Easter activities with the kids

You will need

• A long-handled basket and length of ribbon for each child (you can pick these up quite cheaply from florists or stores like IKEA and Wilkinson's)
• A bag of coloured cotton wool balls
• Multi-coloured (or plain) paper
• A thick felt-tipped pen (young children find it easier to read more thickly formed letters)
• A bag of mini eggs or other sweets
• Your children's Easter eggs (if you're playing this on Easter Sunday)

1. It's best to set the hunt up the night before you plan to play. Choose half a dozen places to hide the eggs (avoiding cupboards near radiators so that the chocolate doesn't melt). Write a series of clues that will lead your child to each hiding place, tailoring the difficulty to your child's age. For instance, if you're hiding an egg in the fridge, write something like 'Your yogurts are here where you fancy a snack, but open the door and check at the back'.
2. Place each clue next to the previous 'find', and finish with your child's main chocolate egg (or other Easter present).
3. Line the basket with cotton wool balls and decorate the handle of the basket with colourful ribbon. Encourage your child to collect her finds in the basket.
4. It's a good idea to get the kids involved in the hunt whilst you prepare lunch - but make sure you lay some ground rules about how many eggs may be eaten straightaway and how many must be saved for later.