Now that it’s almost here, it’s time for some Easter fun children’s books, songs, games, and family traditions. Let’s start the Easter fun with stories.
Children’s Easter books range from traditional stories to fanciful ones about eggs, chicks, bunnies, and spring. Deborah Underwood and Claudia Rueda worked together for the book, “The Easter Cat.” Usually in children’s books, the illustrations support the story, maybe adding a few details the story line doesn’t have. Many books include dialogue so when adults read to kids, we can change our voices to signal the different characters. In “The Easter Cat” kids can be the voice of the cat because what cat says is shown in pictures. Cat uses facial expressions and holds up signs that kids can read to tell part of the story. Some kids might need to be encouraged to be the voice of the cat. We can ask questions like, “Hmm, Cat is holding up a sign. That looks like hearts. What do you think that means?”
Kids soon catch on and check the signs for Cat’s part of the conversation. This book really reinforces the ideas that text is pictures written in words and that reading is an interaction.
Books are only part of the package that makes any holiday special. Two simple songs are:
1 little, 2 little, 3 little Easter eggs.
4 little, 5 little, 6 little Easter eggs.
7 little, 8 little, 9 little Easter eggs.
10 little Easter Eggs.
Instead of eggs, kids can sing about 10 little fluffy chicks, or 10 little Easter baskets, or whatever else they think of. For an action song, change the word Happy to Hoppy and sing, “If you’re Hoppy, and you know it.” You can use the clap hands and stomp feet actions or use bunny ones like twitch your nose, or hop around.
A simple Easter game is Hopscotch. Bunnies love the game hopscotch. They also love to play Hide n’ Seek.
Families will have their own traditions for this time of year. That might include special baking, coloring and hiding Easter eggs, visiting family, or camping for the first time in the season. We brought out the decorations for Easter. The Easter bunny made from a yellow plastic egg (left-side of photo) with pipe cleaner ears has lost nose, eyes, whiskers, and tail but the kids remember how he used to look and remind me he needs fixing.
Are there some Easter Fun children’s books, songs, games, and traditions at your house?