30 Christ Centered Easter Activities for Kids
Easter is just a few short weeks away — and if you’re anything like me, you want it to be meaningful for your kids… not just another sugar-filled, bunny-themed blur.
As Christian parents, we have good intentions. We want to focus on Jesus. We want our kids to understand the resurrection. We want Easter to be joyful and rooted in truth.
But actually pulling that off? That’s harder.
Between church events, school parties, family obligations, and Pinterest-perfect crafts, spring can feel overwhelming fast. The good news? You don’t need to do everything to make Easter meaningful.
These Christian Easter activities for kids will help you celebrate in a way that is both fun and firmly centered on the resurrection of Jesus — without adding stress to your plate.
30 Christian Easter Activities for Kids (That Keep the Focus on Jesus)
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Hands-On Easter Activities
Resurrection eggs – These are a great way to talk through the story of Holy Week from Palm Sunday all the way to Jesus’ empty tomb. Opening the eggs adds excitement and helps kids rehearse the narrative in their own words. Plus it’s very tactile and easy for kids of all ages to participate in together!
Reenact the Easter story — It’s a great idea to encourage your kids to act out parts of the Easter story. Let them reenact palm Sunday together while mom or dad is the donkey. Let them take turns being Jesus, Peter, Pontius Pilate, the women at the tomb and the angel!
Resurrection rolls – Follow a recipe to use crescent rolls to wrap up a big marshmallow. Talk about how Jesus body was wrapped in cloth and placed in a tomb. When the rolls bake, the body-marshmallow disappears, and the tomb is empty! Just like how Jesus rose from the dead!
Stations of the cross — This traditional series of remembrances of the Easter story, focusing on Jesus’ suffering. Many Catholic churches offer outdoor or indoor stations events you can participate in with your family. You can find resources for kids and families here (including a Bible verse for each station) and ideas for setting up your own outdoor station at home or church.
Reflect and enjoy a treat together — I love Tara’s idea for sharing an ice cream sundae bar with our kids focused on sharing what God has done in our lives (both the lows and the highs)! This is also an insightful post into why doing a Christian seder is hurtful and considered cultural appropriation to many Jews.
Go to church together — This may be a little obvious but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention going to church either on Easter morning, for a Maundy Thursday or Good Friday service (or all three!). Even if you don’t regularly attend a church–houses of worship expect lots of visitors during Easter week–so you won’t be out of place if you’re new!
Do a family foot washing — At the last supper Jesus washed the feet of his disciples and told his disciples to wash each others feet. Spend an evening washing each others feet! This can be done outside with a lot of laughter and silliness (especially if you have messy toddlers and younger kids) or indoors in a more serious and solemn way for older kids. You could also begin or end by taking communion together as a family, just like Jesus did on Maundy Thursday.
Coloring easter eggs — This is a fun and simple way to create a piece of art together. You can get the dye kits at most major stores. As you make the eggs talk about the beauty and care we create with and how that reflects God’s heart as the Creator of everything, including you!
Watch The Chosen series together — Okay, this isn’t so hands-on, but it makes a great low key option to connect and learn together as a family. Leading up to Easter watching The Chosen is a great way to experience “real life” Jesus as a family. Seeing the story told through such a human and realistic portrayal will help kids and teens (and adults!) connect more with the Easter story.
Act out the Easter story with stuffed animals — This is another easy and creative way to play through the Easter story with your kids!
Chalk Drawing — Ask your kids to work together to create a timeline of Easter with chalk! Draw Palm Sunday, the last supper, the betrayal of Jesus, the crucifixion, the burial and then finally the empty tomb! For smaller kids draw simpler pictures (A cross, a rock, a donkey) and ask them what it reminds them of in the Easter story.
Plant flowers together — As you plant talk about how Jesus died and went into the ground, like the seed. But his death wasn’t the end! Just like we know our seeds will grow in time. In just 3 days, Jesus rose again to give us new life! (Marigolds are an easy kind to plant together and set in a sunny spot indoors. Plant in cups and replant in 6-8 weeks outside (after the last frost!).
Read Easter books together — You can see 15 of my favorite Jesus-Centered Easter books here! This is an easy way to cozy up and reflect on Easter for toddlers and preschoolers and help move big kids into more spiritual conversations.
Easy Easter Object Lessons
Resurrection cookies – This is a beautiful way to create lasting memories while telling the truth of the Easter story! Follow the simple steps in this recipe and read along with the Bible verses. Your cookies will rest overnight and in the morning have a surprise! You need a warm oven to make them, but they don’t require baking.
The Doughnut Object Lesson — This is a great object lesson that can be read or practiced in your family together. You’ll need a box of doughnuts for each person and someone to do push-ups!
Jelly bean prayer – This is a beautiful prayer and activity for young kids to learn the story of Easter and be able to recite it back as well featuring the beloved Easter treat–jelly beans! This would be perfect for a Sunday School lesson! (Includes free printable!)
