when people used the symbolism of the egg for new life. Germans introduced the Easter Hare as a mythical creature that laid eggs and gave them to good children. For Christian parents, it’s better to use chicks and eggs to share about new life as the analogy reflects the emergence of Jesus from the empty tomb.
In our family, we created a treasure hunt for each child and let them choose to accept the treasure clues or not as a reminder that it is a choice for us to accept salvation or not. My younger daughter carries on this tradition with her children. We use each Easter activity to reinforce faith and spiritual growth and celebrate the resurrection. We even connect God’s extravagant love to colorful baskets.
Baskets are great for celebrating God’s abundant love. Read the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand and the disciples gathering the leftover bread, in John 6:1-13. Jesus fed the hungry people and provided an abundance of tasty food. God loves us so much that he delights in blessing us. As parents, we delight in blessing our children. Just as they scrambled to get all the bread and filled twelve baskets, your children can gather up treasures to fill a basket. Add a basket of bread to your meal to connect the miracle of Jesus multiplying bread and the fish during Easter week of communion.
In that same account of feeding the hungry crowd, Jesus announced, “I am the Bread of Life.” Later, at the feast of Passover, in breaking bread with the disciples on Maundy Thursday, said, “This is my body.” And stated it was a sign of the new covenant (Luke 22:19-20). He gave us the gift of communion the night before he died for us. He loves your children so much!
Theories regarding Easter baskets date back to medieval times with blessing baskets of food and also giving baskets of goodies to celebrate the end of Lent and sacrificing sweets during that time. Switching it up to share God’s love is a great way to weave in John 3:16 and other scriptures about love.
One square of paper plus one strip for a handle makes a basket. Choose a 12-inch square of cardstock used in scrapbooking that comes in many patterns or colors, or use white paper that children can color before assembling the container. On either side of the paper, children can also add words or symbols related to Easter, to create a story basket. Directions are for a 12-inch square.
1. Measure and fold the paper into nine even squares, with fold lines three inches from each side.
2. Unfold the square. On two opposite sides cut along the fold lines 4 inches in, just to the first crossline fold. This forms flaps on the two sides.
3. Fold up a flap on one side. Fold in the two squares beside the flap until the two outer corners meet. Glue in place. Repeat for the other side. This forms the basket.
5. Cut a strip of paper to make a handle and glue it in place.
Optional: Instead of glue, use a hole punch and two paper fasteners to put the basket together. Punch a hole in the upper center of a basket side, then through all layers and push the fastener through the holes. Do this on both sides.
Make several baskets to decorate every room. Fill them in different ways.
Line one with napkins and fill with rolls, if you make them, for a dinner breadbasket.
Fill with eggs and discuss new life.
Have a new life hunt and use a basket to hold the items. Hunt for new leaves, buds, bird feathers, eggshell pieces, a baby’s finger traced on paper, a caterpillar, new socks, a new blade of grass, seeds, and a flower petal.
Create gratitude baskets with paper and pens for each person to thank Jesus for coming and to place their notes in the basket. Read them as a family to celebrate the resurrection.
Fill the basket with symbols of the Easter story and take turns taking one out and chatting about the Easter story, in age-appropriate words.
Use cinnamon sticks and twist ties to make a cross. The cross was painful but now it’s a sweet reminder of the love of Jesus and God’s power (1 Corinthians 1:18).
Eggs symbolize new life (Romans 6:4).
You can also use egg-shaped rocks with a permanent marker message or symbol (Acts 5:20).
Create a paper butterfly to reflect the transformation of faith (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Coins, symbols of Judas betraying Jesus, can also be used as reminders for being each worth the sacrifice (Colossians 2:14).
Create hearts for love (John 3:16).
A toy lamb and a bouncy ball can be used to show how forgiveness bounces back to having joy (Hebrews 12:2).
Jar of bubbles can be used to blow and shout praises and send them up to God (1 Peter 1:3, Acts 4:33)
Easter matters because Jesus is called the Lamb of God as a reminder of his sacrifice. Make simple paper lambs that can open to a story or message. Children can draw symbols of the resurrection and parents can write a message to their children inside.
1. Cut a paper strip 2.25 inches by 11 inches.
2. Cut a 2.5-inch circle and scallop the edges.
3. Fold the strip of paper down 2 inches and glue it on the paper circle for the head. Draw ears.
4. Cut a rectangle 1.5 inches by 1.25 inches and color it on a face. Glue only the top part of the face to the head. The bottom part will be a tab to close the lamb.
