Description
The youth that correctly guess the number of Easter eggs in the Easter basket wins a prize.

Resources
Easter eggs of various types and a large Easter basket

Preparation
Fill the big Easter basket with eggs of different colors and sizes. Use real eggs as well as chocolate eggs, etc.

What to do

• Youth will guess the number of Easter eggs in the Easter Basket and write it on a piece of paper along with their name.
• Read out the guesses at the end of your Easter Party and the person who gets the closest gets to take home the Easter Basket filled with Easter goodies.

Variation
You can also give the youth a piece of paper and a pen as they arrive at your Easter Party. As the game starts, you can ask everybody to write their names on the piece of paper and their answer to the question, “How many Easter eggs are there in the basket?” Collect all the pieces of paper and announce the names of the youth and the answers. Slowly remove all the eggs from the Easter basket and count them as you empty it to create more suspense than simply calling out the answer.

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Description
This Easter Games in a combination of a classic treasure hunt with a traditional Easter Egg hunt.

Resources

• Easter Eggs
• Treasure Maps

Preparation
Make a treasure map for your egg hunt. It doesn’t have to be to scale and it doesn’t have to be perfect. Add important details like flowers, bushes, tress, etc to indicate hiding spots.

What to do

1. Group the youth into teams and give each team a treasure map.
2. Be sure that all teams have the same copy of the treasure map.
3. The team of youth that finds the most eggs wins a prize.

Variation
You can also add special Easter eggs, like a gold egg with a special prize inside.

Use it with Easter symbols for more meaning.

BONUS: How to make a more realistic Treasure Map.

Resources

• white paper
• Tea bags or strong tea
• flat pan
• matches or a lighter

What to do

1. Tear the edges of the paper in an irregular pattern
2. Make strong tea and pour into your flat pan
3. Place the paper into the tea for about 5 minutes.
4. Flip it over and leave it in the tea for another minute
5. Let it dry.
6. Lightly burn the edges with a match or lighter.

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Description
The Easter Basket will be discovered after all the Easter Eggs have been collected.

Resources

• Plastic Easter eggs with clues inside that lead to other Hidden Easter Eggs
• The last Easter Egg Clue reveals the location of the Easter Basket.
• Easter basket

Preparation
Hide all the plastic Easter eggs with clues inside.

What to do

1. Tell the group to search for the Easter basket through the clues placed inside the plastic Easter eggs. (of course they have to find the eggs first)
2. The first egg will have the clue that will lead them to the next egg. And the next plastic egg will have the clue that will lead them to the next egg until they’ll find the Easter basket.
3. You can have dozen of eggs per group with the corresponding color per group.
4. The first team to collect the dozens of eggs and finds the basket wins.

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Description
This classic high energy game for youth has been adapted for an Easter Party and given an added message of evangelism for the lost.

Resources
No resources are needed except for an open space large enough to accommodate your group of kids or youth and some room to run around.

Preparation
Form youth into groups of three. Two of the youth must hold hands and stand apart so that there is an open space in the middle between them. Together they form an Easter Basket. The remaining participants stand in the center between the arms and is the “Easter Bunny”

Game Play
There are three options that participants must respond to in this Easter party game:

1. If Bunny Hop is called, all the “Easter Baskets” remain where they are and all the “Easter bunnies” must run and hide in another “Easter basket.” The “Easter Bunnies” may not stay in the same “Easter basket” and only one “Easter bunny” is allowed in each Basket. The last “Bunny” to find a new basket to hide in is removed from the game along with the two youth that form that “Easter Basket”.

2. If EGG HUNT is called, all the Easter Bunnies remain in their positions but the youth forming the baskets must change to new locations and form a circle by holding hands with a new partner around one of the stationary bunnies. Youth forming a basket cannot stand in the same place and they cannot connect with the same partner as before. The last two youth to position themselves holding hands to form a new basket around one of the stationary bunnies is eliminated along with the last remaining Easter Bunny.

3. If EASTER BASKET TURNOVER is called, everyone, both Easter baskets and bunnies, must change to new positions and find new partners. Youth forming Easter baskets are allowed to change roles to become bunnies and vice-versa as long as there are new groups of three. As with the other options that are called out, the last group to form is eliminated from the game

Continue the game until there is only one one group of three remaining and give them a prize.

Take it to the Next Level

Christ upset a lot of people’s lives. The gap between the established status of the high priests and the common man was removed. Christ focused on a person’s heart, not his position. Religious leaders like Nicodemus and tax collectors like Zaccheus were of equal standing. Thoughts were given the same importance as actions. Outcasts were embraced. The sick were healed.

And Christ’s arrest and crucifixion served to upset things even more. The disciples were scattered and running to new hiding places. But Christ’s death and resurrection brought about the most profound change of all. The relationship between God and man was redefined. With Christ’s death and resurrection, man was redeemed and his relationship with God was restored. We no longer had to run in fear and hide. We could embrace God as Father and see ourselves as sons and daughters. Indeed, a new beginning came to the world.

