Free Easter Sunday School Lesson for Kids

Teaching kids about the death of Jesus? Whether you’re wondering how to explain the crucifixion to a child at home or looking for creative ways to teach the crucifixion in your children’s ministry at church, this free Easter Sunday School lesson for kids makes it easy to teach about the death of Jesus! Perfect if you’re looking for a free Easter curriculum for children’s church ministry. Scroll down for your free Easter Sunday School PDF lesson plan.

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Need a Free Easter Sunday School Lesson?

I just spent the better part of an hour searching online for creative ways to teach the crucifixion to kids on Easter Sunday.

To be honest, I was shocked at how little is available–especially for small churches with small budgets. Even though teaching kids about the death of Jesus is SO important, it’s hard to find Easter curriculum for children’s church or Sunday School without paying an arm and a leg for it.

• What if you’re just wondering how to explain the crucifixion to a child with a straightforward, easy-to-understand Bible lesson plan?
• What if you want to find creative ways to teach teach the crucifixion without breaking the bank?
• What if you merely want an easy, printable Easter Sunday School lesson plan with simple but creative visual aids?

I’ve got just the thing for you…

Free Easter Sunday School Lesson PDF

Because I struggled to find free Easter children’s ministry resources, I decided to give you a FREE printable Easter Sunday School lesson PDF today!

This Bible lesson plan on the death of Jesus comes from “Risen,” my full Easter curriculum for children’s church or Sunday School. Learn more about the “Risen” curriculum HERE.

If you’re looking for a simple but creative way to present the Easter story for kids, give this printable Easter lesson a try.

Included in your free Easter lesson printable:

• A quick lesson outline
• A short “Supplies Needed” list
• Simple lesson prep instructions
• A detailed, step-by-step lesson plan (with plenty of fun ideas to keep kids interested!)

Lesson Outline

1. Introduction: He was sent to die
   • How He died (Matthew 27:33-54)
   • Why He died (Romans 5:8)
   • What His death means for us (Romans 3:26)
2. Conclusion: How will you respond to His death?

Lesson Prep

• Prep the egg basket:
  • Fill the eggs.
    • Place the small baby figurine in the first egg
    • Place the small cross in the second egg
    • Place the heart in the third egg
    • Place the bandana in the fourth egg.
  • You need to open the eggs in order during your lesson, so make sure the eggs are different colors (and write down the order of colors), or otherwise mark them so that you know which egg is which.
  • Place the eggs in the basket.
• Print the pages for this lesson from the “Risen” Visual Aids Booklet.

Full Lesson Plan

Introduction: He was sent to die

Hold up the “Why?” printout and ask the kids:

Do you know why Jesus came to earth? What was His purpose for coming?

Use tape to attach the “Why?” printout to the wall behind you. Then hold up your basket of eggs and say:

Today we’re going to discover why Jesus came to earth—and, believe it or not, this basket of eggs is going to help us do it!

Invite a child to come up and open the first egg from your basket, revealing the baby. Thank the child and send him back to his seat.

Hold up the baby as you briefly review Jesus’ birth and life. Then set the opened egg on a table or on the floor behind you. Set the baby visible to the kids in front of the egg.

1. How He died (Matt. 27:33-54)

Invite another child up to open the second egg from your basket, revealing the cross. Thank the child and send her back to her seat.

Hold up the cross and describe from Matthew 27:33-54 how Jesus died on the cross. As you give the account of Jesus’ death, be sure to emphasize the following moments:

In Matt. 27:46 (NKJV) Jesus cried out, “Eli, eli, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

• Explain what “forsaken” means (abandoned, left behind, deserted).
• Help the kids realize that God actually turned away from Jesus when He was on the cross.

Instruct the kids to cup their hands around their mouths and cry out together with you, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

In Matt. 27:50 (NKJV) the Bible says that Jesus “yielded up His spirit.”

• Explain what “yielded” means (send away, give up).
• Point out that no one forced Jesus to give up His life; He chose to give it up.

Cup your hands together and lift them up while looking upward, as if you’re offering something up to the ceiling. Instruct the kids to copy your movement and say together with you, “Jesus yielded up His spirit.”

According to Matt. 27:51 (NKJV) a weird thing happened when Jesus died—“the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom…”

• Explain that the temple veil separated people from the “holy place,” which symbolized God’s presence.
• Point out that the temple veil was very tall and very thick; no human being could have ripped it.

Raise your hands together above your head, as if you were holding up a curtain, and then make a ripping motion and sound effect. Then have the kids make the same movement and sound effect together with you.

Related: Easy Easter Bible Activity for Kids

After you have shared the entire story of Jesus’ death from Matthew 27:33-54, set the opened egg on a table or on the floor behind you. Set the cross visible to the kids in front of the egg.

Then summarize all 3 of the points you emphasized, doing the motions together with your kids:

1. Cup your hands around your mouth and cry, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
2. Lift up your hands and say, “Jesus yielded up His spirit.”
3. Tear an imaginary curtain, and make a ripping sound with your mouth.

2. Why He died (Rom. 5:8)

Tell the kids:

Those are the facts about how Jesus died, but the real question is why?

Point to the “Why?” printout on the wall behind you and add:

Why was Jesus forsaken by God? Why did He give up His life? Why did the curtain rip in half when He died?

For the Rest of the Lesson…

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