Storytime: Easter

This storytime was for a preschool-aged group at my library

Read Aloud Books

The Story of the Easter BunnyWritten by Katherine Tegen, illustrated by Sally Anne Lamber

Ever wonder how the Easter Bunny actually got his job? This book is the answer. It provides a good exercise for the kids to infer what is going on. It's cute for the holiday

The Easter Bunny's AssistantWritten and illustrated Jan Thomas

This is actually a rather hilarious books that the kids LOVED. I mean, what do you do when you have an assistant that makes a stink every time he gets excited? It's also way fun to read because you can get really loud and excited right along with the skunk. It asks questions of the reader, too, that the kids can answer.

Here Comes the Easter CatWritten by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Claudia Rueda

Okay, technically this is a little hard to read as aloud because SO much of the story depends on you interpreting the cat's expressions (he doesn't actually talk, you see). But it's SO funny, and that is why I love it. 

Songs and Rhymes

Hello Song

Song: The Bunny Pokey

(Tune: The Hokey Pokey)

You put your right paws in, (right hand and foot)

you take your right paws out.

You put your right paws in,

and you shake them all about. (even more fun if you have shakers!)

You do the Bunny Pokey,

and you hop all around.

That's what it's all about!

You put your left paws in....

Your put your pink nose in...

You put your cotton tail in...

You put the whole bunny in...

Song: Hippity, Hoppity, Easter Bunny

(Tune: Ten Little Indians)

Hippity, hoppity, Easter Bunny,

Hippity, hoppity, Easter Bunny,

Hippity, hoppity, Easter Bunny,

Hopping all around.

Hopping, hopping, oh so quickly,

Hopping, hopping, oh so quickly,

Hopping, hopping, oh so quickly,

Hopping all around.

Hop to the left and then to the right,

Hop to the left and then to the right,

Hop to the left and then to the right,

Hopping all around.

Hopping high, then hopping higher,

Hopping high, then hopping higher,

Hopping high, then hopping higher,

Hopping all around.

Hopping now much more slowly,

Hopping now much more slowly,

Hopping now much more slowly,

Tired Easter Bunny sits down.

Goodbye Song

Games and Activities

Flannel: Eggs to Dye

This is a really adorable flannel idea that I got from here (where there's a TON of Easter ideas!). Basically, the idea behind it is that the kids have to help the Easter Bunny dye his eggs. This is the story you say along with it:

"Once upon a time the Easter Bunny woke up on Easter morning and he had forgotten to dye the eggs. All he had were white eggs. Yikes! Now he was in trouble. Instead of beautifully colored eggs, they were still white. He sat down, held the white egg in his hand and said, 'Think ,think, think, I wish this egg was PINK!' And suddenly, the egg turned pink!" (Turn the flannel egg over.)

Now you can yourself stretch out the story and incorporate rhymes into the story such as "The bunny then sat on his bed, wishing his egg was red" but I had a lot of fun asking the kids to think of rhymes for each color. So I went on to say:

"The Bunny realized that saying rhymes could get his eggs dyed! Can you think of some rhymes to help him?"

-"bed, bed, bed, I wish this egg was red"
-"fellow, fellow, fellow, I wish this egg was yellow"
-"Moo, moo, moo, I wish this egg was blue"
-"down, down, down, I wish this egg was brown."
-"bean, bean, bean, I wish this egg was green."
-"orange, orange, orange, I wish this egg was orange"
...and so on, flipping the eggs over as we went.

My favorite moment is when I realized that orange and purple really don't have a perfect rhyme, but one girl thoroughly impressed me with...
-"Gerbil, gerbil, gerbil, I wish this egg was purple!"

Game: Eggs and chick!

 
This was a fun game where I hid this little pompom chick I made (one big yellow pompom, orange felt for feet and beak, and two googly eyes) in one of five different colored Easter eggs. Then we said this rhyme:

"Chick, chick where do you hide?

Are you in the ____ egg?

Let's peek inside!"

Where the kids filled in the blank with whatever colored egg they wanted to open. We kept guessing until the found which egg our little chick was in! It's a super fun guessing game that the kids LOVE. 

Craft: Chick in its Egg

I printed out the chicks on yellow paper, the eggs on white. The kids got to decorate the eggs however they wanted, cut everything out, and then put it together with brads. In hindsight, it was a lot of cutting for preschoolers... I would cut all the chicks out first. The kids could do the eggs pretty easy.

Here are the files for coloring:

 

Other Book Ideas

Max's Chocolate Chicken (Max and Ruby)Written and illustrated by Rosemary Wells

Happy Easter, Mouse!Written by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond

Pete the Cat: Big Easter AdventureWritten and illustrated by James Dean and Kimberly Dean

Duck & Goose, Here Comes the Easter Bunny!Written and illustrated by Tad Hills