Easter Traditions and Fun Things to Do on Easter

Start a new Easter tradition with this list of fun things to do for Easter. This article also includes the history and origins of Easter traditions and symbols commonly associated with Easter such as Easter Eggs, Easter Baskets, and the Easter Bunny.

Meaningful Easter traditions create memories that last a lifetime. Create memories with your family and friends, or co-workers by starting any of these fun Easter Traditions. Remember, this is not a must-do list, but a fun-do list of things you can try to do for Easter. If it isn’t fun, don’t do it!

Our fondest memories typically consist of the experiences and traditions that we share with our family and friends. And families that share special moments and cherished traditions report a stronger connection and bond than families that do not have established rhythms. So, choose a new family tradition to start from the list of fun family Easter traditions below!

Easter Traditions and Fun things to Do on Easter

Easter Traditions and Fun Things to Do on (or before) Easter

Start a new Easter tradition with this list of fun things to do for Easter. Simply pick and choose anything you’d like to try from the list of fun family Easter traditions on the list below.

After you look through the list of Easter Tradition ideas of modern and traditional Easter traditions from all over the world, we have included a section on the history and origins of common Easter symbols filled with some information that just might surprise you.

If you’ve ever questioned what the symbols commonly associated with this holiday have to do with Easter, be sure to scroll down to the bottom of this article to learn all about the history and origins of Easter traditions and symbols commonly associated with Easter such as Easter Eggs, Easter Baskets, and the Easter Bunny.

So, if you have ever wondered, why is there an Easter Bunny and Eggs? Or, why do we have baskets on Easter? We have uncovered some interesting information about Easter traditions to share with you that just might surprise you! You might also enjoy these May Day traditions.

Family Easter traditions and fun things to do on Easter

1. Make and Decorate an Easter Tree

Easter Egg trees are a traditional Easter ritual that originated in Germany. Originally Easter egg trees were decorated with hollowed-out eggs outside. But today, Easter trees are decorated both inside and outside of the home with eggs and many other types of Easter ornaments.

Our Easter Tree becomes a centerpiece on our spring nature table in the weeks before Easter. And, an Easter egg tree also makes a sweet decoration for Easter that the whole family can enjoy, and looks lovely on the dining table for Easter brunch or dinner. In our home, decorating an Easter tree each year is a cherished household rhythm.

Learn more about the Easter Egg Tree HERE–>How to Make an Easter Tree.

We love to decorate seasonal trees on our nature table. Once Easter is past, we love to turn our Easter Tree into a butterfly tree that we decorate with various ornaments, nature finds, and crafts made throughout the summer. Next, we decorate a Thankful Tree in the fall, and finally, of course, we are big fans of decorating a Christmas Tree.

More Seasonal Tree DIY Decor

2. Get Creative with DIY Easter Ornaments

Here’s a fantastic list of Easter Ornaments including how to make toilet paper roll birdhouses. Making Easter ornaments is a fun Easter tradition for kids from toddlers to preschoolers and kindergarteners, to grade-school kids and teens.

DIY Easter ornaments are for decorating Easter trees, centerpieces, and spring nature tables.

3. Read Children’s Easter Books with the Kids

Reading kids’ Easter books with children is an Easter tradition many parents, caregivers, and educators enjoy. A few of our favorite Easter books for kids are on the list below. You might also enjoy this list of magical spring books for kids.

The Easter Egg by Jan Brett
The Story of Easter (Little Golden Book)
Pete the Cat and the Easter Basket Bandit by James Dean
How to Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace
Marshmallow: An Easter and Springtime Book for Kids
Llama Easter Egg by Anna Dewdney

4. Make Easter Crafts and Create Easter Art

Creating holiday arts and crafts was one of my favorite Easter traditions as a child–and it still is. Spend time with your children over the holiday break making Easter crafts, and creating art, with some of the fun ideas on the list of Easter craft ideas below.

5. Decorate Easter Eggs

Painting and decorating Easter eggs is one of the most common Easter traditions observed all over the world. First, Decorate hard-boiled Easter eggs, faux white plastic easter eggs, or wooden Easter eggs with children, and then hide them for Easter Egg Hunts and put them in children’s Easter Baskets. Children love to decorate eggs as much as they love to hunt for them.

Decorated Wooden Easter eggs have the advantage of being stored away in the easter box and used year after year. You can even make keepsake heirlooms to pass down from one generation to the next.