Easter reminds us of spring, of the vibrancy of life, of new beginnings. Its not about rabbits and eggs but about a Risen Savior who died for the world. It’s not about what you have in your Easter Basket, but what you have in your heart. With Christ in your heart you can have a new beginning. You don’t need to run in fear, but can be embraced in the love of God. God came not to eliminate you from the game of life, but to include you and give you a safe place to rest.

• Many of you may feel like you have been running around without purpose – God want’s to give you purpose!
• Many of you maybe hiding in fear – God wants to give you his forgiveness and hold you in his loving embrace.
• Many of you have been looking for a place where you can be safe and secure – God wants to give you rest and security in Him.

This Easter choose to give your heart to Christ. He wants to give you a new beginning and an abundant and blessed life. You don’t need to run anymore. Do it today!

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Description
The youth will find Easter eggs with numbers written on them. After a designated period of time, the youth will add the numbers written on the Easter eggs they have found and the youth or team with the highest score wins.

Resources
Easter eggs with numbers written on them and a special prize for the winner.

Preparation
Boil and dye Easter eggs and put a number on each one and hide them. You might choose to hide the higher numbered Easter eggs in the more difficult locations to find.

What to do

1. Group the youth into 2 or more groups or let them play as individuals
2. Instruct the youth to search for the eggs with numbers on them.
3. Remind the youth to limit the searching of eggs. (Like 10 eggs per group or only during a specified length of time)
4. Youth then search for the Easter eggs
5. Add all the numbers on the Easter Eggs to get a score.
6. The group or individual youth with the highest score wins a special prize.

Variation
None

Take it to the Next Level
Place numbers on the eggs that have significance to the Easter Story in the Bible and after the hunt ask youth to explain the significance of the numbers:

• 12 Disciples
• 3 days in the tomb
• 30 pieces of silver
• 2 women
• Chapter where the Easter Story is found
• 1 God
• ETC

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Description
In this Easter Egg Hunt, Bible references are used as clues for youth to find the Easter Eggs.

Materials

• Colored, blown out eggs
• Rolled up paper notes with Bible references as clues – one in each egg. Bible reference ideas can be found below:

The following clues could be used to reference common things or places around the house.

1 Kings 6:7 – hammer, chisel, iron tool = tool box; 2 Chronicles 24:10 – Chest; 2 Kings 2:20 – Bowl of salt; Genesis 47:31 – Head of Bed; Ezekiel 12:7 – Backpack or suitcase; Mark 4:38 – Cushion; 2 Samuel 12:3 – Cup; Ecclesiastes 12:12 – Books, study; 2 Kings 23:24 – book; Acts 13:25 or Exodus 3:5 – Sandals = shoes; John 13:5 – Towel and Basin; Jeremiah 48:12 – pitcher; Acts 9:25 – Baskets; Daniel 5:5 – Hand, Plaster Wall, Lampstand; Deuteronomy 25:13 – Bag; Deuteronomy 8:3 – Bread; Dueteronomy 11:15 – grass; Ecclesiastes 12:3 – Window; Exodus 12:7 – doorframes; Exodus 2:3 – Basket; Exodus 26:2 – Curtains; Exodus 32:32 – Book; Exodus 9:8 – Ashes = fireplace; Ezekiel 16:9 – Bath; Genesis 14:23 – Thread = sewing kit or sewing machine; Genesis 24:17 – Jar; Genesis 37:3 – Robe; Genesis 44:12 – Cup; Isaiah 14:23 – Broom; Isaiah 40:13 – Bucket, Scale; Jeremiah 2:22 – Soap; Jeremiah 23:29 – Hammer; Job 19:23 – Book; Job 6:6 – Salt; John 13:4 – Towel; Judges 5:25 – Bowl; Leviticus 6:20 – flour; Luke 14:27 – cross; Luke 4:4 – Bread; Luke 5:24 – couch; Mark 14:4 – Perfume; Mark 15:36 – Sponge; Mark 6:39 – Grass; Matthew 10:38 – Cross; Matthew 15:27 – Table; Matthew 16:18 – Rock; Matthew 16:19 – Keys; Matthew 19:24 – Needle; Matthew 22:19 – Coin, portrait, inscription; Matthew 23:25 – Platter; Matthew 26:7 – Perfume; Matthew 5:13 – Salt; Matthew 6:6 – Closet, door; Proverbs 1:14 – Purse; Proverbs 17:22 – Medicine = medicine cabinet; Proverbs 24:13 – Honey; Psalm 90:4 – time = clock or calendar; Psalm 119:105 – Lamp; Psalm 139:18 – Sand; Psalm 144:1 – Rock; Psalm 23:15 – Table; Psalm 52:2 – Razor = bathroom; Psalm 60:8 – Shoe; Ruth 2:14 – Bread; Ruth 4:8 – Shoes; Zechariah 6:1 – Chariot = car?; James 1:23-25 – Mirror

Variations
Instead of blown out hollow eggs, write the Bible reference on the egg or use plastic eggs.

