Materials

Easter Egg Hunt Challenge Cards

• Easter Egg Hunt Challenge Cards: can you build eggs
• Scissors
• Filler Eggs
• Magnet Tiles

Can You Get to 100? Pin Ball Game 

• Can You Get to 100 Game Point Cards & Prompt get to 100 eggs
• Scissors
• Tape
• Cookie Sheet
• Bouncy ball/ marble
• Magnet tiles

Can You Build The Easter Bunny a Home

• Can You Build the Easter Bunny a Home? Prompt Build home for bunny
• Magnet Tiles
• Bunny Figurine, toy or we made bunnies out of these peg dolls https://woodpeckerscrafts.com/peg-doll-people/ inspired by this amazing project from The Art Garden: https://theartgardenblog.com/2018/03/21/milk-carton-bunny-habitat/

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

Easter Egg Challenge

• Print the provided Easter egg challenge cards and cut them out.  Pop them into Easter eggs to hide and then find, trying the challenge or simply use the deck as is.  If you are playing this with a group of kids you could divide into teams, turn your backs to each other and see what you have come up with when you turn around!

Easter Egg Pin Ball Maze (Can you get to 100?)

• Print the point cards.

• Create a maze on a cookie sheet with slots at the end for your point cards and obstacles to getting there as seen in the video.  The beauty of this project is that you can make your maze as challenging as you like!

• Tape your maze cards onto the slots at the ends of the mazes.

• Give your pinball maze to a partner and use a large marble or bouncy ball to see if you can get up to 100!

• To increase the challenge, set a timer to see if you can beat your previous time to get there!

• Be sure to switch with your partner so each person gets a chance with both the construction and the playing.

Can You Build The Easter Bunny a Home

• Print out the prompt and display it with a bunny like an invitation to build.

• Use the magnet tiles to build your own unique home for the Easter bunny!

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Purpose

• Exploring magnetism through building activities.
• Problem solving and challenging oneself!

Safety Notes

• Follow the product directions on the magnet tiles.  (When you buy magnet tiles look at the safety testing that is done.  If a tile is damaged, throw it out and be aware that if a magnet is accidentally consumed somehow if a tile was to be broken, contact medical assistance immediately.  We have not had this problem at all with the Connetix brand with lots of play!)
• Use scissors with care and direct, adult supervision.
• Small items such as balls can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.

Materials

• Templates- Counting carrots and cabbages counting cards and Addition Cards: carrot and cabbage math
  
• Bunny Face template: bunny face2
  
• Cardstock
• Green pom poms
• Green & orange chenille stems
• Large white and/or brown/black pom pom
• Scissors
• Tray
• 1 inch circle punch *Optional*
• Page protector *Optional*
• Tweezers or tong *Optional*
• Dry Erase Marker *Optional* 
• Craft or Utility knife *To be used by an adult only*

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Have an adult cut off the bottom of your water bottle with a craft knife. You may need to tape the edge to assure that there are no sharp spots for kids.  (We didn’t find this to be the case, but lay the tape over the edge on the midway point and then fold it over, covering the edge of the bottle)

• Print out the bunny face and cut it out.  There is a face for a brown and a white bunny.

• Punch the mouth out with 1 inch punch (my suggestion is to purchase this with a coupon from Michaels) or cut out the mouth.

•  Thread the mouth onto the bottle (like you would a cap) or glue the rim of the bottom and place the bunny face over top.

• Glue on a large pom pom for a tail if you like.

• Turn your orange chenille stems (pipe cleaners) around the tip of your pencil, wrapping more loosely as you go to form your carrots.  Add a little bit of green up at the top if you like for the stem.  Make 20.  Put them in a container.

• Put 20 green pom poms in a container to use for cabbages.

• Print and cut out your counting and addition cards.  We used thick paper to do this.

Let’s Play! Counting Cards

• Place your bunny into a tray.

• Shuffle and place your cards upside down.

• Draw a card.

• Count how many items (carrots or cabbages) to match the card and feed your bunny that amount.  Count aloud to help you with the process, matching one item to your count to develop one-to-one correspondence.  Lift the bunny and repeat again.

Addition Cards 

• There are two options for this.  You could cut the cards into strips, placing the bunny over the box at the end of the addition sentence or you could put the full page in a reusable page protector.

