Sweet Easter
If you ask some children what Easter is all about they will invariably reply that it is to do with chocolate or Easter Eggs. Here is a fun way to teach the true meaning of Easter to your children's group. The leader enters carrying either a large box marked "chocolates" or a large decorated basket. Build some suspense as to what's in the box etc... As you remove each item from the box or basket use the item to teach about the meaning of Easter. 1. A bag of gold covered chocolate coins. (Jesus was betrayed by Judas for thirty pieces of silver). 2. Chocolate Rooster. ( Peter's three denials of Jesus before the rooster crowed). 3. Chocolate Cross. ( Use sticks of a "Kit-Kat" bar - or equivalent, to make a cross. Ask the children to tell you why some people wear crosses around their necks then tell them the the crucifixion story as appropriate to the age group listening). As a kind of competition you might like to get two or three children to come out the front and eat a small Easter egg and then make a cross out of the silver paper (wrapping) " Now hold up your crosses to show everybody. Here's one thing you can do with the silver paper next time you eat an Easter egg as a reminder of Jesus." 4. Hollow plastic egg. In Australia we have a sweet called "Kinder Surprise" which has a plastic egg which opens into halves with a small toy inside. If you don't have‚ something equivalent then use a medium sized Easter egg ( unwrapped) and‚ ask someone to come and take a big bite out of it. (Tell the events of the empty tomb on Easter morning). 5. Marshmellows or chocolate chickens or bunnies. (Jesus offers us new life and a new birth just like the baby chickens coming out of the eggs). 6. Gold foil covered Easter egg. ( The Bible gives a picture of the streets of heaven being paved with gold. If we believe that Jesus died and came alive again we can look forward one day to spending forever with Jesus in heaven). Don Stott,2008, http://eliab.com Easter Pass the Parcel A variation on the well known game. This is played in the same way as at children’s parties except you have a number of parcels circulating according to the size of your group (say one parcel per ten children). Get everyone into a large circle and give out the parcels with an even number of people between each. Then as the music is played, the parcels are passed around the room from one person to the next as quickly as possible. When the music stops the people holding the parcel can unwrap one layer of paper. Make sure each parcel is unwrapped to exactly the same point. This way the game will finish with the three or four people getting to the centre at the same time. For Easter - Between the layers place: a palm cross (talk about why we have a cross on the top on hot cross buns or why people wear crosses around their necks) , an Easter card( What would you write about Easter in a card to a friend ?), a large nail (Jesus didn’t deserve to die -crucifixion), an Easter egg (tomb), a clean sheet of paper (nothing on it- Jesus forgave our sins) . The gift could be a a small box of chocolates (celebrate that Jesus is alive). Use the items to recap the Easter story. (c) Don Stott Eliab.com |
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