5. Glue on a piece of cotton ball on the top of the head.
6. Fold the bottom of the paper up 4.25 inches, and again at 3.5 inches. This forms a base.
7. Cut a 3-inch square of green paper for grass. Glue the base of the fold to the grass.
8. The bottom part should slide under the face to close.
9. Decorate the body of the lamb with scallops for the wooly fur and add legs and hoofs.
10. Open the paper and write the story of the resurrection. You can also write a note or add a scripture.
Another Christ-centered idea is a special treasure hunt for each child. Hold up the first clue and tell your children that eternal life from Jesus is our greatest gift, a treasure He gave us. Share that it is up to each person to accept that gift or not. To celebrate we have a treasure hunt for you. Here’s the first clue and you can choose to take it and hunt for treasures, or not.
Make 3-5 clues for each child. For little ones, snap and print a photo of where to look and cut it into a jigsaw puzzle. For older children, make up clues with rhymes, scriptures, or secret codes for them to decipher. If desired, hide a treasure with each clue, or just with the last clue.
As we mindfully celebrate the resurrection we train up our children in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6).
With these additional Easter activities you can bring the Easter story to life for your kids.
Through one amazing download and four easy-to-use, age-appropriate activities, Focus on the Family’s free Easter activity kit retraces the events of Jesus’ final days on earth, helping kids learn more about Christ’s sacrifice and victory over death. This free kit includes craft ideas, recipes, puzzles, eight days of faith-based activities and object lessons, and easy-to-follow instructions for an authentic Passover meal.
—T.F. Edwords
Once my two older kids could read, their grandparents wrote key events from Jesus’ life on 10 slips of paper — from His birth to His ascension — and put them in plastic eggs, along with candy, coins, or snack crackers.
After the kids found the eggs, they worked together to put the story in order so it could be read. It extended their time of fun and helped them focus on the reason for the celebration. Find these slips for your Easter egg hunt at FocusontheFamily.com/Easter.
—Sharie Thoelke with Joyce K. Ellis
Retell and celebrate the Resurrection story with your child by creating a preschool version of Resurrection eggs. Gather six plastic eggs, each a different color. Place the following items inside, one item per egg: breadcrumb, paper cross, strip of cloth, rock and piece of candy. One egg will remain empty. As you tell the Resurrection story, let your child open the eggs. Explain each item in the following order:
1. Bread crumb: Jesus ate dinner with His friends (Luke22:14-15).
2. Cross: The next day, Jesus died on the Cross (John 19:17-18).
3. Strip of cloth: He was wrapped in cloth and placed in a tomb (John 19:40).
4. Rock: A stone was placed in front of the tomb (Matthew 27:59-60).
5. Empty egg: Jesus’ friends came to the tomb and saw the stone had been moved. The tomb was empty (Luke 24:1-3).
6. Candy: Jesus is alive. That’s the sweet surprise of Easter (Matthew 28:5-6).
Once you’ve finished sharing the Resurrection story with your child, encourage her to use the eggs to tell the story in her own words.
—Becky Baudouin
Use this activity to help your kids understand that Christ’s resurrection means that we can have eternal life!
Lay a skein of yarn on a table and pull 2 inches of yarn from one end. Ask your child to slowly pull on this piece, and when she has pulled out about an arm’s length of yarn, snip it off with scissors. Tell your kids that this piece of yarn has a beginning and an end, just like our lives here on earth.
Take the snipped piece of yarn and tie it back onto the skein, explaining that, through Christ, we are free to live with God forever. When Jesus died and rose again, He gave us eternal life. Although our time on earth will come to an end, our life with God will go on and on forever. Celebrate the power of the Resurrection by allowing your kids to pull freely on the piece of yarn and run with it as it unravels from the skein. Let them run out of the room! Up the stairs!
Pray together, thanking God for sending His Son and welcoming us into eternal life with Him.
—Vance Fry
Bring the Easter story to life for your kids with eight days of Christ-centered activities. Created by Focus on the Family magazine, this activity kit includes craft ideas, recipes, puzzles, object lessons and much more. Download it today for FREE!
To teach your tweens about the forgiving power of Christ’s resurrection, try this activity. First, put on an old, white T-shirt. Then discuss what sin is by asking your tweens to share some examples, such as lying or envy. Invite them to use permanent markers to write their examples on the shirt.
