Easter Lesson Ideas for Educators
Easter is just around the corner, and many educators are most likely preparing lessons for this upcoming holiday. Look no further! Here are four engaging and eggcellent lesson ideas that you can use with your learners.
1. Science
The Egg-Drop
This hands-on lesson involves a lot of critical thinking! It includes a very delicate object and a multi-level building. Here is how it works: Learners must find a way to protect an egg from cracking, but here is the catch: they will be dropping their egg outside a window and onto the ground. Learners can use any materials they choose, as long as it protects the dropped egg. Learners have come up with all kinds of interesting solutions in the past, from using bubble wrap contraptions to placing the egg in a tinfoil ball – there is no one right answer.
We know that eggs are very delicate, and finding the perfect mechanism is challenging. This forces learners to think critically and master divergent thinking by experimenting with trial and error. You can even have them use the scientific method to hypothesize their results. Tips for educators: Place a tarp or plastic covering on the ground before the experiment to avoid a dreadful clean-up. Happy dropping, kids!
2. English language arts
The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs
This classic tale has a very important moral: Don’t be greedy. Read this story to your learners (you can find an electronic copy at www.storyjumper.com if you don’t have a copy in your library) and have them come up with an alternate ending that conveys a different moral than the original story. Learners will have the opportunity to think creatively and use their imaginations to create an alternate ending to a classic story. Have learners read their stories aloud in pairs, and they will have to guess what the moral is that their partner is trying to convey. It is a fun activity for younger kids, as they will love trying to guess the moral of a classmate’s story!
3. Science
Properties of an Egg
Use eggs in your science class to teach the properties of matter. Have learners determine the characteristics of an egg by handing out an assortment of eggs to the class. The assignment is to determine the egg’s colour, size, texture, smell, and sound. Since eggs come in various colours and sizes, it is a great activity for comparing the properties of the different types. You can also use other food items associated with Easter, such as jellybeans, marshmallows, and bunny chocolates, to compare the properties of the different food items. In addition, you can place learners in pairs and have one partner describe their item by using specific characteristics while the other is blindfolded. They will have to guess the food item based on their description. Learners love this activity!
4. Math
Jellybean Statistics
Use jellybeans to teach learners how to graph. Place learners into groups of four, and give each group a bag of jellybeans. Have each student pick their favourite colour jellybean and count the quantity of that colour in the bag. Learners must then graph the various colours’ quantities using a bar graph. The materials you need to carry out this lesson are jellybeans, graph paper, rulers, and coloured pencils. Learners can colour each bar to match the colour of the jellybean they are graphing. It is a great way to introduce children to the concept of graphing.
Happy Easter from the Learning Bird team!
