You will need: space to play; large labels with: ‘women’, ‘cross’ and ‘tomb’ written on, or use pictures for younger children.

• Place the labels around your space, and make sure the children know what each says.
• The children stand in the middle of the room. When the leader calls out a word, the children have to race to that label just as Peter ran to the tomb to see for himself.

Make

Easter garden (C+YP 15 mins)

Tell the story from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday

You will need: trays; some gravel; sand or soil; moss or turf (you can get this on a roll from a garden centre or artificial grass from a craft centre), some small flowers; small twigs or lollipop sticks; sewing thread; small yogurt pots; larger stones.

• While we might think Easter gardens are passé, children do love the repetition of ‘this is what we do on Easter Day’. Having a tradition and ritual is good and you can share the story as the gardens are assembled. If children are present for the first time, it is a lovely way to engage them.
• For each garden, cover the base of the tray with sand or soil, then help the youngsters to create their own garden design: lay the grass or moss over some areas, add some gravel and maybe some small owers.
• Make three crosses by tying the twigs together with thread, and place them at one end of the garden.
• At the other end of the garden, lay a small pot on its side as the tomb, with a large stone leaning against the opening. You can use more soil, sand or greenery to ‘landscape’ your garden.
• Use the gardens to tell the story of Holy Week, including the Last Supper, Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Many children may have missed out on the stories that we tell in Holy Week, and, without these stories, the leap from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday can seem a little strange.

Write

Factfile (C+YP 15 mins)

Find out who Peter was

You will need: Bibles; paper; pens; the Peter & Paul: factfile.

• Peter is a key witness of the resurrection, and he will be a key character in the next few weeks as we look at Acts. This is an opportunity to find out who he was and what his story is.
• You might want to explain that Simon in the Gospel became Peter when Jesus gave him a special task. His new name showed how important he was to Jesus and the Early Church.
• Give the youngsters Bibles, and help them look up the key verses listed below. Talk about what they reveal to us about Peter.
• Ask the youngsters to write a factfile about Peter, using the information they have found out. Key verses: Matthew 10.2, Matthew 14.22-33, Matthew 16.13-18, Mark 1.16-18, Luke 22.54-63, Luke 24.1-12, John 18.1-11.

Make

Peter’s postcard (C+YP 10 mins)

Summarise Peter’s actions

You will need: postcard-size cards, pens, colouring pens or pencils, copies of this week's story.

• Give each person a postcard. Ask them to think about the events of today’s reading. They may need to reread the postcard from Peter’s story.
• Invite them to summarise the events into one or two sentences on their postcard. They might decorate the back of the postcard and older children might add ‘Wish you were here’ to their illustrations.
• These cards might be sent to people who are housebound and unable to join you at church on this special day.

Draw

Storyboards (C+YP 15 mins)

Fill in the gaps in the story between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday

You will need: copies of the storyboard template, one per person; felt pens; Bibles or Easter storybooks.

• Some people miss out on the events of Holy Week, but without them, the move from Palm Sunday to the resurrection doesn’t make sense.
• Give each person a copy of the template that has Palm Sunday and the resurrection already drawn in. They are going to ll in the gaps.
• Read or tell the story of Holy Week and Easter together, making sure to include the events listed below, and give the youngsters a chance to talk about what happened in the days leading up to Easter Sunday.
• Get the youngsters to fill in the empty squares on their storyboards: the Last Supper, praying and the arrest in the garden, the trial, and the crucifixion.

Pray

Wow! (C+YP 5 mins)

Give thanks for the moments when we are amazed

You will need: large pieces of poster paper, pens.

• Talk again about the ‘wow’ moments you shared in the Gathering activity. Peter was amazed to see the empty tomb. He didn’t understand it, but knew it was something special.
• Invite the youngsters to draw on the large poster pictures of some of those things you identified as ‘wow’ moments, then thank God for them together.