A Very Special Egg
Age Level: 10 to 12
Activity Time: 45 minutes
Materials: Bible, eggs, pins, toothpicks, bowl, glitter, glue, disposable bowls, fishing line, assorted decorative beads, and scissors
Kids can make these keepsake eggs as an Easter reminder of the very special gift God gave us—his son.
Give each child a washed and dried egg. Using a pin, poke a hole at the pointed end and at the round end of each egg. Use a toothpick to slightly widen the round end. Break the egg yolk by inserting the toothpick inside the egg and wiggling it back and forth. Then have kids carefully blow into the pointed end of the egg, making sure the bottom of the egg is over a bowl.
Thread 3 feet of fishing line through the eggs. Have kids coat their eggs in glue by rolling them in a bowl with a shallow layer of glue at the bottom. Place several colors of glitter in other bowls, and have kids roll their eggs in the glitter color of choice, being careful to keep the fishing line out of the glue and glitter. Set the eggs aside to dry.
Read aloud Matthew 26:26-28. Ask, “What’s the very best gift you’ve ever given someone? Why did you give it? How did the gift receiver respond? Why do you think God gave his son as a sacrifice for our sins?”
Say, “God’s gift to us was the greatest gift ever given. When you look at the special egg you’ve made today, remember God’s special gift to you—a gift that’s more beautiful and wonderful than any gift ever given.”
Have kids finish their eggs by threading several decorative beads on both ends of the fishing line. Tie a knot around the last bead on each end to keep the beads from shifting. Kids can tie a loop at one end to hang the egg vertically, or they can tie both ends of fishing line together to allow the egg to hang horizontally.
Lamb Cake
Age Level: 3 to 12
Activity Time: 30 minutes, plus baking time
Materials: White cake mix, frosting, shredded coconut, jellybeans, scissors, shortening, flour, frosting spatula, 11/2-quart stainless steel bowl, brown food coloring, large marshmallows, 20x20-inch cardboard, aluminum foil, toothpicks, a cooling rack, and access to an oven
Make this cute lamb cake to share with the children in your class as you celebrate Easter.
Mix the cake mix according to the package instructions. Grease the inside of the stainless steel bowl with shortening and then coat it with flour. Pour the cake mix into the bowl and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 60 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Once the cake is finished, allow it to cool in the bowl for 15 to 20 minutes, but no longer. Remove the cake from the bowl and allow it to cool completely on a cooling rack.
Cover the cardboard with aluminum foil. Place the cake with the rounded side up on the center of the covered cardboard. Place four marshmallows around the perimeter of the cake for legs. Coat the cake and legs with a thick layer of frosting, leaving a clean upside-down triangular shape on one side for the lamb’s face.
Mix brown food coloring into a small amount of frosting, and frost the triangular shape and the bottoms of the lamb’s feet. Use black jellybeans to create the lamb’s eyes. Make the lamb’s ears by placing two frosted large marshmallows on either side of the lamb’s face. Dab brown frosting on the fronts of the marshmallow ears. Cover the lamb with shredded coconut. Using a toothpick, place a marshmallow “tail” in the center back of the cake.
They Were There
Age Level: 8 to 12
Activity Time: 60 minutes
Materials: Empty paper towel rolls, chenille craft wires, pencils, craft foam, scissors, glue, stapler, construction paper, and fine-tipped markers
Have kids re-create the key players of Easter. Afterward, enjoy dramas kids create using their characters.
For each character, you’ll need a paper towel roll. Wrap construction paper around the roll for the characters’ skin and clothing. To create arms, cut a section of craft foam, and glue or staple it to the back center of the roll. Once the glue is dry, bend the ends of the craft-foam section around the front of the roll, position them like sleeves, and glue them in place. Use flesh-colored construction paper to create hands. Coil chenille craft wires around a pencil to create hair, and glue it in place. Use markers to draw eyes, a nose, a mouth, fingers, and other accents.
Use the following tips to customize each character.
lPilate—Use flesh-colored construction paper for his head, and white construction paper for his clothing. Use yellow chenille craft wire to create hair on the sides of Pilate’s head. Use a marker to draw the lines of a toga robe.
lSoldier—Use flesh-colored construction paper for his head, and gray construction paper for his clothing. Place a gray, oblong craft-foam ring just over the soldier’s face for a helmet. Place a craft-foam spear or lance in his hand. Use a fine-tipped marker to create the metal plates of his armor.
lDisciple—Use flesh-colored construction paper for his head, and blue construction paper for his clothing. Draw the lines of a robe on the tube, and give the disciple a head covering.
lMary Magdalene—Use flesh-colored construction paper for her head, and yellow construction paper for her clothing. Give Mary long black hair by coiling chenille craft wires around a pencil and then stretching them gently. Give her a head covering, and draw the lines of a robe on the tube.
lJesus—Use flesh-colored construction paper for his head, and white construction paper for his clothing. Place the craft-foam sleeves and hands in a praying position. Give Jesus hair by coiling chenille craft wires around a pencil and stretching them gently. Draw the lines of a robe on the tube.
Resurrection Reminder
Age Level: 3 to 5
Activity Time: 15 minutes
Materials: Plastic eggs, artificial Easter grass, stick pretzels, and jelly beans
Have kids sit in a circle. Give each child an empty plastic egg. Then tell the events of Easter using a children’s Bible or simply by narrating it, beginning in the garden of Gethsemane. As you talk about the garden, pass out artificial Easter grass for kids to put inside their eggs. As you talk about the cross, pass out two pretzel sticks for each child. Have them hold up the sticks to make a cross, and then put the pretzels inside their eggs. As you talk about the tomb, pass out two jelly beans to represent rocks, and have them place the jelly beans inside their eggs and close the eggs. Once you’ve finished the story, have kids use their eggs and the contents to retell the story to a friend.
Lori Turner
Fredricktown, Ohio
Grow With God
Age Level: Birth to 5
Activity Time: 60 minutes
Materials: Green butcher paper, construction paper, fine-tipped markers, scissors, tape, ruler, and digital camera
Easter is the perfect time to post this chart that celebrates kids’ growth.
Before you create the growth chart, take each child’s picture with a digital camera and print 1x1-inch images.
Use green butcher paper to create a 5-foot-long stem. The stem should be at least 6 inches wide. Draw a chart with 1/4-inch intervals measuring to 4 feet 6 inches. Tape the stem to a wall of your classroom so it meets the ground. Cut petals from the green butcher paper and tape them to the stem on the wall. Use construction paper to cut colorful petals, and tape them to the top of the stem. Create a “Growing With God” title by writing the words on the petals of the flower or by cutting them out of construction paper.
Measure each child in your class and write his or her name next to the measurement and the date. Hang kids’ photos next to their heights. Every month, chart kids’ growth, take a new digital photo, and place the photo at the appropriate height. After each measuring session, have kids tell you things they’ve learned about God, and write those by their names. Pray together for God to bless each child’s spiritual and physical growth, and ask God to help them keep growing close to Jesus.