A blessed way to teach kids about the Resurrection

Confession: Most years Easter rather sneaks up on me, and I find myself scrambling to buy a new dress the week before and figuring out whose house we’re going to for Sunday dinner. Resurrection Sunday often ends with running around to family dinners, feeling like Thanksgiving happened at the wrong time of year. And the sense that I “missed something” even though I did all the traditional activities. Then I found a blessed way to teach kids about the Resurrection!

It started when I got a little wake-up call from a post on Mustard Seeds about how Easter is a BIG DEAL. Um. Yeah. For some reason that came as a revelation to me. I don’t have to wait until Resurrection Sunday to be blessed by Christ’s death and return to life! I can start observing and celebrating weeks before Resurrection Sunday! 

Blessed to teach our kids about the Resurrection

Consider: We spend December anxiously awaiting Christ’s Advent… the amount of decorating, baking, buying, preparing is mind-boggling… yet Christ’s Redemptive act on the cross… Sneaks up on me? Why aren’t I spending more time in anticipation, preparation, and celebration?

Maybe it’s that people would rather celebrate birth than death? Maybe it’s that Christmas is a set date each year while Easter drifts about the springtime calendar. Either way. I have a renewed sense of purpose to spend more time contemplating the Resurrection and celebrating it with our children.

And then… as I was working through all this soul-searching about the Resurrection… along came the perfect resource to fit the whole “Christmas versus Easter” disparity. We used Amanda White’s book The Truth in the Tinsel at Christmas to focus on the true meaning of Christmas last year. Our oldest son (and I!) enjoyed each day’s craft, reading, and discussion. I felt our hearts and minds centering around the truth of Christ’s birth. And all the pieces started to fall together.

And now Amanda’s done it again! With an Easter / Resurrection themed e-book called A Sense of the Resurrection. It’s a sensory exploration for little ones to learn about the wonder of Christ and His Resurrection!

A Sense of the Resurrection Hands-On Curriculum

Amanda’s new ebook for Easter / Resurrection is set up in a similar fashion to The Truth in the Tinsel: Scripture readings, simple craft, child-friendly discussion. I knew I had to get it.

As Baptists, we don’t celebrate Ash Wednesday, Lent, Good Friday. So there’s no significant event or observations leading up to Resurrection Sunday. So I feel blessed more than ever this year to have a study guide that helps myself and my kids focus on the details of the Resurrection story.

With A Sense of the Resurrection, I get a twelve-day plan for learning and discussing the events in Christ’s life before, during and after his death and Resurrection. How I have enjoyed this down-to-earth resource! It’s practical, child-friendly, and gives kids that hands-on, sensory play experience they need at the younger ages. Honestly, don’t we all remember spiritual concepts better when we connect to them in a tangible and sensory way?

How we used A Sense of the Resurrection

Each day in A Sense of the Resurrection, you read a portion of scripture about one event during the Passion Week. In fact, there are passages listed from each of the gospels, so you can pick and choose or read all the accounts; Amanda has starred the passage she feels is the best choice for kids.

Each lesson focuses on one particular sense: See, Hear, Smell, Taste, Touch. After reading, you discuss the passage using the discussion guide provided, and complete a hands-on craft. There’s often an extension activity or resource linked for additional study.

Here’s a few of the activities we did:

On Day 1 (SMELL) – We learned about Mary’s fragrant perfume that filled the house, and thought about great sacrifice.

On Day 2 (HEAR) – We made joyful noises with homemade wind chimes, remembering the shouts of praise at Christ’s triumphal entry.

On Day 3 (TOUCH) – I washed my children’s feet, and they washed each other’s. This touch-based sensory experience gave them a picture of Christ’s example of humbly serving others.

This activity surprised me in being the most touching so far. We don’t practice foot washing in our church, so this was a new experience for us. It was more a role-play than a true foot washing, but still, capturing my children’s attention in this way… well, I can’t stop looking at their picture and praying they will always be willing to kneel humbly before the Lord and serve others.

I’m praying these memories sink deep in their little hearts; hands-on experiences definitely help! After years and years of celebrating Easter rushed and by rote, I am the one feeling blessed. Because I know it’s my own heart being touched with a sense of the Resurrection.

Many ways to teach the Resurrection with hands-on, sensory activities

I’m not going to steal Amanda’s thunder and tell you every activity, but you get the idea. She’s created solid lessons and activities to help parents dive deep into discussing the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection. You can adjust these lessons for kids of nearly any age. I’d recommend starting around ages 2-3, and the lessons will still fit kids up to probably ages 10-12.

I first published this in 2014. Since then, my boys have enjoyed these activities several years in a row – we’ve done them in a variety of ways each year. One year we just used the printable flags Amanda created instead of doing a full craft each day. We’ve also used these lessons in our Sunday School, which has been exciting and fun for everyone!

Get a copy of A Sense of the Resurrection ebook

If you’re interested in getting this fabulous e-book resource to help your family celebrate the Resurrection in a memorable and meaningful way, find Amanda White’s ebook A Sense of the Resurrection here.

This is not a sponsored post, but affiliate links may have been used. All opinions are my own.