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These non-candy Easter basket ideas are perfect for toddlers and preschoolers (and elementary aged kids, too!). Lots of Easter basket ideas that your children can use long after Easter – to encourage imaginative play, creativity, and to get ready for summer!
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The older the boys get – the more fun holidays with them becomes. I find myself wanting to celebrate all the things – to create fun and special memories for them as they grow up. It’s fun to do special things together as a family and to get the boys special surprises on holidays.
My parents ALWAYS filled Easter baskets for us growing up. We looked forward to them every year.
Truth be told though, I’ve never actually filled an Easter basket for our boys. They are so young and have so many toys already that the idea of bringing MORE stuff into the house seemed not only unnecessary, but also a little bit overwhelming.
And as much as we love sweet treats, we get our fair share at local egg hunts and from grandparents.
But, now that Little is preschool aged and can start really looking forward to holidays and traditions, I’m finding myself wanting to do a little something special for him and the littlest and I think we’re going to get small Easter baskets for them this year.
Don’t worry – it won’t be anything crazy, it won’t take away from our teaching and celebrating the real meaning of Easter, and it won’t include candy.
If you’re looking for fun, useful, non-candy Easter basket ideas, here’s a list we’ve put together that is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers.
50 Non-Candy Easter Basket Ideas
These ideas are things that preschoolers and toddlers will love, but will also be able to use way past Easter – and it may or may not be a great way to get a head-start on some summer essentials!
Ideas for Outside Play
- Sidewalk Chalk
- Bubbles
- Jump Rope
- Sand Bucket + Shovel
- Gardening Gloves/tools
- Garden Grow-Kit
- Kite
- Bug Catcher
- Magnifying glass
- Bike Helmet (perfect for preschoolers learning to ride a bike or scooter!)
- Jump Rope
- Water Bottle
Ideas for Summer Play
- Beach Towel
- New Sandals
- Water Shoes
- Swim Goggles
- A New Swimsuit
- Puddle Jumper
- Sunscreen
- A Sun Hat
- Sunglasses
- Spring/Summer outfit(s)
Ideas to Encourage Creativity & Imaginative Play
- Crayons
- Markers
- Coloring Books
- Sticker Books – We always grab these at Dollar Tree to keep on hand!
- Finger Paint
- Water Colors
- Doodle Pad
- Water Wow Books – our favorites for mess free “painting” & road trips!
- Construction Paper
- Kids’ Scissors
- Glue Sticks
- Scooping Tools
- Stamps
- Stickers
- Paint brushes
- Art Smock – We use this ALL the time!
- Play Dough
- Pretend food
- Play Animals
- Dress-up Clothes
- Board Books, Easter and Spring themed, or not
- Flash cards, we enjoy these for matching, practicing letters, etc. Lots of fun games to play with flashcards!
- ABC letter magnets
- Cookie cutters – We use these animal cookie cutters for baking cookies, playing with animals, sorting by colors, etc.
- Puzzles
- Legos
- Balls
- Temporary Tattoos
These are so great!! I just finished putting together our Easter basket!
Good for you! We still have some work to do on ours!
The last thing we need in our house is more candy. Lol! Thanks for sharing this list with us at #LiveLifeWell.
Yes – same here!
Great ideas! I think we’ve done most of them in our 14 years of parenthood. I always try to get items that they are going to need anyway since baskets for 5 kids can get expensive!
Thank you! I totally agree on getting things you we’re already going to get and saving it for the Easter basket (or Christmas stocking..)
Non candy ideas are always a favorite! Especially on holidays when we’re all eating sweet treats anyway.
Yes! Like, we’re still having treats!
Yes! These are great ideas!
Thanks so much!
These are all such good ideas. We typically do just one small treat of candy and then outdoor toys! It’s fun to refresh some chalk and outdoor activities as we look ahead to spring.
That’s a good balance! And we also find ourselves needing to refresh the outside toys. This is the perfect time for it, too!
Oh my gosh, such wonderful ideas! Thank you so much for sharing these. We love the candy around here, but I also love filling their baskets with things that will last a little longer! 😉
Thanks for linking up @LiveLifeWell!
Blessings,
Amy
You know, to be honest, we love candy too! I have to be really intentional about non-candy things because I know grandparents will be happy to supply the sweets! 😂
These are such great ideas. Easter can really be an explosion of chocolate, so these are excellent alternatives. Thanks for linking up with Hello Monday! Tanya – The Other Side of the Road
Thanks! Hopefully the list will be helpful for some ideas!