Easter

Multiplication Practice with Jelly Bean Arrays

March 10, 2020 By Terri Thompson

Have you ever worked with arrays? It’s a great way to visualize multiplication and these Jelly Bean Arrays are a fun way to learn.

So, today we’re grabbing our Easter candy and having some fun. Are you ready to learn?

Learn about and practice multiplication with Jelly Bean Arrays. This fun Easter math activity is a great way to practice multiplying and is so much fun.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Arrays are a great way to describe a multiplication problem and help you “see” how to get the answer.

It’s a great way to visualize multiplication. And it’s another one of those things I didn’t learn in school, but my children are. I’m glad they are!

Use jelly beans to practice multiplication arrays.

How Do You Use Arrays In Multiplication?

First of all, let’s define an array. Quite simply, it’s a visual representative of a multiplication problem (at least in our case) using objects arranged in rows and columns.

Take the multiplication problem, 2 x 4. The first number, two, represents the number of rows. The second number, four, represents the number of columns.

So, for 2 x 4, we would create two rows with four objects each.

Jelly Bean Arrays - a fun way to learn about multiplication

What Else Does the Array Show?

In the above photo, you’ve got three rows and four columns. It represents 3 x 4. Or, 4 + 4 + 4. Can you see that?

And the answer to both of those math problems is twelve.

Arrays can tell you a lot!

Jelly Bean Arrays

Now that we have an understanding of arrays, let’s grab our jelly beans and have some fun.

Our set-up was simple, I just used an index card to display my arrays and grabbed a pile of jelly beans.

Note: You can do this any time of the year. Just use M&Ms or Skittles instead of jelly beans.

The only other thing you need are some multiplication problems.

Let’s start solving!

Multiplication practice with jelly bean arrays

How do you solve 3 x 2?

You’d make 3 rows with 2 jelly beans in each row. Now let’s solve. Count up the jelly beans and you’ll find 6. 3 x 2 = 6

Let’s flip the problem around? Would 2 x 3 look the same as 3 x 2?

The answer is the same, but the array would look different. To make an array for 2 x 3, you’d have 2 rows with 3 jelly beans in each row.

Keep using jelly bean arrays to work on all your multiplication problems. I love how this helps you see exactly how to solve a multiplication problem.

This is such a great math tool!

More Fun Math Activities

Learn your multiplication facts with this fun and easy to make Paper Plate Multiplication Practice Activity

Visualize skip counting with this fun STEAM activity – Math Art: Skip Counting Pointillism

Hands-On Perimeter Activity: Perimeter Lab is a fun way to practice measuring and calculating perimeter using real objects.

These Patterned Multiplication Circles at Lemon Lime Adventures are another great way to visualize multiplication.

More Multiplication Resources

It can take a lot of work to memorize multiplication facts, so it’s great to have a variety of games and activities to help your kids.

Here are some fun ideas to consider:

Do More Activities With Your Family

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Easter Play Dough Ideas for Kids

April 2, 2019 By Terri Thompson

Play dough has always been a tried and true way to keep my kids occupied, It’s fun, creative, and so open-ended.

That’s why I love all of these great Easter play dough ideas. It might be a fun new recipe or a great creative invitation. They’re all so different and your kids will love them.

Your kids will have fun with all of these awesome Easter play dough ideas inspired by Easter eggs, chicks, bunnies, and even Easter candy.

Fun Easter Play Dough Activities

Whether you’re looking for some fun printable play dough mats, a fun learning activity, or you just have an overabundance of Easter candy, you’ll find some great ideas here.

Check out the list and find a few ideas to try. They all look like so much fun!

Easter Play Dough Ideas

Have some springtime fun with these awesome Easter play dough ideas for kids.

The Best Marshmallow Peeps Play dough Recipe

Photo Credit: www.naturalbeachliving.com

Turn this sweet Easter treat into a fun play dough with this recipe.

Edible Playdough with Glitter - Easy and quick recipe

Photo Credit: www.steampoweredfamily.com

You can also turn Peeps into a fun (and edible) glittery play dough.

