I love Christmas. When it gets to be about that time of year, I’m quick to switch the family over to my carefully-curated playlist that features all of my favorites. I love the memories, the time with family, the movies, all of it.
But as much as I love Christmas, I’ve come to realize that Easter is more important. Although we needed Christmas to happen to get to Easter 33 years later, without Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, His birth doesn’t mean as much.
Making Easter a bigger deal
Last year my husband and I decided we wanted to make Easter a bigger deal at our house for our kids. I looked around online and found a blogger that created a week of simple activities, from Palm Sunday to Easter, to spend more time talking about the story with the kids. I really wish I’d saved her site so I could link to it to give her credit, but I looked around and seem to have lost it (😢).
Anyway, last year we kicked off the Easter box with our kids. Each day included a lesson that had to do with a part of the Bible story as well as a prop and an activity. This year, I found some YouTube videos we can watch with the kids about the various lessons, too.
Palm Sunday
Prop: Palm branches (I just put in some fake leaves from a fake plant).
Read: Luke 19:28-44, Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, or John 12:12-19.
Activity: Take turns being Jesus, the donkey, and the crowd. Last year the kids loved acting this out, putting their coats on the floor and shouting Hosanna.
Watch:
- Video version of the story: https://youtu.be/lTmbTuutBgg
- Hosanna Rock: https://youtu.be/96pcmyyHaZk
Monday: The light of the world
Prop: LED light or tea light.
Read: John 12:34-36a.
Activity: Go into a dark room in the house and turn the light on. Talk about how a little bit of light can spread around the whole space, and how we can shine Jesus’ light into the world.
Watch:
- This Little Light of Mine: https://youtu.be/ty9bZXN4uWA
- Light Shine Bright: https://youtu.be/d17hi1s6Tgg
- In The Light: https://youtu.be/-WbI_CgT1Mk?t=26 (I don’t know if my kids will enjoy this one as much, but I love this song 😉)
Tuesday: 30 pieces of silver
Prop: 30 nickels and dimes.
Read: Matthew 26:14-16, Mark 14:10-11, or Luke 22:1-6.
Activity: Count out the coins, and ask how much they’d be willing to trade for that amount. Ask them if they’d be willing to give up one of their friends or family members.
Watch: I couldn’t find anything I liked for this one, so if you have any resources you like please let me know and I can check them out!
Wednesday: Washing feet
Prop: Bowl and washcloth.
Read: John 13:1-17.
Activity: Wash your kids’ feet. We did this in the bathtub for the sake of ease, but you could also do it with a big bowl.
Watch:
- Video about the story: https://youtu.be/h4Grd9YI7FQ.
Thursday: Communion
Prop: Grape juice and bread.
Read: Luke 22:7-23, Matthew 26:18-29, or Mark 14:12-25.
Activity: Talk about the meaning of the story while you enjoy a snack of grape juice and bread or crackers.
Watch:
- The story of passover: https://youtu.be/1IwMt-KLkSE
- Behold the Lamb (Communion Hymn): https://youtu.be/3YEBcryorxM (this one might not hold younger kids’ attention, but the lyrics tie in very nicely).
Good Friday
Prop: Cross
Read: Mark 14:43-15:32, Matthew 26:47-27:44, Luke 22:47-23:43, or John 18:1-19:27.
Activity: Make a crown of thorns out of playdough and toothpicks while talking about all the pain Jesus experienced for us.
Watch:
- A lot of the videos are too graphic for children my kids’ ages, so I chose a song about Jesus in the garden: https://youtu.be/2Xw2vSZb6dE.
Saturday: The torn veil
Prop: Ripped cloth.
Read: Mark 15:33-47, Matthew 27:45-61, or Luke 23:44-56.
Activity: Hold up a sheet or blanket between you and talk about how it separates you, and then drop it and talk about how we can come to God directly because of what Jesus did.
Watch: I couldn’t find anything I liked for this one either, so if you have any resources you like please let me know and I can check them out!
Easter Sunday
Prop: Nothing (keep the box empty).
Read: John 20:1-18, Matthew 27:62-28:10, Mark 16:1-19, or Luke 24:1-12.
Activity: Talk about how the box is empty, just like the tomb was empty!
Watch:
- The Easter Song: https://youtu.be/EbcryQFqWp0?t=12.
How do you emphasize Easter?
What additional ways do you emphasize Easter at your house? This is a new tradition for us, so I’d love to collect and try out new ideas as we go, too!