• Add the designated amount of carrots and cabbages to the bunny.

• Lift the bunny and count the total number of items.

• If your child is ready, you can write the number with dry erase marker in the box if you used the page protectors.

Add another challenge by getting the items with tweezers! 

What other games could you make up?

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Purpose

• Reusing materials for a new purpose.
• Practising counting and simple addition while using one to one correspondence.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces while gluing etc.
• Use scissors with care and direct, adult supervision.
• A craft/ utility knife is only to be used by an adult and should be stored away immediately after use.
• Small items such as pom poms can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.
• If the edge of your bottle is sharp once cut, but sure to cover it with tape.

Materials

• Easter egg template egg card template *Please note this includes one large per page and 2 smaller per page*
• Cardstock

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Print your egg template on thick paper such as cardstock.

• Don your smock!

Comb Painting Egg

• Lay your template in your tray.

• Put blobs of paint on the egg and pull through the paint with your comb.  Moving slightly up and down while you do this will lead to these wonderfully squiggly lines!

• Allow to dry overnight.

• Cut out your egg (be careful to not cut out that folding line in the middle!).  If you can’t see your lines, simply just put another template over it to cut (taping the edges) and this will make a nice interior if you glue them together especially if you print it on a coordinating colour.

• Fold your card down the middle.  (A popsicle turned sideways can make a sharp edge).

• Inscribe a message inside for your friend!

Smoosh Painting Eggs 

• Cut out your egg card first and fold it in the centre with a popsicle stick/ tongue to make a sharp folded edge.

• Open the card, add some paint blobs and then fold the card together.

• Use your popsicle stick turned sideways (so the thin edge meets the paper)  to pull from the middle line to the edge, applying a bit of pressure.

• Open your card to see how it turned out!

• Inscribe it for a friend!

Painting On Wet Eggs 

• Lay your template in your tray.

• Cover your egg with a thin layer of water with a brush.

• Dip your cotton swab (Q-tip) into your liquid watercolour paints and apply them to your wet surface and watch what happens!  You could also experiment with a pipette.

• Allow to dry overnight.

• Cut out your egg (be careful to not cut out that folding line in the middle!).

• Fold your card down the middle.  (A popsicle turned sideways can make a sharp edge).

• Inscribe a message inside for your friend!

Splat Painted Eggs 

• Lay your template in your tray.

• Fill small containers with liquid paint.  We used watercolours.

• Dip your pom poms into the paint.  You could use tongs or a close pin if you want to avoid dying your fingers.  Drop them onto your egg.

• For variations, paint your egg with water first or drop your saturated pom poms into a strainer like seen in the video.

• Be sure to wear a smock for this project!

Foam Paint Eggs 

• Use an clean, empty soap pump for this.

• Add some dish soap to the container.

• Add a little bit of water.

• Shake to combine.

• Pump the foam onto your egg template.

• Once your egg is dry it will have a bubbly finish on the paper.

• We lined it with a matching colour and then wrote a note for a friend inside!

Puffy Paint Eggs 

• Puffy paint is 1 part white glue to 1 part shaving foam (make sure you don’t use gel).  You can colour it with a bit of food colouring or paint.

• Once you have made it, put into a squeeze bottle (like one for condiments) or re-use a plastic baggie, fill it and make a small snip in the corner.

• Apply your puffy paint to your card like you would icing and allow it to dry overnight.

• Cut out your egg (be careful to not cut out that folding line in the middle!).

• Fold your card down the middle.  (A popsicle turned sideways can make a sharp edge).

• Inscribe a message inside for your friend!

Splatter Painted Eggs

• Lay your template in the tray and try this technique for a splatter-y, space-y look!

3 Additional Ideas: Collage Eggs, Dipped Eggs and Drip Drop Eggs

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Purpose

• Recognizing the various symbols associated with different celebrations.
• Communicating with friends and family.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use scissors with care and direct, adult supervision.
• Follow product directions.

