~ Ideas for Easter ~
For religious Easter ideas, click here
Books
Activities
Easter Egg Hunt
I send a note home to parents asking them to send in plastic Easter eggs filled with goodies; for example, stickers, erasers, candy, plastic rings, plastic animals, or other small toys. No one is obligated to bring anything in, we use whatever amount of eggs we receive. The children decorate a white paper bag, and use it to collect their eggs during the hunt. Using the paper bag ensures that every child gets about the same amount of eggs. The children see that everyone has the same size bag, and they feel reassured that they have the same as everyone else. I make sure in advance that we have enough eggs for every child to fill their bag. We've always had plenty of eggs, but if we ever have a year where there aren't enough, I will cut the bags to make them smaller. I tell the children that when their bag is full, they are done, and I have them sit down on the grass and look at their surprises.
Egg Decorating
Papier mache eggs were purchased from a craft store (such as Hobby Lobby) and the children painted them. I like this kind of egg decorating because these eggs are less fragile than real eggs and can be saved by the children's parents. School quality tempera paints usually come in bright colors, but you can give the children some white tempera to mix with the colors to make pastels. The children always enjoy mixing paints.
Play Dough Eggs
I added plastic Easter eggs of different sizes to the play dough area. The kids enjoyed filling the eggs with play dough or making play dough baskets for the eggs.
Dramatic Play Eggs
I put a basket of plastic eggs in our Housekeeping Center and the children enjoyed hiding the eggs and finding them. I noticed they use them in a variety of ways, putting them in pots for cooking or using one-to-one correspondence to put an egg in each section of a muffin tin.
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