Explain that our sins create a rift in our relationship with God and keep us from experiencing His love. To be reconciled with God, we need to get rid of the sin that separates us. Ask for ideas on how to remove the marker stains from the shirt. If the kids suggest washing it, try scrubbing it in the sink. Let them see that the stains are permanent. Also note how the sins can’t be hidden, even if the shirt is turned inside out.
Ask: “If we can’t remove our own sin, who can help us?” Guide your tweens toward understanding that only Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has the power to get rid of our sins.
Take the old, dirty shirt and place it in a trash bag near a Bible or a cross, where you’ve also set anew, clean white shirt. As you put on the clean shirt, talk about how Christ takes away our sin and gives us His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21).
—Jeannie Vogel
The thrill of driving, the freedom to ignore homework, the delight of staying on the computer all night long—teens love to assert their independence. They hold tight to a “my way is the best way” attitude that influences the choices they make during these formative years. Sometimes that attitude protects them from peer pressure; other times it drives them to settle for less than God’s best.
Could the power of the Resurrection and the hope of eternity actually make a difference for a teen who is torn between choosing God’s will and doing his own thing?
As parents, we get to be the voice reminding teens that pleasing Christ is better than pleasing self. Living with an eternal perspective can help them see that the joy of living forever in God’s presence far outweighs the momentary satisfaction of getting their own way.
The same power that raised Christ from the dead is available to strengthen our teens to make wise choices today (Romans 8:11-14). Ask your teen about choices she’s watched her friends make that were not pleasing to God. Were there any disappointing consequences? Ask your teen if his friends have shared stories about decisions they regret. Share honestly about your own teenage choices to either choose God’s best or have things your way.
Now remind your teen that God has provided all she needs to live a life pleasing to Him—both now and forever (2 Peter 1:3). Encourage your teen to trust God for the strength to do His will, and pray that the hope of eternity will empower her to choose wisely (Colossians 1:10-12).
—T.F. Edwords
The post New Ideas for a Christ-Centered Easter appeared first on Focus on the Family.
Continue reading...
Are you looking for an alternative to giant bunnies and too much sugar this year? We have some great ideas for Easter activities to help you give your children a Christ-centered Easter.
Eggs have been part of celebrating the resurrection since medieval times when people used the symbolism of the egg for new life. Germans introduced the Easter Hare as a mythical creature that laid eggs and gave them to good children. For Christian parents, it’s better to use chicks and eggs to share about new life as the analogy reflects the emergence of Jesus from the empty tomb.
In our family, we created a treasure hunt for each child and let them choose to accept the treasure clues or not as a reminder that it is a choice for us to accept salvation or not. My younger daughter carries on this tradition with her children. We use each Easter activity to reinforce faith and spiritual growth and celebrate the resurrection. We even connect God’s extravagant love to colorful baskets.
Baskets of bread and God’s love
Baskets are great for celebrating God’s abundant love. Read the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand and the disciples gathering the leftover bread, in John 6:1-13. Jesus fed the hungry people and provided an abundance of tasty food. God loves us so much that he delights in blessing us. As parents, we delight in blessing our children. Just as they scrambled to get all the bread and filled twelve baskets, your children can gather up treasures to fill a basket. Add a basket of bread to your meal to connect the miracle of Jesus multiplying bread and the fish during Easter week of communion.
In that same account of feeding the hungry crowd, Jesus announced, “I am the Bread of Life.” Later, at the feast of Passover, in breaking bread with the disciples on Maundy Thursday, said, “This is my body.” And stated it was a sign of the new covenant (Luke 22:19-20). He gave us the gift of communion the night before he died for us. He loves your children so much!
Theories regarding Easter baskets date back to medieval times with blessing baskets of food and also giving baskets of goodies to celebrate the end of Lent and sacrificing sweets during that time. Switching it up to share God’s love is a great way to weave in John 3:16 and other scriptures about love.
Make paper baskets
One square of paper plus one strip for a handle makes a basket. Choose a 12-inch square of cardstock used in scrapbooking that comes in many patterns or colors, or use white paper that children can color before assembling the container. On either side of the paper, children can also add words or symbols related to Easter, to create a story basket. Directions are for a 12-inch square.
1. Measure and fold the paper into nine even squares, with fold lines three inches from each side.
2. Unfold the square. On two opposite sides cut along the fold lines 4 inches in, just to the first crossline fold. This forms flaps on the two sides.
3. Fold up a flap on one side. Fold in the two squares beside the flap until the two outer corners meet. Glue in place. Repeat for the other side. This forms the basket.
