Easter activities for 15-month-olds

Easter ideas for 15-month-olds

Easter arrives with spring things a toddler can hold and hunt for: eggs that open and shut, baskets to fill, new grass and flowers to touch, and baby animals to name and copy. An egg hunt is a ready-made game of searching, carrying and counting, and it works just as well with empty plastic eggs and no sweets. Family meals and visits add new people to greet and new routines to share. The 6 ideas below overlap the 12-17-month band, best fit for 15 months first.

How to do Scarf Inside the Egg

Tuck a thin scarf into a large plastic egg with a corner poking out, and let your child pull it free, pull the halves apart and push them shut again. Words to model: pull, open, shut, more. Use eggs at least as big as a hen's egg, and throw away any that crack into sharp edges.

1. 1

   Stuff the scarf into an egg and close it so one corner sticks out.

2. 2

   Hand it to your child and watch what they try first: shaking, mouthing or pulling.

3. 3

   If they need an idea, tug the corner a little and say "Pull!"

4. 4

   Show how to pull the halves apart, "Open!", then push them together, "Shut!"

5. 5

   Hide the scarf again and pause, so your child can ask for more with a look, sound or sign.

More Easter ideas at 15 months

• Wobbly Egg Ramp Roll

  Roll plastic eggs down a low ramp and watch them wobble off in odd directions, then fetch them and send them down again. Ages 12-17 months, 4-10 min, indoors. Start: prop one end of the ramp on a book so it slopes gently. Say: ready, go, roll, wobble. Safety: Keep the ramp low and the play area away from stairs.

• Spring Flower Sniff Walk

  Take a slow spring walk to touch soft petals and new grass, sniff a flower and name whatever your child points at. Ages 12-17 months, 5-12 min, outdoors. Start: walk at your child's pace and stop wherever they stop. Say: flower, sniff, soft. Safety: Watch for bees on flowers, and keep petals, leaves, bulbs and berries out of mouths.

• Egg Basket Fill and Dump

  Scatter large plastic eggs on the floor and let your child drop them into a basket, carry it a few steps and tip them all out again. Ages 12-17 months, 4-10 min, indoors. Start: drop one egg into the basket yourself and say "In!" Say: in, out, dump. Safety: Choose a light basket with no wire ends, splinters or ribbon handles.

• Egg Shaker Band

  Shake toddler-safe egg shakers fast and slow, loud and soft, while you sing, and freeze together when the music stops. Ages 12-17 months, 3-8 min, indoors. Start: give your child one shaker and keep one for yourself. Say: shake, stop, go. Safety: Do not make shakers from plastic eggs filled with rice or beans; the filling is a choking hazard if the egg opens.

• Bunny Ears Copycat

  Be bunnies together: wiggle your nose, flop hand ears, nibble pretend carrots and bounce, with your child copying one move at a time. Ages 12-17 months, 2-6 min, indoors or out. Start: put your hands up as bunny ears and say "I'm a bunny!" Say: bunny, boing, nose. Safety: Bounce on carpet or grass with space around you, away from table corners.

Easter safety for 15-month-olds

Seasonal hazards first, then the precautions of the ideas on this page. Stay within arm's reach whenever water, food or small decorations are involved.

• Plastic eggs should be at least the size of a hen's egg, and anything inside must be too big to fit through a toilet-paper tube: no jelly beans, mini eggs, coins or tiny toys.
• Keep baskets of candy and chocolate up high; hard candy, jelly beans, nut treats and foil wrappers are choking risks.
• Swap shredded plastic basket grass for a cloth or paper napkin, since toddlers mouth and swallow the strands.
• Refrigerate hard-boiled eggs used for decorating or hunts and do not eat any that sat out for hours; wash hands after touching raw eggs.
• Before an outdoor hunt, walk the yard and remove sharp objects, pet waste and mushrooms, and keep spring bulbs and plants such as daffodils away from mouths.
• Use eggs at least as big as a hen's egg, and throw away any that crack into sharp edges.
• Keep the ramp low and the play area away from stairs.
• Watch for bees on flowers, and keep petals, leaves, bulbs and berries out of mouths.

Easter words for 15-month-olds

Easter books to share

Kinds of books to look for at the library. At 15 months, sturdy board books with one clear picture per page work best; let your child turn the pages.

• Lift-the-flap books where animals or eggs hide under the flaps
• Board books about baby farm animals and the sounds they make
• Simple books about planting a seed and watching it grow
• Touch-and-feel books with soft, fluffy and smooth spring textures

Easter gift and basket ideas for 15-month-olds

Open-ended things that fit 12-17 months; check every part against the choking-size rule (nothing that fits through a toilet-paper tube).

• A sturdy basket or small bag for carrying and collecting
• A set of large plastic eggs to open, shut and hide, without fillings
• A small watering can and a pot to grow something together
• A soft bunny or chick toy for pretend care
• Thick sidewalk chalk for older toddlers' first warm days outside

Library activities that suit Easter

Everyday activities from our library that fit 15-month-olds and the season's hunting, sorting and counting.

• Does It Roll? Ramp Test

  Your toddler sends a ball, a block and a lid down a tilted baking sheet and discovers that round things roll while flat-sided things slide or stop. Why now: practices colors and shapes and sorting. 5-10 min, 2 min prep.

• Count-Along Picture Book

  While sharing a familiar picture book, you count small groups of things on a page, pause, and let your toddler point, turning numbers into a shared game. Why now: practices counting. 5-10 min, no prep.

• Towel Roll Surprise

  A toy disappears inside a rolled-up towel and your child unrolls it to find it again, practicing object search and a two-handed way to solve a problem. Why now: practices finding hidden objects. 5-12 min, no prep.

• One for You, One for Me Snack

  At a seated snack, you share soft pieces one at a time between your plate and your toddler's, saying 'one for you, one for me' and counting together. Why now: practices counting. 5-10 min, no prep.

• Two Lumps Under the Blanket

  Hide a ball under one of two lumps in a blanket while your child watches, then let them search; tracking which lump hides it builds memory for locations. Why now: practices finding hidden objects. 3-8 min, no prep.

More seasonal ideas