Materials

• Polymer Clay (FIMO, Sculpey:  We recommend you use the KID version or SOFT)
• Rolling pin
• Clay board, placemat etc.
• Old butter knife
• Strong glue (to be used by an adult)
• Jewellery parts: pin backs and post earring pieces (You can buy these online or at craft stores)
• Baking sheet
• Cooling rack
• Oven mitts
• Card template: St Patricks

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Follow the directions with whatever product that you chose.  We recommend that you use the KIDS version or the SOFT one as they are easier for children to manipulate.

• We cut one strip of the clay (it has often has lined sections), kneaded it and then rolled it into a ball and then into a tube/ snake.  (We were making several pieces so you may not need this much if you are making one or two).

• Create the arches of your rainbow, starting with the outside and working in, pushing the colours gently together.

• Cut out your clouds with a old butter knife and then softening the edges with your fingers.  Our daughter made them about the width of the rainbow. Attach them on with a little press!

• To make the pot of gold she then took a small ball, pressed it down with her finger (to about the width of 1 mm t0 2 mm).  Roll a thin tube for the rim of the pot and some tiny little balls for the gold.

• Place all your creations on a baking tray (making sure that they are not too close together) and have an adult bake them according to the product’s directions.

• Once your work has thoroughly cooled have an adult attach the jewellery pieces with strong glue.  Allow them to dry overnight.

• Put your pieces into a box and then attach the provided card if you like, giving them to a friend!

Other Rainbow and St. Patrick’s Day Ideas You May Like

• Rainbow Mobile: http://make-it-your-own.com/rainbow-mobile/   

Making the Secondary Colours from the Primary Colours: http://make-it-your-own.com/rainy-day-fun-colour-exploration/

St. Patrick’s Day Play Dough with Loose Parts: http://make-it-your-own.com/st-patricks-day-play-dough-loose-parts/

Create with the Rainbow: http://make-it-your-own.com/create-with-the-rainbow/

Colour Mixing Clovers: https://www.hellowonderful.co/post/KID-MADE-WATERCOLOR-SHAMROCK-CLOVER-CARDS/

Rainbow Necklace: http://make-it-your-own.com/handmade-rainbow-necklace/

Rainbow Building Kit: http://make-it-your-own.com/my-color-is-rainbow-3-gift-ideas/

Find the Rainbow Game: http://make-it-your-own.com/find-the-rainbow-game/

Rainbow Sensory Foam Play: http://make-it-your-own.com/magical-sensory-play/

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Purpose

• Recognizing the symbols associated with various holidays and cultural celebrations.
• Learning the colours of the rainbow.
• Developing one’s fine motor skills- kneading, rolling, manipulating the clay.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use an old butter knife with permission, care and direct, adult supervision.
• Small pieces such as the jewellery parts or the finished pieces can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.
• The oven and strong glue should be used by an ADULT.
• Follow the product directions and safety notes.
• Remember that pins can be sharp- have an adult assist you with putting this craft on.

Materials

• Rainbow template: rainbow
• Cardstock
• Scissors
• Paint/Marker/Paint Sticks etc.
• Fishing Line or yarn or floss
• Beads
• Pin/ cloth (to be used with direct adult supervision for older children) or Hole Punch

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Print the rainbow template on thick paper such as cardstock.

• Colour the first side of your rainbow and allow it to dry overnight.

• Cut out the rainbow pieces and colour the backside.  (You can skip this step if you just want to do the wall hanging)

• Now that everything is dry, if you find that your arches are curling put them under a stack of books overnight.

• It is now time to assemble your mobile or wall hanging:  We punched a small hole at the top of the big arch of the rainbow using a stick pin over a cloth.  This idea is for older children with direct adult supervision (or have the adult do it if you feel more comfortable with that) or you could use a hole punch for the same purpose.

• Loop your fishing line through and attach a few beads at the top and to make a hanging loop.

• Attach some beads to the bottom of the arches if you like.  We painted some of them white to look like clouds.

• Attach the two arches together with your fishing line and add some more beads if you like.

• Have an adult hang up your mobile from the ceiling!

