Easter Activities That Point to Jesus: Ideas for a Meaningful Celebration

Celebrating the Greatest Day in History

Easter is the most important day on the Christian calendar—the day we celebrate that Jesus rose from the dead, conquering sin and death forever. But with bunnies, eggs, and baskets everywhere, it's easy for the resurrection to get lost in the celebration.

This guide is packed with activities that are fun AND meaningful—games, crafts, traditions, and experiences that point your kids to Jesus while still making Easter special. You don't have to choose between fun and faith. Let's do both!

Resurrection Eggs: The Story in 12 Steps

Resurrection Eggs are plastic Easter eggs, each containing a small object that tells part of the Easter story. You can buy a set or make your own. This is one of the most effective ways to teach the Gospel at Easter.

Make Your Own Resurrection Eggs:

Easter Scavenger Hunt with a Purpose

Turn the traditional egg hunt into a resurrection scavenger hunt:

Option 1: Verse Hunt

Put slips of paper with parts of a Bible verse inside eggs. Kids must find all the eggs and put the verse together. Great verses to use:

• •John 11:25-26 ("I am the resurrection and the life...")
• •Matthew 28:5-6 ("He is not here; he has risen...")
• •Romans 6:9 ("Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again...")
• •1 Corinthians 15:55-57 ("Where, O death, is your victory?")

Option 2: Story Hunt

Each egg contains a piece of the Easter story. Kids arrange them in order and retell the story.

Option 3: Character Hunt

Each egg contains the name of someone from the Easter story (Mary Magdalene, Peter, Pilate, Joseph of Arimathea, an angel, etc.). After finding them, discuss each person's role.

Option 4: Gratitude Hunt

Each egg contains something to thank Jesus for. After the hunt, read them aloud and pray together, thanking Jesus for each thing.

Creative Crafts That Teach

1. Empty Tomb Garden

Create a miniature garden scene depicting the empty tomb.

• •Use a terracotta pot or shallow dish as the base
• •Fill with soil and plant grass seed or use moss
• •Create a small cave from rocks or clay
• •Add a small stone that can be rolled away
• •Include three crosses on a small hill nearby
• •Add small flowers and greenery

Watch the grass grow during Holy Week, rolling away the stone on Easter morning!

2. Resurrection Rolls

A cooking activity that teaches the Easter story:

3. Cross Sun Catchers

• •Cut cross shapes from contact paper
• •Let kids stick tissue paper pieces on the sticky side
• •Cover with another piece of contact paper
• •Hang in a window to catch the light
• •Discuss how Jesus is the light of the world

4. Stone Rolling Craft

• •Create a tomb scene from a cardboard box
• •Add a large cardboard circle as the stone
• •Attach with a brad so it can actually roll
• •Practice rolling the stone away and shouting 'He is risen!'

5. New Life Butterflies

Butterflies symbolize resurrection—transformation from something that was 'dead' (cocoon) to something beautifully alive.

• •Coffee filter butterflies: Color with markers, spray with water, let dry, pinch in middle
• •Painted clothespin butterflies
• •Tissue paper butterflies on pipe cleaner antennas
• •Discuss how we too get new life in Jesus

Games with Gospel Meaning

1. "Roll the Stone" Relay

Teams race to roll a large ball or rock replica from one end to the other, then shout "He is risen!" This represents the stone being rolled away.

2. Easter Story Charades

Act out scenes from the Easter story: Jesus praying in the garden, Peter's denial, women running from the tomb, doubting Thomas, etc.

3. Hide and Seek: "Where Is Jesus?"

A twist on hide and seek. The seeker is looking for "Jesus" (a specific person or object). When found, everyone shouts "He is risen! He is risen indeed!"

4. Musical Stones

Like musical chairs, but with "stones" (cushions or paper circles). When the music stops, the person without a stone answers a question about Easter.

5. Resurrection Tag

When tagged, players must freeze (like they're "dead"). The person who is "Jesus" can tap frozen players to bring them "back to life" to keep playing.

Easter Morning Traditions

1. Sunrise Celebration

• •Wake up early to watch the sunrise
• •Read the resurrection account as the sun comes up
• •Sing 'Christ the Lord Is Risen Today' or other resurrection hymns
• •Shout 'He is risen!' as the sun appears
• •Have a special breakfast afterward

2. The "He Is Risen" Greeting

Teach your family the ancient Easter greeting. When someone says "He is risen!" others respond "He is risen indeed!" Use it all day—at breakfast, at church, on phone calls with grandparents.

3. Empty Tomb Breakfast

Create a breakfast spread where the main dish is "missing"—the plate in the center is empty with a note: "He is not here—He has risen!" Then bring out the special meal.

4. Alleluia! Celebration

If you "buried" the word "Alleluia" at the start of Lent (some families do this), dig it up on Easter morning with great fanfare! Shout "Alleluia!" loudly and joyfully.

5. Light Conquers Dark

Before dawn, sit in a completely dark room. Light a single candle and read John 1:5: "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." Then light more candles from the first, filling the room with light.

Service and Outreach Ideas

Easter is a great time to show Jesus' love to others:

1. Easter Blessing Bags

Fill bags with Easter treats PLUS a Gospel message or resurrection story booklet. Distribute to neighbors or at local events.

2. Invite Others

Make Easter a day to invite friends, neighbors, or extended family to church or to your celebration. Be intentional about sharing the Good News.

3. Nursing Home Visit

Bring Easter cards, flowers, or treats to elderly neighbors or nursing home residents. Sing a few Easter songs.

4. Easter for Those in Need

"Adopt" a family through a local charity and provide Easter baskets with meaningful items and the Easter story.

Age-Specific Ideas

Redeeming Secular Symbols

You don't have to eliminate eggs and bunnies completely—you can give them redemptive meaning:

Eggs

• •An egg looks dead on the outside but holds new life inside—like the tomb that held Jesus
• •A chick breaking out of a shell illustrates resurrection
• •The tradition of giving eggs at Easter has Christian roots (eggs were forbidden during Lent, so people saved and decorated them for Easter)
• •Use eggs as teaching tools, not just candy containers

New Clothes

Wearing new clothes on Easter can symbolize our new life in Christ—the old is gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Spring Imagery

Flowers, butterflies, and new growth all point to resurrection life. God gave us spring as an annual reminder that death is not the end.