Primary Times - the definitive what’s on and where to go family guide of activities and events for children of primary school age. Things to do with your kids during the school holidays including arts and craft activities, music and theatre for children, parties, competitions, days out, and family attractions along with term time drama schools, dance classes, after school clubs and sports activities. Things to do at a place near you!
Easter events and activities for children in Suffolk
It’s spring. One minute the heavens open and our multi coloured umbrellas are being splattered with fat droplets of rain, whilst the next we’re bathing in gloriously warm sunshine and slapping on the sunscreen.
This often random assortment of weather can make it rather difficult to plan days out with the kids, so we’ve combined the two and have devised a set of activities which can be enjoyed – come rain or shine!
Rainy Days
Emulate the British Bake Off
Baking is a pleasant activity for a rainy day that easily passes an hour or two. Recreate perfect teatime treats with the kids who will thoroughly enjoy stirring the cake mix (and perhaps will enjoy a taste of it too!) They will relish the thought of devouring the result of their labour afterwards. You may wish to replace those gooey cakes, and even chocolate eggs, with a healthier alternative – take a peek at www.nhs.uk/change4life for some healthy snack ideas and recipes.
Learn about the Weather
According to recent research, 94% of the British respondents admitted to having spoken about the
weather in the past six hours! So whilst we’re on the subject, why not involve the children too and keep a long lasting British tradition alive! Start by inspiring the kids to gaze skywards, (averting their eyes from direct sunlight) to identify different types of clouds.
The Met Office has a superb Cloudspotting guide packed with images, pronunciations and videos - www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/clouds/cloud-spotting-guide.
The website also contains amusing experiments such as how to make a rain gauge, how to make a weather observation and how to make a tornado or a cloud in a jar. So, instead of talking about the weather with the kids learn more about it - just visit www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/weather-for-kids
Pay a visit to the cinema or theatre
Treat the kids to a film at your nearby cinema or settle down to watch a family friendly matinee performance happening at a local theatre. Look out for those last minute tickets that are sometimes sold at reduced prices.
Get creative
Children love to indulge in a spot of creative fun as they sit by the kitchen table cutting, pasting and painting on a rainy day. An abundance of inventive ideas and inspiring creations can be found on Pinterest - https://uk.pinterest.com or take a look at the Primary Times website www.primarytimes.net or at www.primarytimes.tv – kid’s activities.
Go out, to go back indoors!
Fortunately, most British attractions are well-equipped for the wet weather and offer a wealth of indoor play activities. Soft indoor play frames are a blessing for highly energised children, whilst attractions such as museums, aquariums, libraries and cultural centres will provoke interest and educate. Sports centres and swimming pools are also enormously popular with visitors on rainy days.
Jump in muddy puddles!
TV favourite Peppa Pig loves jumping around in muddy puddles and many youngsters would agree this really is a fun activity! Sometimes there’s nothing better than stepping outside draped head to toe in waterproofs to brave the elements. So pull on the wellies and let the kids splash in the puddles - Peppa Pig style!
Fine Days
Go on an egg hunt… with a twist
A natural inclination on a fine spring day, close to Easter, is to venture outdoors and occupy the children with some seasonal pursuits.
Try to crack the clues and codes on an organised Easter egg trail or egg hunt, or add some spice and variety to any individually organised egg hunt by choosing to hold it in a fun location such as a local park or in the sand dunes on the beach.
You could also choose to hold some whacky egg and spoon races on the beach, have a stab at sand sledging, fly kites or scramble along the shoreline in pursuit of shells and storm-battered driftwood. Consume a warm snack after hours of play by taking along a flask filled with hot soup or hot dogs.
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Spring is a great time of year to introduce children to the pleasures of gardening. A little encouragement will go a long way and there’s no reason why a healthy balance between those outdoor toys and your colourful rockeries can’t co-exist.
Allocate a patch of the garden just for the children. Then, off you go to the garden centre together, to choose plants and seeds. By sowing seeds, children learn how plants grow, what threatens them and what is needed for them to survive. Most children like plants with bright colours such as Pansies, Petunias, Marigolds, Daffodils and Sunflowers.
Don’t forget: The clocks go forward…
This year British Summertime starts on Sunday 27 March – that’s Easter Sunday! Don’t forget to wind the clocks forward by one hour. That means you have one less hour to eat those eggs! Visit www.gov.uk/when-do-the-clocks-change
Easter Nests
Ingredients:
200g milk chocolate
85g shredded wheat
Mini chocolate eggs
Method: Break the chocolate into a small bowl and place it over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, trickle the chocolate over the crumbled shredded wheat. Stir well to combine. Next, gently spoon the chocolate mixture evenly into 12 cupcake cases. Create a nest shape in the centre by using the back of a teaspoon. Position 3 mini chocolate eggs on top of each nest before placing them in the fridge for around 2 hours.
