When I think of Easter as a child I remember the frilly new dresses, rushing into the living room to see what goodies the Easter bunny brought, knocking my cousins over to get the most eggs at our Easter egg hunt, big family lunches, but most importantly I remember the focus always being on Jesus. As a small child, I had a hard time grasping the importance of His death and resurrection.

A woman recently told me something valuable she learned, “our children need big truths to grow into, not small truths to grow out of.”

So this Easter with my oldest daughter’s interest in learning multiplying each day, I decided it was time to introduce her to the biggest truth of all - Jesus loved us so much He left heaven to live and then die for our sins, but the best part of all was when He rose from the grave and went back to heaven to wait for us to join Him someday! Whew, a lot for a little mind to understand, even I struggle to discern what it all means. But it’s our jobs as parents to begin to plant the seeds of knowledge and allow God to grow it into their own excitement for the gospel!

It’s our jobs as parents to begin to plant the seeds of knowledge and allow God to grow it into their own excitement for the gospel!

EASTER BOOKS FOR PRESCHOOLERS

I always like to start with a book to help explain the topic we are going to learn about. It helps my daughter and I identify the important vocabulary that she might not understand and give simple definitions. I encourage her to look at pictures to allow her to tell me what the story might be about. And she gets to ask questions when she needs me to clarify something.

Our favorite Easter books are:

-The Easter Story by Patricia A. Pingry

This small board book shares the simple, but powerful truth of the death and resurrection of Jesus through beautiful and bright illustrations and easy to understand language perfect for preschoolers. We did two small crafts to help make the story concrete.

First, we made simple palm leaves out of green construction paper. I drew lines and allowed my 3-year-old to practice her cutting, plus I made a few myself. Afterward, we danced around the house shouting, “Hosanna, Hosanna! Yay Jesus!”

Then, we made an empty tomb out of playdoh!

-What Is Easter? By Michelle Madlock Adams

I love how this book talks about the fun parts of Easter, like chocolate bunnies, hunting eggs, new Easter toys, and pretty new dresses. In our house, we still like to enjoy the silly parts of the holiday, so I like how Adams explains that Easter means much more than the novelty, it is about Jesus’s love for us.

*See the video at the end of us reading it together!

-The Rhyme Bible Storybook by L. J. Stattgast

We love this Bible! The rhymes make it fun for kids to follow along with, as well as all the pretty storybook pictures!

-The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones

This storybook Bible is perfect for introducing the scriptures to preschoolers. Each story is just the right length for their attention span and has the best illustrations that enhance the stories!

2. EASTER PAINTING TIME!

We have two canvas prints that have become my absolute favorites! They are easy to make and with a little help from mom, they can blend in to any decor!

Cross Footprint

You can make this with just one kids or as many as four! (actually if you wanted to make the three crosses on the hill you could do this craft with as many as 12 kids!) First you’ll want to paint the background a solid color, or keep it white if you prefer. Once that dries paint those little piggies and always bring the canvas up to their foot, never them to the canvas! I’ve learned that the hard way! Repeat until you have the cross shape! I added the words “JESUS IS ALIVE” to mine, but you could put, “Jesus is risen,” or any number of scriptures! I always write my words with a sharpie.

Tape Resist Cross

This one is perfect to include even little toddlers in! Take masking or painters tape and make the cross shape on the canvas. Next, just let the little artists make their own masterpiece. We used three colors, you can made different patterns or color combinations. Try to get paint covering all of the tape. Once its dry just peel the tape off and you have a beautiful new cross to display!

3. CONTACT PAPER STAINED GLASS CROSS

I love using contact paper. It is a simple, easy to throw together craft that I can have on hand for any time. First, you’ll need to choose a color of construction paper and cut a cross frame in the middle of the paper (think back to folding, then cutting from elementary school!) Now, lay a piece of contact paper that is bigger than the cross down. Then, place the cross frame on top of the contact paper, leaving it sticky side up. Next, cut little squares of tissue paper. Finally, it’s the kids turn. Let them place the tissue paper squares into the cross frame. After they have created their design, place another piece of contact paper over the cross to seal it in. Then, just cut the excess contact paper off. Hang them on a window to see the sunlight reflect through the beautiful colors!

4. CROSS PIPE CLEANER ON CHALK PLATE

I love how chalk looks in artwork. You can blend colors together in a beautiful pattern. It is perfect to make sunset look. Aria and I worked together on this one. We talked about how God makes such pretty sunsets, its like He is painting the sky. Then, we painted our sky. Next, we took two pipe cleaners and twisted them around each other to make a cross.We attached it to our plate with a little glue and then I added the words of John 3:16. Love is a defining theme of Easter, so we talked about what it means to love and how we can love each other.

5. PLASTIC EGG PAINT STAMP

This one is so versatile! All you do is take plastic eggs (since we all have an overabundance of them every year) and use them as a stamp! Pour some paint into a plate and let them dip the egg half into the paint.

Then, they can place it down on paper, plates, canvas, you could even make a cute shirt with this egg stamp! We opted for a paper plate and let my one year old in on the fun, with a little help from mommy! To add to our plate, I cut out a semi circle towards the top. Then, I cut a bigger semi circle out of another plate and wrote, “JESUS IS ALIVE!”. Next, I punched a hole through them and connected them with a brad. You can rotate the back section around to demonstrate the empty tomb, and then the resurrection!

6. CRAFT STORE EASTER CRAFTS

Sometimes this momma is just too tired to get out all of our own craft supplies and get creative enough to make our own, so I often rely on the craft store for fun themed crafts! Hobby Lobby, Target, Michaels, Walmart, and Mardel all have easy to use, age appropriate crafts that don’t require much out of you!

We picked up these stained glass Easter eggs at Hobby Lobby. As she was painting we talked about the meaning behind eggs at Easter Time. They symbolize new life, just like the new life we have when Jesus comes into our lives.

Then, we put together this cute HE IS RISEN puzzle. My girls love puzzles! And this was less than $5 (more like $2 during Hobby Lobby’s 40% off sale!).