Holy Week is one of the most meaningful—and often most overlooked—times in the Christian year. Between the excitement of Palm Sunday and the joy of Easter morning, there is a sacred journey we’re invited to walk: one that moves through celebration, sorrow, waiting, and ultimately, resurrection hope. Rooted in the events remembered during Holy Week, these days tell the heart of the Christian story.
But for many families and churches, this week can feel busy, confusing, or hard to engage with—especially with children or youth. How do we help people not just hear the story, but experience it? How do we slow down enough to notice what Jesus is doing in each moment—from the waving branches of Palm Sunday to the quiet grief of Good Friday, and the waiting silence of Holy Saturday?
The good news is that it doesn’t have to be complicated.
With a few simple, intentional practices, Holy Week can become a powerful, hands-on experience that invites all ages to reflect, pray, create, and enter more deeply into the story of Jesus. Whether you’re planning for your home, a small group, or a church gathering, these activities are designed to be flexible, meaningful, and rooted in Scripture.
In this post, you’ll find 12 creative Holy Week activities that help bring the story to life—through movement, conversation, prayer, and play. Some are quiet and reflective. Others are interactive and energetic. All are designed to help people of all ages draw closer to Jesus as we journey together toward Easter.
Holy Week Activities for Families and Churches
Here is a collection of Holy Week activities that you can use at church, at school, as a homeschool lesson, or just for fun at home. These activities will take you all the way from Palm Sunday through to Easter Sunday, and each experience offers a different way to enter into the story of Holy Week and Easter.
Pin Jesus on the Donkey (Palm Sunday)
On Palm Sunday, you can turn “pin the tail on the donkey” into “pin Jesus on the donkey”. This fun party game is great for Sunday school, youth group, or at home.
Here is our Pin Jesus on the Donkey game, complete with a free printable Jesus and donkey so that you can just download, print, and play!
Jesus is King Cloak Relay (Palm Sunday)
This is another fun and simple game that you can play with kids and youth of all ages on Palm Sunday. Talk about Jesus riding into Jerusalem as King, and then play a relay game where you have to get your “king” to the finish line, using towels or blankets as cloaks, as fast as possible.
Here is the Jesus is King Cloak Relay Game.
Jello or Paint Foot Washing (Maundy Thursday)
We’ve done a version of this family-friendly foot washing at church and at home in our backyard. This activity is fun and creative and draws in kids and youth, but it can also be surprisingly deep and meaningful, especially as you are washing someone else’s feet.
Some things that we’ve learned from our foot washing adventures:
- If you are going to use Jello, make it sugar free! Otherwise, you have a really big mess that attracts flies (yuck!) on your hands afterwards.
- It makes the event so much deeper and more meaningful if you have a few words to say as you are washing each other’s feet. Our simplest version has just been “Jesus loves you. Go help others.”
- If you set up paper plates of paint at the front of a long piece of butcher paper, you can create a footprint mural that can be hung up at church afterwards.
Get the whole Foot Washing Object Lesson here.
Prayer Stations for Holy Week (Good Friday)
Our church set up these prayer stations for Good Friday one year, and both the kids and the adults loved the experience! Each prayer station walks you through part of Jesus’ journey from his triumphal entry into Jerusalem to the tomb. These prayer stations are tactile and highly sensory, and give participants an opportunity to reflect on the events of Holy Week and our own salvation through the cross.
Find the whole list of prayer stations right here.
After Sunset Easter Celebration (Holy Saturday)
Holy Saturday is a day of waiting—but not forever. In the time of Jesus, days were understood to begin at sunset, not midnight. This comes from the creation rhythm in Genesis: “there was evening, and there was morning…” So by the time the sun set on Holy Saturday, the first day of the week—what we now celebrate as Easter—had already begun.
That means an evening gathering isn’t just practical—it’s deeply biblical.
Idea: Host an Easter Celebration After Sunset
- Begin in quiet or dim lighting to reflect the waiting of the tomb
- Light candles together as a symbol of resurrection hope
- Read the resurrection story (e.g., Matthew 28:1–10)
- Share a joyful meal or dessert (this can feel like a “feast after fasting”)
- Include music, games, or even an egg hunt by flashlight for kids
This helps families and churches physically move from waiting into celebration, mirroring the experience of the early followers of Jesus.
