ABCJLM Easter Ideas

• Activities
• Books, Cd's, & Videos
• Using the story of a Caterpillar turning into a Butterfly
• Recipes
• Resurrection Eggs
• Ideas on the Web

Activities

• Die Easter Eggs and review colors, mixing colors
• Egg Sort/Matchup - Using several plastic Easter eggs, take apart the eggs and place them in a container. Have the child match up the halves and put them back together. Thank you Shannon for this idea.
• Tissue Paper Egg - Using a egg-shaped cut out, emboss the egg with tissue paper and vinegar.
• Egg Sound Matchup - Collect 12 eggs. Using 6 different items to put inside the eggs (2 of each item). Match the eggs by shaking them. Thank you Shannon for this idea.
• Bunny/Duck Craft - Use this template to create a bunny or a duck. Very fun!
• "He Lives" Make a Scene Easter - These are great for Easter baskets, for learning time, or for a Sunday School class.
•  Textured Easter Egg Craft - get sensory activity
• Color Stories - Tell the Easter story through different colors
- Jelly Bean Poem (Author Unknown) - Place in a small bag with some jelly beans.
Red is for the blood He gave.
Green is for the grass He made.
Yellow is for the sunflowers so bright.
Black is for the dark of night.
White is for the grace He gave.
Orange is for the sun He made.
Purple is for the hours of sorrow.
Pink is for our new tomorrow.
A bag full of jelly beans,
colourful and sweet.
It's a prayer, a promise,
and a child's treat.
- Jelly Bean Poem #2 and Craft Idea
- A Special Easter Basket to Remember (Author Unknown) - Use this poem to create a craft or use a real basket. You can change the objects but keep the colors the same.
The green egg reminds me of the palms that welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem one day
The purple flower reminds me that Jesus shared wine and bread with His disciples.
The red egg reminds me that Jesus dies for us.
The brown bunny reminds me of the dark cave where Jesus' body lay.
The white lamb reminds me of the angel who said "He's risen!"
The yellow chick reminds me of the bright sun and the resurrection of Jesus on Easter day.

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Books

My Little Easter Book
The Golden Egg Book

Videos

VeggieTales - An Easter Carol
Miss Patty Cake: Eggstravaganza - Miss Patty Cake discusses the Resurrection Eggs in a section of this DVD

Audio

For Older Children - The Easter Story (Adventures in Odyssey)

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Caterpillar to Butterfly

I have always been awed by the symbolism of the caterpillar turning into a butterfly and Jesus being in the tomb and rising again. If your child is familiar with the The Very Hungry Caterpillar book, they will remember that a caterpillar eats, and eats, and eats. Then, and only God can explain this, the caterpillar begins to create a cocoon around itself. Depending on the species, a few days or weeks later, it emerges as a butterfly. Use this example to explain Jesus' resurrection to your child. This example can also be used to explain life without Christ and then having a new life once a person has accepted Jesus as their personal Savior.

• Resurrection Illustration (Original source unknown)
Place a paper butterfly (a coffee filter butterfly works great) into a cardboard tube before the child sees it. Show the tube to the child while covering the sides of the tube with your fingers so he/she can't see the butterfly inside. Tell the child he/she needs to pretend the tube is a fat little caterpillar. Wrap your hands tightly around the tube. Say to the child, "The caterpillar wraps a cocoon around himself. Inside the cocoon it is very quiet and dark. The caterpillar stays there for a long time. That reminds me of the way Jesus stayed in the dark tomb for three days. Let's slowly count to three and remember how long Jesus was in the tomb. 1-2-3. When the caterpillar is ready, he pushes, stretches, and shakes off the cocoon." (Release the tube so the child can see the butterfly.) "And when he comes out, he looks different. Since butterflies have a new life after they come out of the cocoon, they can remind us that Jesus died for us and then rose again."

• Activies
Butterfly Crafts
Life Cycle of a Butterfly Booklet
Insect Lore Live Butterfly Garden - I have never done one of these kits but the ratings are wonderful. Something we might need to try ourselves! Let me know if you have.

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Recipes

• Hot Cross Buns
• Resurrection Rolls - Experience an empty tomb with a crescent roll and a marshmallow.
• Easter Story Cookies - Honestly these are not cookies that get eaten at our home but the story is awesome!
• Bird Nest Cookies - These cookies are so yummy and kids can easily make them without too much help!

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Resurrection Eggs

There are various forms of Resurrection Eggs available to purchase or make. Each sets contains a variation of items and order leading up to the empty 12th egg.

Purchase Resurrection Eggs

Make Resurrection Eggs:
Idea #1
Idea #2
Idea #3 - Video by Cullen's ABC's

I would encourage the Easter Resurrection Egg Daily Countdown video series by Cullen's ABC's. Begin the series 12 days before Easter. You will watch one video per day leading up to Easter Sunday. The videos include an alligator puppet explaining the different items in the Resurrection Eggs.

Watch them with your child or simply watch them to give you an idea of how to use the Resurrection Eggs!

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Ideas on the Web

Ideas from Storytime and More:
• Dye eggs the natural way - use natural ingredients
• Stained Glass Easter Eggs - use crepe or tissue paper to make this fun craft
• Read the The Golden Egg Book and create a yarn egg - this is a very fun sensory craft that makes adorable Easter eggs

Ideas from Preschool Playbook:
• Duck from an Egg - cute craft using hand prints and an oval
• Little Lamb - trace a hand print and add cotton balls to create an Easter lamb
• Egg Shell Man - fun craft that involves a planting some seeds, cute decorations
• Easy Easter Sun catchers - create little crafts to place in the window
• Footprint Ear Bunny - This is an adorable craft to give to a loved one.

More Easter Ideas:
Shirley's Easter Ideas - recipes, coloring pages, poems, songs, fingerplays
Christian Preschool Printables - color pages, printables, games, crafts
Preschool Sunday School Lesson Ideas - story, game, craft, snack ideas
Easter Activities for Children - color pages, crafts, dying Easter Eggs, poems, printables, recipes
Easter and Spring Activities - crafts and activities
Everything Preschool - arts and craft ideas
Activity Village - free printables
Children's Ministry Magazine - wonderful ideas to do with a Church Group, Sunday School class, or as a family
A Glorious Easter - recipes, skits, Bible Stories, crafts, printables
List of Online Easter Resources 

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