5. Cut a strip of paper to make a handle and glue it in place.
Optional: Instead of glue, use a hole punch and two paper fasteners to put the basket together. Punch a hole in the upper center of a basket side, then through all layers and push the fastener through the holes. Do this on both sides.
Christ-Centered Easter basket
Make several baskets to decorate every room. Fill them in different ways.
Line one with napkins and fill with rolls, if you make them, for a dinner breadbasket.
Fill with eggs and discuss new life.
Have a new life hunt and use a basket to hold the items. Hunt for new leaves, buds, bird feathers, eggshell pieces, a baby’s finger traced on paper, a caterpillar, new socks, a new blade of grass, seeds, and a flower petal.
Create gratitude baskets with paper and pens for each person to thank Jesus for coming and to place their notes in the basket. Read them as a family to celebrate the resurrection.
Fill the basket with symbols of the Easter story and take turns taking one out and chatting about the Easter story, in age-appropriate words.
Use cinnamon sticks and twist ties to make a cross. The cross was painful but now it’s a sweet reminder of the love of Jesus and God’s power (1 Corinthians 1:18).
Eggs symbolize new life (Romans 6:4).
You can also use egg-shaped rocks with a permanent marker message or symbol (Acts 5:20).
Create a paper butterfly to reflect the transformation of faith (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Coins, symbols of Judas betraying Jesus, can also be used as reminders for being each worth the sacrifice (Colossians 2:14).
Create hearts for love (John 3:16).
A toy lamb and a bouncy ball can be used to show how forgiveness bounces back to having joy (Hebrews 12:2).
Jar of bubbles can be used to blow and shout praises and send them up to God (1 Peter 1:3, Acts 4:33)
Make a folding paper story lamb
Easter matters because Jesus is called the Lamb of God as a reminder of his sacrifice. Make simple paper lambs that can open to a story or message. Children can draw symbols of the resurrection and parents can write a message to their children inside.
1. Cut a paper strip 2.25 inches by 11 inches.
2. Cut a 2.5-inch circle and scallop the edges.
3. Fold the strip of paper down 2 inches and glue it on the paper circle for the head. Draw ears.
4. Cut a rectangle 1.5 inches by 1.25 inches and color it on a face. Glue only the top part of the face to the head. The bottom part will be a tab to close the lamb.
5. Glue on a piece of cotton ball on the top of the head.
6. Fold the bottom of the paper up 4.25 inches, and again at 3.5 inches. This forms a base.
7. Cut a 3-inch square of green paper for grass. Glue the base of the fold to the grass.
8. The bottom part should slide under the face to close.
9. Decorate the body of the lamb with scallops for the wooly fur and add legs and hoofs.
10. Open the paper and write the story of the resurrection. You can also write a note or add a scripture.
Easter activities to celebrate our greatest treasure
Another Christ-centered idea is a special treasure hunt for each child. Hold up the first clue and tell your children that eternal life from Jesus is our greatest gift, a treasure He gave us. Share that it is up to each person to accept that gift or not. To celebrate we have a treasure hunt for you. Here’s the first clue and you can choose to take it and hunt for treasures, or not.
Make 3-5 clues for each child. For little ones, snap and print a photo of where to look and cut it into a jigsaw puzzle. For older children, make up clues with rhymes, scriptures, or secret codes for them to decipher. If desired, hide a treasure with each clue, or just with the last clue.
As we mindfully celebrate the resurrection we train up our children in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6).
Walk through Holy Week into Easter Sunday
With these additional Easter activities you can bring the Easter story to life for your kids.
Through one amazing download and four easy-to-use, age-appropriate activities, Focus on the Family’s free Easter activity kit retraces the events of Jesus’ final days on earth, helping kids learn more about Christ’s sacrifice and victory over death. This free kit includes craft ideas, recipes, puzzles, eight days of faith-based activities and object lessons, and easy-to-follow instructions for an authentic Passover meal.
—T.F. Edwords
Easter Story Scramble
Once my two older kids could read, their grandparents wrote key events from Jesus’ life on 10 slips of paper — from His birth to His ascension — and put them in plastic eggs, along with candy, coins, or snack crackers.
After the kids found the eggs, they worked together to put the story in order so it could be read. It extended their time of fun and helped them focus on the reason for the celebration. Find these slips for your Easter egg hunt at FocusontheFamily.com/Easter.
