Kids absolutely love the idea of a hunt for some sort of treasure. So while
you may do the traditional egg-dyeing, you may want to have some other
“loot” to put into plastic eggs including some edible goodies.
Spring will have sprung when Easter arrives this year on Sunday, April 21.
Yet, here in the DMV you never know whether you can have your Easter egg
hunt indoors or outdoors.
Here are some fresh, new ideas for planning your 2019 Easter Egg Hunt:
- Secret Message Hunt
Use plastic eggs. Print out short messages for each egg that ask the kids
to do a task such as quack like a duck or hop like a bunny. When they have
found 10 eggs and done all 10 tasks they’re eligible to hunt for their
basket. Hand them a message that is the clue they need to find it.”
- Team Hunt for a Large Group of Kids
Divide your kids into two teams. Put mismatched plastic egg halves
together. Allow a given amount of time for everyone to find as many
mismatched eggs as they can. Then allow the teams to gather together to put
the correct colors together. Each egg will have a number inside indicating
how many pieces of candy each team member receives. (Think jelly beans or
small candy eggs). The team with the most color-correct whole eggs is the
winner and earns an additional treat (maybe a small Easter toy such as a
chick or bunny or a larger candy treat).
- Indoor Hunt With Clues
This works well for families who find themselves inside on Easter morning.
Write out clues that take the children to various places in the home where
they’ll find the next clue. Use at least five clues and let the kids find
their baskets at the end of the hunt.
- Easter Bunny Track Hunt
For younger children, create “bunny tracks” out of pink paper and leave
them where the little ones can follow to find a series of treats.
- The Golden Egg Hunt
Do your usual favorite hunt, but add an additional treasure. Purchase a
large, gold egg and fill it with something special. It could contain a
treasure for the finder only, or a treat for the whole family such as a
trip to a favorite restaurant or park or tickets to a new movie.
- Easter Egg Pinata
Buy or make an Easter piรฑata and provide masks and a stick to open it.
You can make a piรฑata by using an inflated balloon and paper mache or
decorate a white bag to simulate an egg. Kids enjoy the escalating
anticipation as the piรฑata begins to crack and shower them with candy.
- Glow-in-the-Dark Hunt
Use glow sticks and larger plastic eggs to create an indoor “in the dark”
hunt. You may choose to have the kids find a certain number of glowing eggs
to “buy” their basket.
- Hunt for Your Easter Brunch Hunt
This one takes some work. Fill plastic eggs with tiny bits of brunch items:
fruit pieces, tiny muffins, snack crackers, cheese cubes, hard-boiled eggs,
cereal and the like. Add some hot cocoa and enjoy.
- A Puzzling Hunt
Buy a blank puzzle at your local craft store. Draw a Happy Easter message
for your kids, giving them the information they need to find their basket.
Place puzzle pieces in plastic eggs and let the fun begin. When the puzzle
is assembled they follow the clue to their Easter goodies.
- Make it a Relay Hunt
With a larger group of children, divide into teams and have one person from
each team hunt for a given amount of time, return to tag the next player
and continue until all the kids have had a turn. Provide some sort of extra
treat for the winning team. (Be sure all the kids get a fair amount of
treats after the hunt.)
- The More Than Candy Hunt
Have some of the plastic eggs contain small toys or tickets to receive the
toys after the hunt. Toys might include balls, tiny bunnies or chicks,
finger puppets or anything else appropriate for the kids in your group.
Easter egg hunts are just another way to create healthy family fun. Make
sure the younger members of the family get a fair chance to find the
treasures. Older kids can pair up with younger ones to help make this
happen.
Whichever hunt you choose will be a highlight of your Easter celebration.
Enjoy.