A Simple Family Easter Vigil (Holy Saturday)
If you want something more reflective, Holy Saturday is the perfect time for a gentle, meaningful vigil at home. Traditionally, the Easter Vigil has been one of the most sacred moments of the Christian year—held late at night, full of Scripture, silence, and light.
Idea: Create a Family-Friendly Vigil at Home
- Turn off lights and begin in near darkness
- Light a single candle (Christ the Light)
- Read a few short Scriptures:
- Creation (Genesis 1:1–3)
- A Psalm (like Psalm 27 or 130)
- The tomb (Luke 23:50–56)
- Sit in silence for a minute or two (especially powerful for kids to experience)
- Pray simple prayers like:
- “Jesus, we wait for you.”
- “Bring light into dark places.”
- End by leaving the candle somewhere visible overnight
This creates space for holy stillness—something often missing in both church and home life. It teaches that faith includes waiting, not just celebration.
“In the Tomb” Reflection Experience (Holy Saturday)
Holy Saturday is the one day in the church year where nothing seems to happen. Jesus is in the tomb. The disciples are grieving. Hope feels hidden.
That makes it a powerful opportunity for an experiential activity.
Idea: Create a “Tomb Space” Experience
- Set up a small, quiet space (a room, a tent, or even under a table with blankets for kids)
- Keep it dimly lit or dark
- Place a stone, cloth, or cross inside as a focal point
- Invite people to come in one at a time (or in small groups)
- Provide simple prompts:
- What feels unfinished or uncertain in your life?
- What are you waiting for God to do?
- What feels “buried” right now?
- Optional: write prayers on paper and leave them in the space
This helps people connect their own experiences of waiting, grief, and uncertainty with the story of Jesus. It makes Easter morning feel earned and deeply real.
The Easter Story Scavenger Hunt
This fun and simple scavenger hunt tells the story of Holy Week, include Easter Sunday with Jesus’ resurrection. This activity is similar to hiding resurrection eggs, and can be used as an alternative to resurrection eggs. If you laminate your eggs or hide them in plastic Easter eggs, you can do this activity outside and your eggs will last longer. Simple, download, print, and cut out the Easter eggs to get your scavenger hunt started.
Easter Word Search for Kids
This free, printable Easter word search for kids makes a great complement to an Easter Sunday lesson, or anytime during Holy Week. Find all the words related to Easter and color the resurrection scene. Print as many copies of these as you like and use them in Sunday School, in the children’s corner at church, in busy bags or in an Easter basket, as a classroom Easter activity, or anywhere else you can think of.
Easter Coloring Pages for Kids
These free, printable Easter coloring pages for kids are great for Holy Week, Easter Sunday, or any time of the year. These coloring pages feature religious images, “He is Risen”, and a design your own Easter egg page. Great for little and not-so-little kids!
Printable Easter Escape Rooms for Children and Youth
Printable escape rooms are some of my favourite activities to do at church, with youth groups, and in the classroom. Below, you’ll find two pritnable Easter escape rooms for kids and youth. The Easter morning Bible escape room for youth takes place on Easter morning. It contains slightly harder puzzles and is great for older kids and youth. This escape room is no-prep: just print and play!
The Easter escape room for kids takes place three days after Jesus’ resurrection, and it includes a variety of puzzles to solve – and a few things to cut out and hide around the room.
Both escape rooms help to tell the story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, and they make a great compliment to an Easter lesson. Use in Sunday school, youth group, as a homeschool lesson, at a family Easter party, or anywhere else!
Easter Sunday: Outdoor Easter Scavenger Hunt and Nature Walk
This is a fun and simple activity that you can do as a family or as a church. (This is one of my favorite easter activities for church!) This scavenger hunt features different parts of the story of Holy Week and matching things to find in nature. Each scavenger hunt item has a Bible verse that goes with it. This is a great activity for kids and youth of all ages. Use it at home, at family Easter parties, for youth group, Sunday school, or invite your neighbors on an Easter nature walk! Get your free printable Easter nature walk and scavenger hunt right here.