—Sharie Thoelke with Joyce K. Ellis
Preschool Easter activity
Retell and celebrate the Resurrection story with your child by creating a preschool version of Resurrection eggs. Gather six plastic eggs, each a different color. Place the following items inside, one item per egg: breadcrumb, paper cross, strip of cloth, rock and piece of candy. One egg will remain empty. As you tell the Resurrection story, let your child open the eggs. Explain each item in the following order:
1. Bread crumb: Jesus ate dinner with His friends (Luke22:14-15).
2. Cross: The next day, Jesus died on the Cross (John 19:17-18).
3. Strip of cloth: He was wrapped in cloth and placed in a tomb (John 19:40).
4. Rock: A stone was placed in front of the tomb (Matthew 27:59-60).
5. Empty egg: Jesus’ friends came to the tomb and saw the stone had been moved. The tomb was empty (Luke 24:1-3).
6. Candy: Jesus is alive. That’s the sweet surprise of Easter (Matthew 28:5-6).
Once you’ve finished sharing the Resurrection story with your child, encourage her to use the eggs to tell the story in her own words.
—Becky Baudouin
School-age Easter activity
Use this activity to help your kids understand that Christ’s resurrection means that we can have eternal life!
Lay a skein of yarn on a table and pull 2 inches of yarn from one end. Ask your child to slowly pull on this piece, and when she has pulled out about an arm’s length of yarn, snip it off with scissors. Tell your kids that this piece of yarn has a beginning and an end, just like our lives here on earth.
Take the snipped piece of yarn and tie it back onto the skein, explaining that, through Christ, we are free to live with God forever. When Jesus died and rose again, He gave us eternal life. Although our time on earth will come to an end, our life with God will go on and on forever. Celebrate the power of the Resurrection by allowing your kids to pull freely on the piece of yarn and run with it as it unravels from the skein. Let them run out of the room! Up the stairs!
Pray together, thanking God for sending His Son and welcoming us into eternal life with Him.
—Vance Fry
Bring the Easter story to life for your kids with eight days of Christ-centered activities. Created by Focus on the Family magazine, this activity kit includes craft ideas, recipes, puzzles, object lessons and much more. Download it today for FREE!
Tween Easter activity
To teach your tweens about the forgiving power of Christ’s resurrection, try this activity. First, put on an old, white T-shirt. Then discuss what sin is by asking your tweens to share some examples, such as lying or envy. Invite them to use permanent markers to write their examples on the shirt.
Explain that our sins create a rift in our relationship with God and keep us from experiencing His love. To be reconciled with God, we need to get rid of the sin that separates us. Ask for ideas on how to remove the marker stains from the shirt. If the kids suggest washing it, try scrubbing it in the sink. Let them see that the stains are permanent. Also note how the sins can’t be hidden, even if the shirt is turned inside out.
Ask: “If we can’t remove our own sin, who can help us?” Guide your tweens toward understanding that only Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has the power to get rid of our sins.
Take the old, dirty shirt and place it in a trash bag near a Bible or a cross, where you’ve also set anew, clean white shirt. As you put on the clean shirt, talk about how Christ takes away our sin and gives us His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21).
—Jeannie Vogel
Easter activity with your teen
The thrill of driving, the freedom to ignore homework, the delight of staying on the computer all night long—teens love to assert their independence. They hold tight to a “my way is the best way” attitude that influences the choices they make during these formative years. Sometimes that attitude protects them from peer pressure; other times it drives them to settle for less than God’s best.
Could the power of the Resurrection and the hope of eternity actually make a difference for a teen who is torn between choosing God’s will and doing his own thing?
As parents, we get to be the voice reminding teens that pleasing Christ is better than pleasing self. Living with an eternal perspective can help them see that the joy of living forever in God’s presence far outweighs the momentary satisfaction of getting their own way.
Resurrection power available to our teens
The same power that raised Christ from the dead is available to strengthen our teens to make wise choices today (Romans 8:11-14). Ask your teen about choices she’s watched her friends make that were not pleasing to God. Were there any disappointing consequences? Ask your teen if his friends have shared stories about decisions they regret. Share honestly about your own teenage choices to either choose God’s best or have things your way.
Now remind your teen that God has provided all she needs to live a life pleasing to Him—both now and forever (2 Peter 1:3). Encourage your teen to trust God for the strength to do His will, and pray that the hope of eternity will empower her to choose wisely (Colossians 1:10-12).
—T.F. Edwords
The post New Ideas for a Christ-Centered Easter appeared first on Focus on the Family.
Continue reading...