Easter Steam Up at Mid-Suffolk Light Railway Museum
Steam over to the Mid-Suffolk Light Railway Museum on 27 and 28 March to enjoy some egg-cellent Easter themed activities for children. During this Easter themed weekend, Suffolk’s award winning, and only standard gauge preserved railway, will be offering vintage train rides and additional children’s entertainment. For opening times and prices visit www.MSLR.org.uk
Spring Steam-Up
Spring may feel like it’s been a long time coming but the Long Shop Museum in Leiston will reopen in style by launching the 2016 season on Saturday 26 March with a fantastic steam and activity day from 10am-5pm.
There will be large and small engines in steam, live music and a variety of hands-on activities for those of all ages and interests.
During the Easter holiday there will be a family trail for only 50p - help the chicks find their corn and receive a chocolate treat! Plus, don’t miss the first drop-in Workshop Wednesday all about ‘Magic Materials’ as part of the Arts Council England Funded Making It Work Project, with hands-on experiments and fun activities to celebrate science.
From Tuesday 22 March the Museum will be open 7 days per week throughout the school Easter holidays. For details call 01728 832189 or visitwww.longshopmuseum.co.uk
Eggcellent Easter Trail at Alton Water
From Friday 25 March to Monday 28 March, there will be an ‘eggcellent’ activity which involves walking amid the beautiful surroundings of Alton Water. Young super sleuths can use the special Easter clues to navigate the trail and ultimately, receive a free Creme Egg on successful completion of the trail. (Whilst stocks last - first come, first served). For details ring 01473 589105
Swing over to Go Ape this Spring
Set in the heart of Britain’s largest lowland pine forest at Thetford, Go Ape’s first ever course is centred around 30 miles of bike and walking trails from which to explore 50,000 acres of forest. The mother of all of Go Ape’s courses features a classic Tree Top Adventure, Forest Segways and Tree Top Junior.
The Tree Top Junior Adventure is designed especially for Mini Tarzans so why not release your little monkeys this March and April onto a Go Ape course constructed just for them. For details visit www.goape.co.uk/days-out/thetford
Giggle, laugh and splash at Pleasurewood Hills
Set within 50 acres of enclosed coastal parkland and just 10 minutes from the seaside town of Great Yarmouth, Pleasurewood Hills Family Theme Park has so much to do and explore. Visitors can ride the Marble Madness rollercoaster or jump on-board Wipeout - the tallest, fastest and most extreme roller coaster in the East of England, or get soaked on the Timber Falls log flume, enjoy some family fun in the Kiddie Zone or simply relax and enjoy fantastic shows with The Sea Lions and our Playful Parrots.
There’s a wide selection of places to eat and drink which include the relaxing The Railway Tea Rooms and an alfresco style Terrace Café/Bar - the Merry Mariner. So, whether you’re an adrenaline thrill 
ride junkie or looking for an exciting fun packed day out for the entire family, Pleasurewood Hills has it all. Visitwww.pleasurewoodhills.com
Meet Cedric the Easter Bunny at Bewilderwood
This Easter holiday, from 19 March to 10 April, Cedric the Easter Bunny invites all the family to BeWILDerwood to take part in the Bouncing Boggle Bunny Egg Hunt. Bounce your way down the bunny tunnel to meet Cedric in the Big Boggle-built Egg, before hopping over to search for your special prize.
You can even become a Pesky Bunny by visiting the Big Hat and making a Boggle Bunny outfit. Follow the egg trail to find answers to the clues, climb and clamber through the treetops, and settle down to listen to the tales of Cedric the Easter Bunny and his friends at the story-telling stage. For more information visit www.bewilderwood.co.uk or call 01603 783900
Did you know?
- Easter chocolate sales make up 10% of Britain's annual spending on chocolate.
- The UK chocolate Easter Egg market is worth in excess of £220 million.
- If you laid all the Cadbury Creme Eggs made in a year from end to end, it would stretch from Bourneville, Birmingham to Sydney, Australia.
- Easter is the second most popular time of the year for eating chocolate.
- J.S. Fry of Bristol produced the first chocolate eggs in 1873.
Why is Easter on a different date each year?
Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the full moon that happens on or after the Spring Equinox on 21 March. That means Easter can be celebrated at any time between 22 March and 25 April.
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