What to do
Hide the eggs out of sight in the locations indicated by the clues.
Give the youth one clue to start that leads to one of the hidden eggs.
Each egg then reveals the clue to the next egg. You can also use teams of youth and color the eggs by team or have completely different sets of clues and locations. You can add additional slips of paper as vouchers for a prize or mark some of the eggs as special prizes for youth.

Take it to the Next Level
In many ways the Bible is like a treasure hunt. Found within its verses are many clues to live life to its greatest potential both in our relationship with God and with others. Unlike this hunt, youth need to read the verses in context to get a better understand of what it is talking about.

Scripture
The Bible, God’s Wisdom or righteous living is often referred to as treasure
Proverbs 2:4; Proverbs 10:2; Proverbs 15:6; Matthew 6:20-22; Matthew 13:43-45; Matthew 13:52; 2 Corinthians 4:7; Colossians 2:3

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Description
Easter Egg Bowling is an Easter themed variation of “Lawn Bowling” but on a smaller scale. It’s suitable for youth, children and adults of all ages.

History of Lawn Bowling
Lawn bowling is very similar to an Italian game known as bocce. Because of this, many historians believed it started with Roman Soldiers throwing small stones at a target stone. It is traced back to the 13th or 12th century at its earliest, so it is unlikely that Roman soldiers played the game during the time of Christ. As the game developed over the course of history, weights were added inside a ball to cause it to travel a curved path when rolling along the ground. Today, lawn bowling is typically played on a level grass surface. Instead of placing weights inside the ball, the ball is flattened a little on one side to cause it to travel in the curved path.

Game Objective
The objective of lawn bowling is to roll a ball, closest to a target ball. In the traditional game this is a small white ball called a “jack” or a “kitty”. In this Easter variation of the game, hard boiled eggs are used instead of a an irregular shaped ball. The Easter Eggs, like the balls used in the traditional sport, are also of an irregular shape and so also roll in a curved path. The target can either be a specially colored Easter egg or another small object. You will want to limit the size of the playing area and insure the eggs are ROLLED rather than tossed otherwise you are likely to have egg mush instead of intact eggs.

Game Resources

• A basket of Easter Eggs – Typically the traditional game is played with two teams of 1 to 4 players though larger teams of youth are possible. Because of this it is suggested that there be a different color for each team’s eggs. If you have a very large group of youth you might have more than one playing area with two teams at each area or play it in stages (two teams at a time) so that the winning teams advance to the championship. Instead of real Easter eggs, you could use plastic eggs filled with rice or sand and taped shut.
• a jack (specially colored Easter egg)
• a starting mat or piece of paper for the base (A piece of cardboard works well and newsprint can be used if cardboard is unavailable)
• a playing area – soft grass or soft carpet.
• a ball of twine or string

Preparation

• Set aside Easter Eggs for each team of youth, preferably one color for each team.
• Create boundaries for the game. The traditional games takes place in a large field known as the “bowling green”, but reduce the size to limit damage to the eggs. An easy way to mark the boundaries is to use a piece of string. You can poke a small twig or plastic fork in the ground at each corner then tie the strong between the forks to mark the playing area. If you are doing this indoors with a carpeted area, simply use a piece of tape to adhere the string at each corner. If all you have is a hard surface to play the game (like a gym floor), you can get old newspapers and lay them down on the floor, overlapping them to create a softer surface. The edge of the mat of newspapers then becomes the boundary.
• Flip a coin to see which team of youth gets to set up the mat and the target. The winner of the coin toss gets to place the mat at the edge of the bowling green and toss the target Easter egg, “jack”, into the center as the target. If the target Easter egg is too close to the edges of the playing area it can be centered (between the left and right side) but maintaining the same distance it was tossed.

How to Play

1. Youth take turns tossing their Easter Eggs toward the target.
2. After each team of youth has rolled all of their eggs, the score is calculated. You should choose in advance how many rounds will be played or a specific score to be reached in order to win. The team of youth which loses a round gets to set the mat and target for next round.

Rules for Game Play

• Youth must keep ONE foot on the mat when releasing the Easter egg toward the target.
• An Easter egg may temporarily roll outside the boundary, but must stop inside the boundary to be a valid toss. Once it has come to a stop, if it rests outside the boundary it is not considered in scoring UNLESS it touched the target Easter egg before it rolled out of the boundaries.
• There is no penalty for hitting the target Easter egg, and in fact moving the target egg with a hit might be a viable strategy. If the target egg is knocked out of the boundaries the round can be replayed or re-centered between the left and right boundary but maintaining the distance from where it went out of bounds.
• There is no penalty for hitting an opponent’s Easter egg and knocking it out of position or completely out of bounds.
• It is perfectly legal to roll an Easter egg into a position which blocks opponents.

