5 Easter Spring Activities for the Upper Elementary Classroom

Celebrating special days and holidays in the classroom is definitely my thing! Using holidays, seasons, and what is happening outside of the classroom during lessons is a sure-fire way to engage students and increase their participation.

But when it comes to religious holidays, I use themes that align with the holiday rather than focusing on the religious beliefs. By taking this approach, all students can participate in the lessons, and no one is left out.

Easter is one of those holidays. It is an exciting time of the year, mostly because it is spring. The warm weather, rebirth of trees and flowers, and all things chocolate and eggs are surely on the forefront of students' minds. Harnessing that energy and excitement into content-rich activities and meaningful tasks with spring and Easter vibes is a great way to keep the students learning in your classroom all season long!

Here are five activities that I LOVE to do with students during the spring and Easter season.

1. Nonfiction Reading and Research

When it comes to bringing the holidays into the classroom, try focusing on non-holiday themes that align with the upcoming holiday but are not holiday/religious specific...like this one!

My students LOVE reading and writing about cottontail rabbits. We read this nonfiction article about these special bunnies. As we read, we focus on the facts and opinions in the article and of course, practice close reading strategies.

Following the reading, students must reflect on whether or not cottontail rabbits would make good house pets. It is a great way to tie together reading, writing, holidays, and real-world activities in one happy project!

Other non-holiday, nonfiction themes perfect for this time of year include:

• How Chocolate is Made
• Learning the History of Peeps
• How Carrots Grow
• Signs of Spring
• Life Cycles
• Plant Life and Adaptations

Try out the cottontail rabbit activity for FREE below.

2. Community Building

I love using any excuse to build and strengthen our classroom community. After all, building community is an ongoing process that does not stop after the first two weeks of school!

This activity is simple yet powerful!

Here is how we write our community building letters:

1. Have students write their names with a pencil on a small piece of paper and fold it into fourths. Place all the names in a bucket or bowl.
2. Have students one at a time randomly draw a name from the bucket or bowl, making sure that they did not pick themselves. If they pick themselves, have them show you before selecting a new name.
3. Students then write a letter to the student whose name they picket. Their letters should be positive, upbeat and include specific examples of why they are happy to be that person's friend and classmate.
4. For Easter, we use the theme...You are one of my favorite peeps! The kids love it! They write a letter for their classmate AND fill a peep with positive words about their classmate.
5. When all students are all done creating the cards for their classmates, they deliver them. They really love both giving letters and receiving them!

Want to try this community-building activity? See it here.

3. EGG-Stra Special Self-love

In addition to spreading love and positivity with their classmates, I love encouraging students to share some love with themselves!

During this time of year, I have students reflect on why THEY are egg-stra special. I want my students to understand that taking time to feel good about themselves is important and a great habit. Students brainstorm a dozen things that they LOVE about themselves with this activity. The kids love decorating the eggs and love celebrating themselves.

I have found the key to doing self-love activities like these is to have students share their work. Having other students celebrate and listen to these self-love writing projects validates the students' thoughts. Before beginning an activity like this, I do tell students that their projects will be shared.

4. Time for Science

Grab a pack of marshmallow bunnies and have students experiment!

Before doing anything with peeps, I love having students use their observation skills and senses to describe these candies. Students observe with magnifying glasses and record their observations. They take their ideas and write descriptive paragraphs using their senses when they are done.

After that, I have students hypothesize what will happen when the candy is placed in water. We hypothesize what will happen when it is placed in vinegar. Then as a class, we decide on another liquid to place it in. Some ideas include soapy water, orange juice, and soda. I have these on hand so that we can use what the class decides.

This hands-on activity is a lot of fun and leads kids to conclude that there is a lot of sugar in these favorite treats!

5. Try a Read Aloud

My favorite chapter book read-aloud to read with students is The Chocolate Touch written by Patrick Skene Catling. This book is a play on the classic story King Midas. Instead of everything turning to gold, everything the main character touches turns to chocolate. It is a quick read, but always well-loved by the kids. The story leads to great discussions on greed, healthy eating, friendships, and family. And of course, it is perfect timing for candy overload during Easter time!

No holiday activity list is complete without my favorite picture books! These read alouds are among my favorites to share with students during the Easter season.

Picture book read alouds perfect for spring and Easter:

• Nesting Henry Cole
• The Great Eggscape written by Jory John
• The Good Egg written by Jory John
• How to Catch the Easter Bunny written by Adam Wallace
• Too Many Carrots written by Katy Hudson

See the entire list of my favorite spring read alouds HERE.

When it comes to the holidays in the classroom, stick to timely themes! You may not be teaching the holiday, but the thematic fun associated with is always a crowd-pleaser. 

You might be interested in reading:

Spring Projects Kids Love

 5 Tips to Cure Spring Fever in the Classroom

April Fools' Day Fun for the Classroom

Spring Read Alouds Perfect for Upper Elementary

Looking for meaningful spring and Easter activities that kids LOVE? See more HERE.

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