Other Rainbow or St. Patrick’s Day Ideas you Might Like

Making the Secondary Colours from the Primary Colours: http://make-it-your-own.com/rainy-day-fun-colour-exploration/

St. Patrick’s Day Play Dough with Loose Parts: http://make-it-your-own.com/st-patricks-day-play-dough-loose-parts/

Create with the Rainbow: http://make-it-your-own.com/create-with-the-rainbow/

Colour Mixing Clovers: https://www.hellowonderful.co/post/KID-MADE-WATERCOLOR-SHAMROCK-CLOVER-CARDS/

Rainbow Necklace: http://make-it-your-own.com/handmade-rainbow-necklace/

Rainbow Building Kit: http://make-it-your-own.com/my-color-is-rainbow-3-gift-ideas/

Find the Rainbow Game: http://make-it-your-own.com/find-the-rainbow-game/

Rainbow Sensory Foam Play: http://make-it-your-own.com/magical-sensory-play/

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Purpose

• Recognizing the symbols associated with various holidays and cultural celebrations.
• Learning the colours of the rainbow.
• Developing one’s fine motor skills in lacing beads, cutting etc.
• Learning what potentially makes things move- how can you get your mobile to spin?

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use scissors and a pin with care and direct, adult supervision.
• Cord, yarn, fishing line etc. can be a strangulation hazard, therefore be sure to use with direct supervision and for its intended purpose.
• Beads can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.
• This mobile is NOT intended for young children 0-3 (or those that tend to put items in their mouths) and should not be hung over a crib, toddler bed etc. because of the small components.

Our playdates with the neighbours and other pals often happen at the playground/ splash park in the summer, the skating rink or school hill for sledding in the winter or at places in our city (the science centre, nature centre and museum all have well-loved play areas), but they also happen at our home.  Here are a few things that we have found to be helpful:

1) We know the children and their parents/ caregivers that are coming over so the kids are already comfortable with us.  Some kids come over with their parents (great to have a cup of tea together and chat) and sometimes they come on their own. 

2) We usually stick to about a 1 and half hour playdate unless the kids are really close friends and gel easily with their pal.  This gives enough time to play, create and snack and then finish just at that sweet spot. 

3) Go with the children’s energy, but provide some options of activities if they would like.  Let the children guide the flow of the playdate.  We have a large playroom which is where most of the play date takes place.  In addition we set up a specific creating opportunity and a play opportunity as an option.  Below we show you an example of the creating opportunity.  One thing we love is blank wooden items that the kids can decorate with items you might already have and it makes a lovely project for them to take home!  A play opportunity might be some water in the sensory bin/ table and some sea creatures etc. or a small world such as fairy land or dinosaurs.  The kids pre-set this up to look inviting and something that might draw their guests in!  You could have additional items ready if the kids have a shorter attention span.

4) If the parents are comfortable with it, we have a snack- usually watermelon or a fruit salad and a homemade treat (cookies etc.).  You could also have a veggie plate or other types of finger foods.  We find that a muffin tin meal is often a hit as you can pop lots of different options in the tray for the kids to chose from if they are coming for lunch.  Set these up in advance to make it easier.  We have also done cookie decorating which the kids enjoy too!  (Especially if they make a plate of them to take home as well for their family).

Special thanks to our pal R. for coming over- definitely our sons’s special mate!  Her wonderful mom is a professional designer and hand-letterer whose beautiful work you can find here: https://justinema.ca/

PLAY DATE INVITATION TO CREATE

Materials

• Blank Wooden Items (plaques) . Our favourite place to get these is: https://woodpeckerscrafts.com/wood-valentines-day-cutouts/ (They have tonnes of seasonal ones)

*Use what you have at home, here are a few low maintenance options:

• Paint Sticks (We like the Kwik Stix brand)
• Paint Pens (We like the Posca Brand)
• Beads, buttons etc. (Decorating items)
• Glue

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Pre-organzie your supplies.  Our kids love to do this- putting the items into trays that are easy for all the kids to reach, setting up all the potential things kids might need (such as the glue for each tray), providing a few options and then making sure each child has a work space.  We use craft trays for this to keep those beads and supplies contained!

• Decorate your heart, eggs etc. as you like.  The kids used paint sticks and then applied beads or used the paint sticks.  They wrote an inscription on the back of the project too.  We have found that the kids not only like to keep the projects for themselves, but they also like to make a surprise for their parents (which I pop into a re-useable gift bag and then they give it to them on Valentine’s Day for example)!  It is always good to have a few extra pieces on hand in case the child wants to make a few!