Scoring
The team of youth which has the Easter egg closest to the target receives a point. A piece of string is a great way to measure the distance. Each Easter egg belonging to the same team of youth that is closer than any of the competitor’s Easter eggs adds an additional point. Play continues until a specific score is achieved or a set number of rounds is completed.

Taking it to the Next Level
One of the key ideas in this game is that there is a target and we try to get as close to that target as possible while avoiding obstacles, getting knocked aside sometimes, dealing with a natural curve or bias, and striving to stay within boundaries. Some of the possible targets that could be discussed are love, evangelism, becoming Christlike, and pleasing God. (see the scriptures below for more detail)

Discussion Questions for Youth

• What is the target of life as a Christian youth?
• Do other youth ever try to block us from that target or even try to knock us away from it? How? Why?
• What are some of the reasons youth fall short of this target?
• What are some of the biases or tendencies youth have to overcome?
• What are some of the strategies youth can use to become closer to the target?
• What lessons can we learn from this game that apply to the Christian walk of youth?
• What is something you will personally do as a result of what you have learned from this game?

Scriptures

• 1 Timothy 1:5 – Our goal is love
• Matthew 28:16-20; 2 Peter 3:9 – Our goal is making disciples (evangelism)
• 1 Corinthians 10:31; Ephesians 1:11-12; 1 Peter 2:9; Jeremiah 9:23-24 – Our goal is to please God
• Romans 8:29; Ephesians 4:13; 2 Corinthians 3:18 – Our goal is to be transformed into the likeness of Christ
• Ephesians 4:22-24 – Our goal is to be like God in Righteousness

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Description
In this variation of the common Easter Egg hunt, each youth will find an Easter egg with his or own name on it.

Resources
Easter eggs with each person’s name on one. You’ll want to have one egg for each person and maybe a couple extra prize eggs.

Preparation
This works best when you know who will be attending or when combined with other activities so that once everyone arrives you can label and hide the eggs.

• One way to handle a party where you don’t know who will attend is to to have an Easter Basket at the door when people arrive filled with eggs. As the youth arrive they put their names on one of the colored eggs with a permanent marker. Have someone hide the eggs while the youth are involved in other activities.
• Another alternative would be to number the eggs and give each youth a number. Youth must only find their OWN egg and any of the specially marked prize eggs. They should leave any eggs they find in place if it is not theirs.

What to do

1. Gather all the youth.
2. Tell the youth to search for their eggs with their names on it. Also they can search for specially marked prize eggs.
3. Youth are not allowed to take or move any eggs except their own or the special prize eggs.
4. The first youth to find his/her Easter egg will have a bonus prize

Take it to the Next Level
Add some spiritual significance to the traditional Easter Egg hunt using Traditional Easter Symbols or Easter verses

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Christmas Game Description: This Christmas party game idea is played like the traditional game known as “Hot Potato”. A candy cane is passed from person to person around the circle while someone plays Christmas music. The candy cane is passed to the youth right next to you who then passes the candy cane to the youth next to him or her. You can choose to play clockwise or counter clockwise. If you want to add a little more challenge to the game you can call out the word “CHANGE” from time to time and change the direction in which the candy cane is passed.

Things You’ll Need:

• Christmas music as well as someone to control the music
• Two or more adults, youth, children – kids of all ages
• One Christmas candy cane for each youth playing the game

How to Play

1. Gather all the youth in a circle, standing or sitting cross-legged. The youth should be arranged facing toward the center of the circle.
2. Explain the game rules to make sure all the youth understand. If you are playing with very young children, you might need to go over the rules several times to make sure they all understand. Have a practice round of the game with the children if that is necessary.
3. For younger children, you might want to ask them to name some things that are hot. Hand one of the children the candy cane, encouraging him or her to pretend that it is HOT and to catch and pass it on to the next child as quickly as they can.
4. To get the Christmas game started, say “Go!” and play the Christmas music. Youth begin to toss the candy cane around the circle to the youth next to them as quickly as possible.
5. When the Christmas music is paused, the youth holding the candy cane is eliminated from the game. Throwing the candy cane after the music stops does not count. But as a parting gift, the youth gets to keep the candy cane he or she was holding so that everyone is a winner in this Christmas game. The youth must then sit out of the game until everyone has a candy cane.
6. Continue starting and stopping the Christmas music until all but two are “out.” Last youth to NOT be holding the candy cane when the music stops wins. You might want to have an additional Christmas prize for the last remaining youth.

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