We use our Easter Chicks in Easter baskets and egg hunts every year and they are still as wonderful as the first year we made them. My daughter loves finding them in the backyard. Their cute little faces peeking out at her when she finds them make her squeal with joy! We have figured out a fun and easy way to color natural brown eggs for Easter. Click the link to learn how we did it! You may also like these Easter egg decorating ideas.

How to decorate Easter eggs with paint pens.

6. Make Easter Baskets

Turn trash into a treasure that the kids will LOVE with upcycled Easter Baskets! Making Easter baskets out of recycled materials is a fun, and eco-friendly, Easter tradition for kids and families. Use recycled materials such as paper, fabric, sweaters, milk jugs, juice cartons, cans, bottles, plastic bags, and even stuffed animals to make your own recycled Easter baskets.

DIY upcycled Easter baskets made with recycled materials

7. Take a Picture with the Easter Bunny

Another common Easter tradition is to take a picture with the Easter bunny. Many families head out to stores, malls, and Easter Parties in search of the Easter Bunny to check this fun family Easter tradition off the list. So, find the Easter Bunny at a local church Easter hunt or event near you. Or, convince someone in your family to dress up this Easter!

8. Leave a Carrot out for the Easter Bunny

Another Family Easter tradition children enjoy is leaving a carrot out for the Easter bunny. They burst into fits and giggles when they wake up to a half-eaten carrot and Easter Baskets on the table. So, remind your children to have your kids leave a carrot out before bed the night before Easter.

Or, try this. My good friend Penny over at Mother Natured has come up with a fun new treat idea for the Easter Bunny that the kids can leave out with a carrot–or instead of a carrot. You can find her homemade magical Easter bunny food HERE!

9. Give and Enjoy Easter Baskets

Another family favorite Easter tradition is giving and enjoying Easter baskets. Easter baskets and what is commonly placed inside them, have become an Easter tradition many families enjoy. In our family, it’s a tradition to include a chocolate bunny or a chocolate egg every spring in our Easter baskets.

And, after chocolate bunnies and eggs, jelly beans and peeps are next on the list of favorite traditional candies to put in a child’s Easter basket. More items you can include in a child’s Easter basket are a book about Easter or spring, high-quality art materials, and natural Easter toys. Or, look at this list of Easter basket toys and gift ideas children are sure to love!

11. Go on an Easter Egg Hunt

An Easter egg hunt is another fun Easter Tradition that children enjoy. Easter egg hunts rank right up there with Easter Baskets when it comes to what children love the most about Easter.

How to have an Easter Egg Hunt

Hide decorated hard-boiled eggs, wooden Easter eggs, or eggs filled with toys and treats in the backyard or at a local park.
Invite children to go on an Easter egg hunt to find the hidden eggs.

Psst–We go on egg hunts all year long and they never get old. Need a minute to get dinner done? Hide some decorated wooden eggs in the backyard and that should give you some time. My daughter LOVES this traditional Easter activity all spring and summer long!

And, if you are looking for a new Easter egg hunt idea? Play Party Plan has found 10+ fun Easter egg hunt ideas that you can find HERE.

12. Enjoy an Easter Parade

Many towns and cities host an Easter Parade to celebrate Easter. Check your local listings to see if there is a parade in your area.

13. Host or Attend a Traditional Easter Brunch or Dinner

Enjoy a traditional Easter Dinner with your family as part of your family’s spring celebrations. A feast filled with traditional Easter menu items and homemade recipes is a treat the whole family will enjoy making and eating together.

Our family loves going to the local farmers’ market the week before Easter to gather fresh seasonal foods from local farmers to prepare and enjoy for Easter. Try any of these traditional Easter dinner recipe ideas.

20 Most Popular Easter Dinner Recipes | Food Network
Top 25 Traditional Easter Dinner Ideas | The Spruce Eats

Faith-Centered Easter Traditions To Start

Next, here are several more faith-centered or religious Easter traditions you can try.

1. Wake with “He Is Risen.”

In some households, a traditional Easter greeting is the first thing said on Easter morning. This traditional Easter greeting is also commonly used by churches and their congregations. The head of the household, or church, speaks the words “He is Risen” or “Christ is Risen” to which everyone else replies, “He is Risen, Indeed!”