They wanted to do the eggs as well so I offered them a different material/medium:

For our older kids, this activity was a play date hit:

* Our daughter and her cousin literally worked on these for hours one day and they were great when we used them in a children’s program*

We’d love to hear your play date tips and ideas in the comment section!

Purpose

• Developing friendships.
• Creating with different materials in a cooperative setting.
• Developing language and interaction skills.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use art supplies with care (following product directions)  and direct, adult supervision.
• Beads can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.

*EACH YEAR WE WILL BE ADDING MORE, SO PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR NEW IDEAS*

1) Llama Valentine Box

This is definitely our most popular Valentine box!  It comes with free printables with several variations.  Add some pom poms or cotton balls and you have a fluffy llama craft that you can now decorate to “make it your own”:

Find the printables here: http://make-it-your-own.com/llama-valentines-day-box/

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2) Rainbow Valentine Box

This 3-D box allows kids to create with the light weight model magic clay to create a colourful rainbow and clouds!  (We have heard that people have also used the idea to make a leprechaun home or trap too)

Find all the details and tips here: http://make-it-your-own.com/rainbow-valentine-box-card/

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3) Flower Garden Valentine Box & Card 

This Valentine box comes with free flower printables or you can create your own florals.  We show you how to make some easy flower stems that stick into your Valentine box to give it the 3D effect of flowers growing!

Find the printables here: http://make-it-your-own.com/flower-garden-valentine-box/

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4) LEGO Valentine Box & Card

Kids just building blocks and we provide you with a free card printable card that folds into a LEGO brick for you to give some real ones to your classmates.  Again we use a tissue box to create a simple box to match the card!

Find the printables here: https://www.redtedart.com/lego-valentines-box-card/

5) Baby Yoda Valentine Box

This is definitely one of the kids’ favourite characters in the Star Wars series and they wanted to create some fan art in the form of a Valentine box.  My daughter’s teacher dressed up as Princess Leia and so she thought this would make a good Valentine box for her!

Find the printable here: http://make-it-your-own.com/baby-yoda-valentine-box/

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6) Robot Valentine’s Box

This is an adorable idea that you could use for all types of learning afterwards!

Find the printable here: http://make-it-your-own.com/robot-valentine-box-and-cards/

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6) Ancient Egypt Valentine’s Box

When I was a teacher the kids LOVED learning about Ancient Egypt and this fun Valentine Box is sure to inspire further learning!

Find the printable here: http://make-it-your-own.com/ancient-egyptian-valentines-day-box/

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Materials

• Rainbow Card Printable: valentine Rainbow
• Kleenex box
• Model Magic
• Toothpicks
• Paint brush
• Paint
• Rolling pin
• Butter knife or clay tool

We always find these items useful too:

Directions

• Remove the plastic liner from your kleenex box carefully.

• Paint your tissue box with a few thin layers of paint, allowing drying in between.

• Chose your rainbow colours.  Roll the model magic into balls and then roll it into “snakes” as the kids call them (tubes).  The outer colours will have to be the bigger of the balls.

• Lay your snakes one within the others, gently pushing them together to form a rainbow.  Trim the edges and insert about half way into your toothpicks.  This will help your rainbow to stand.

• Roll out your cloud colour like dough and cut out your clouds.  Insert your toothpicks into these too.

• Allow your rainbow and clouds to dry.  (Remember to flip them to allow for even drying)

• Have an adult insert your clouds and rainbows into your box.  *Once inserted, trim off the sharp ends in the box!  We also suggest removing your clouds and rainbows prior to taking out your cards to avoid any accidental pokes*

• Print off the rainbow cards, address them and cut them out.  Attach them to a package of crayons, a paint palette or any other rainbow-y item that you might like!  Give them to your classmates!

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Check out some of our other Valentine Box ideas

• Llama Valentine Box

• Find LEGO boxes, baby Yoda, a flower garden and lots of printable card ideas here:  http://make-it-your-own.com/?s=valentine

Purpose

• Recognizing various traditions associated with celebrations.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you use a tray and a smock to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use a knife/ clay tool with care and direct, adult supervision.
• Toothpicks can be sharp.  Use caution with them and an ADULT should insert them into the box!