The Easter Story Snack Mix — This is another great way to rehearse the real reason for Easter with elementary age students or younger! Using simple ingredients like pretzel sticks, marshmallows, goldfish, crackers and popcorn! This would make a great snack for Easter or Palm Sunday for your children’s class at church!
Jesus Taking Away Sin Object Lesson — A fascinating object lesson to help children understand Jesus taking our sin (atonement) by His death. You may want to practice this at least once beforehand!
Easter Craft Activities for Kids
Easter Cards with Handprints – Make these cute chicks to send to family or friends who are far away! Love the use of the handprint too!
Jesus Storybook Bible coloring pages — We love the Jesus Storybook Bible and these coloring pages go great with the Lent reading guide so kids can color along as you read the stories or just enjoy coloring through the Holy week pictures.
Decorate a Cross — These hanging cross ornaments are an easy homeschool, Sunday school craft activity without a lot of mess! Kids can glue on the accompanying stickers, pom poms and jewels to create a personalized and beautiful take home craft that doubles as an Easter decoration. Did I mention this is a non-messy craft?!
Painted Wooden Easter Eggs — I’m not a fan of traditional dyed eggs, but these wooden ones would make a great craft activity and can be used year after year!
Last Supper Craft — This is a cute and creative idea that also incorporates The Last Supper painting by Davinci! Perfect for a homeschool art lesson or for the art enthusiasts to learn more about the painting and art that surrounds Easter for Christians.
Enjoyable Easter games for the whole family
Easter egg hunt — An Easter egg hunt is a fun time for the whole family, you can fill plastic eggs with candy, money or hide your resurrection eggs or hide your dyed Easter eggs. While we don’t tell our kids the Easter bunny hides the eggs, we can talk about we were lost in our sins and far from God and He sent Jesus to find and rescue us, kind of like we are doing with the eggs. Simply speaking the truth about the real focus of Easter in little ways can help our kids refocus and remember too!
Easter bingo — This is a fun way to celebrate He Is Risen and keep kids engaged in the Easter story! Let them use these fun bingo cards to mark off as you read the Good Friday and Easter stories!
Easter Egg toss – This fun Easter game will help even the squirmiest kids remember the Easter story!
Easter Family Feud — Do your older kids and teens love competition? Use this family feud style game to challenge each other to remember parts of the Easter story. Great for middle school, high school or adults to test their knowledge of Scripture!
Easter Jeopardy — Another great way to test knowledge of old and young alike! This would make a great game to play at an extended family gathering or Sunday school class or youth group game for Easter!
Your Easter Decision Making Matrix
There are so many amazing Easter activities out there to do at church, in your community and with your family. But if your kids wake up Easter morning and aren’t sure what the true meaning of Easter is–all that activity and doing is for absolutely nothing.
So I would encourage you, before you buy all the craft supplies, order all the books, and mark up the family calendar with near and far egg hunts– to take a minute and decide from the plethora of Easter options what will best serve your kids and your family in your current season of life.
Then make a list.
- What is an easy yes?
- What is a distraction?
- What is a no way.
Then pick 2-3 faith building activities you can easily and joyfully do during Lent and leading up to Holy Week.
So for my family that may look like…
- Attending an Easter kids activity at our church on Saturday and church on Easter Sunday.
- Open up our Resurrection eggs each night during circle time before bed.
- Make resurrection rolls as a snack
- Do a family Easter egg hunt in the backyard.
- Put Easter books in a special basket in the living room for easy access.
As you can see there are 25 activities that did not make my list. And honestly I wouldn’t be sad if we didn’t make the resurrection rolls. We could always do them a different week (that isn’t as busy for this pastor’s family) and still talk about the resurrection!
Easter is too important to leave your child’s understanding of it to chance.
Culture will gladly tell them it’s about candy and bunnies. But Easter is about resurrection. Redemption. Rescue.
This year, let’s intentionally point our kids to Jesus — and the powerful, complete work His death and resurrection accomplished for us.
More resources for intentional faith parenting and Christ-centered family rhythms:
If you’re trying to raise kids who know and love Jesus (without adding more chaos to your plate), these resources will help.
- 15 Jesus-Centered Easter Books for Kids
- Non-Candy Easter Basket Gift Ideas
- 35 Powerful Scriptures to Pray Over Your Children
- Easy Family Devotions for Toddlers and Kids
- Growing Faith Toolkit for Christian Parents
Hi Katie,
I am a grandmother of twelve looking ahead of time for Easter ideas for grandkids. Thank-you for all the fun inspiring ideas. My daughters had a blog years ago ( sistersfoursaymoreismore) but are now to busy to post regularly. I am grateful for all of your ideas leading back to Christ. Many thanks!
Carrie Romney