2. Make Resurrection Rolls.

Make and bake resurrection rolls as a fun way to share the story of Easter and the resurrection of Christ with your children. Learn how to make this traditional Easter treat over at Yummy Healthy Easy

3. Tell Children the Story of Easter with Resurrection Eggs.

The Easter Story Egg or Resurrection Eggs can help you share the story of Easter with your children.

4. Go to church on Easter Sunday.

Take your family to join your community at your local church on Easter Sunday.

History and Origins of Common Easter Symbols and Traditions

Have you ever wondered about the origins of the symbols commonly associated with Easter in America today? Or have you ever asked; why is there an Easter Bunny and Eggs, how did the Easter bunny come to be, or why we have baskets on Easter? Read on–we have uncovered some interesting information to share with you!

History of Easter Traditions and Symbols

The early Christian monks believed that allowing the pre-Christians to continue to honor their traditions and symbols would encourage more of them to convert to Christianity. They feared that people would rebel and hold on to their old beliefs if they were not allowed to carry out the traditions that were important to them.

This is why many of the rituals and customs that are associated with the Spring Equinox have become a part of Easter celebrations today. Easter traditions such as Easter baskets, colored or dyed eggs, and even the Easter Bunny became a way to continue to honor the rituals and traditions that the masses found most meaningful.

Why is there an Easter Bunny and Eggs?

Many people living in America today wonder what Easter has to do with Easter Bunny, and, what Jesus has to do with Easter eggs. In an answer to this, some believe the Easter egg is a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. While others believe that the egg represents the womb from which Christ is reborn.

And there are others who believe eggs came to be associated with Easter because they were forbidden during Lent. Boiling eggs is a great way to keep them through Lent, so they wouldn’t go bad. So in this view, decorating eggs and eating them for Easter was a part of celebrating the completion of penance and fasting.

Another reason people think that the egg came to be associated with Easter arises from pre-Christian spring equinox celebrations where the egg is said to represent fertility and rebirth. The spring equinox is also called the vernal equinox and has long been celebrated as a time of renewal and rebirth since long before Christ was born, or reborn.

As Christianity grew in Western Europe, the Catholic church adopted many ancient Earth-based pagan customs that its new congregants held dear. And many believe that this is the primary reason so many cultures celebrate spring festivals and holidays–like Easter and Passover–on or near the time of the spring equinox.

How did the Easter Bunny Come to Be associated with Easter?

The Easter bunny, also known as the Easter Rabbit or Hare, is an Easter Tradition that originated in Germany. According to legend, the Easter bunny would visit on the evening before Easter. And a common Easter tradition for German children at that time was to leave a carrot out for the Easter bunny.

Like the egg, the bunny was also a symbol of fertility for the pre-Christians. The rabbit, or hare, is associated with Eostre, the goddess of fertility and rebirth in many Earth-based traditions. And, both the spring equinox and Eostre are celebrated in the early spring to honor rebirth and new beginnings.

Ancient festivals were held in honor of Eostre on the same day that Easter falls today. The first Sunday after the first full moon that falls after the spring equinox. I know it’s a mouthful, but it still is the date chosen to be “Easter” to this very day.

Why do we have Baskets on Easter?

Easter baskets originated in ancient Earth-based spring rituals and traditions. Eggs and seedlings are considered to be a symbol of rebirth. Therefore, baskets filled with eggs came to symbolize new beginnings and fertility. Eostre carried a basket of eggs as a symbol of fertility. And the people of Earth would gift baskets of young seedlings as an offering to her.

Because Easter is celebrated on the same day that the pre-Christians celebrated Eostre, Christians reinvented many of the traditions associated with Eostre and the spring equinox and included them in their own Easter Traditions.

Related: Easter Basket Ideas for Kids

Family Easter Traditions

Start a new fun Easter tradition this year with your kids and family. Family Easter Traditions create memories that last a lifetime.

For more information about Easter symbols and traditions, including more about how the Easter Bunny came to be associated with Easter, read this article by HISTORY.

Don’t forget to have a look at this awesome collection of Easter Art Project Ideas. You may also enjoy our spring bucket list for more fun things to do on Easter and during the spring.

Learn more about Rhythms of Play HERE!

Easter Traditions and Fun Things to Do on Easter

Start a new Easter tradition with this list of fun things to do for Easter. This article also includes the history and origins of Easter traditions and symbols commonly associated with Easter such as Easter Eggs, Easter Baskets, and the Easter Bunny.