Smarties, Easter is my favorite time of year! It evokes so many happy memories from my childhood. It was the day we got all dressed up in our Sunday’s Best-BEST! Church was overflowing with people. If you didn’t arrive early, it was standing room only. I didn’t mind, I loved watching all the people arrive. After mass, we would all go to a family brunch. Once we were done, we would go home and find our Easter Baskets waiting for us – it was a big deal to receive the hollow Chocolate Bunny in those days!
Now that I am a mom, I want to continue my family’s tradition of celebrating the Easter Holiday. However, last year I noticed something was missing. There was a disconnect. My kids had listened to the story of Easter. They could tell you who, what, where… They weren’t connecting it to the actual day. It was too abstract. They only thing they were relating to Easter was the Bunny and the Eggs. In order to teach my children the true meaning of Easter, I knew I needed to find a teaching tool that would incorporate each learning modality (hands-on, visual, auditory) to create dimension in their little brains.
This year, I introduced my twins to two things (in this order).
“This family activity includes a hardcover book and 7 wooden nesting Eggs. The Story Egg™ book begins on Palm Sunday and ends on Easter Sunday. Each Egg within the set of nesting Eggs has a story that relates to a particular day in Holy Week, leading up to Easter Sunday. As the children open each Egg they will discover the Easter story and the journey of Jesus through Holy week.”
The Lion of Judah:
“This epic heart-warming story intertwines humor and troublesome situations, while delievering foundational messages with gentleness and breath-taking beauty. For Judah, a lamb with the heart of a lion, it is a story of courage and faith that will lead you to the pivotal voyage of hope, which started 30 years ago in Bethlehem, once upon a stable.” ~ The Dove Foundation Review
It is important to start with The Easter Story Egg™. It is more comprehensive in it’s presentation of Easter. The Star Kids Company did an amazing job – no detail is missed. (I wish I had this when I was teaching Catholic School!) You can read this book in segments according to each day of Holy week: Palm Sunday, House of Prayer Monday, Teacher of Love Tuesday, Give and Take Wednesday, Last Supper Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday. We started by reading the entire book on Palm Sunday and re-visited the individual stories throughout the week.
At the end of the week, we watched the movie, The Lion of Judah, the twins were able to fill in the missing pieces (the movie isn’t as comprehensive) It was amazing to watch their engagement. They knew what was going to happen next. During the entire movie, they would open each nesting egg according to the timeline of events – insert 5 year old frustration when the Last Supper was not in the movie – I was so impressed that they recognized this! In this moment, my heart smiled. My twins understand the true meaning of Easter. My holiday feels complete.
*If I had to choose between the two items – I would, hands down – most definitely – without a doubt pick The Easter Story Egg™! #smartyapproved
You can purchase the The Easter Story Egg™ at the following locations:
The Easter Story Egg™ Website
Shephard’s Fold Bookstore – Rock Hill, SC
The Teachers Box – Gastonia NC
It’s Personal – Columbia, SC
The Nook – Wilson, NC
Dalton’s Christian Bookstore – Franklin, NC
You can purchase the DVD or stream The Lion of Judah:
Watch on Amazon
Watch on Netflix
Target
Happy Easter, Smarties! XO