Loose parts Easter egg decorating station

Photo Credit: nurturestore.co.uk

Pull out some fun beads and other loose parts to decorate play dough Easter Eggs.

Easter Play Dough Counting Mats

Photo Credit: www.pre-kpages.com

Practice counting with these fun printable Easter counting mats.

Easter Bunny Play Dough

Photo Credit: www.notimeforflashcards.com

These Easter Bunny play dough treats would be a fun little gift to give.

Easter Play Dough Mats - Free Printable

Photo Credit: picklebums.com

Have fun creating with these printable play dough mats.

Invitation to Play: Playdough Easter Eggs

Photo Credit: www.teach-me-mommy.com

Your kids will have fun making Easter eggs with this play dough invitation.

Spring Chick Play Dough Invitation

Photo Credit: www.fantasticfunandlearning.com

Make cute play dough chicks with this fun idea.

Carrot Orange Play-dough Recipe | Non Candy Basket Idea

Photo Credit: www.thatswhatchesaid.net

Have fun creating with this orange carrot play dough recipe.

Spring Tree Play Dough Invitation

Photo Credit: www.fantasticfunandlearning.com

Make beautiful spring trees with this play dough invitation.

So, what do you think? Which of these fun Easter ideas are you going to try?

My must-have play dough resources:

If you want a fun Easter activity, but don’t have time to do any of these play dough activities, here are some great things to have one hand:

Do you want to do more activities with your family?

Egg Carton Easter Basket Craft

March 20, 2019 By Terri Thompson

I recently found myself staring at a pile of egg cartons and wondering how we could use them. Certainly there’s an Easter craft project we could try?

What could we do? After a few moments of creative thinking, I had an a-ha moment. They would be perfect for making a cute little Egg Carton Easter Basket or two.

Recycle your empty egg cartons into this simple and pretty Egg Carton Easter Basket craft for kids. It's so much fun to make!

This project takes very few supplies, it’s easy to prep, and it’s a lot of fun to make. In fact, you probably already have everything you need to get started on this easy egg carton Easter craft.

So, go grab your supplies and let’s get started crafting.

Disclosure: CraftProjectIdeas.com sent us some of the supplies we used in this craft. All ideas are our own. There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Supplies needed for this Easter basket craft

Egg carton
Craft paint
Sharp pencil
2 pipe cleaners (fuzzy craft sticks) for each basket

How to make an Egg Carton Easter Basket

We divided an egg carton into sections of four cups apiece.

The egg cartons we have tear easily. If you don’t have the same type of carton, you may have to get out the scissors.

We each took a section of the egg carton and started painting.

I got out as many pretty pastel colors of paint as I had, but feel free to use any color.

Try stripes, polka dots, or just solid colors. Any pattern will look pretty on the baskets.

While waiting for the paint to dry, we twisted two different colors of pipe cleaner together.

Once they were twisted, we curved them into a u-shape to make a handle.

This next step needs to be done by an adult. If you’re working with a large group, you can do this step before painting.

Before we put in the handle, I used the sharp pencil to poke a hole in each side of the egg carton.

We then put the ends of the pipe cleaners into each hole, curving up the ends and twisting it around itself.

This simple Egg Carton Easter Basket craft for kids makes a fun and pretty little container to hold your plastic eggs or dyed Easter Eggs.

That’s it. You’ve finished your egg carton Easter basket!

This Easter basket craft was so simple and fun. We filled our baskets with plastic eggs and added them to our Easter decorations. They’re so pretty.

If you find yourself with a few extra egg cartons, turn them into Easter baskets!

Pair this craft with a great Easter book

It’s so much fun to pair a craft with a fun book. And, since you need to wait for your paint to dry, it’s the perfect time for a quick story time. Here are some great Easter books that would pair perfectly with this craft:

Do you want to do more activities with your kids?

Egg Carton Easter Crafts for Kids

March 19, 2019 By Terri Thompson

Did you buy extra eggs to dye for Easter? Yep, me too!

And now, after all the fun of dying Easter egg, I’ve got an extra egg carton (or two or three). So what should we do about those extras? How about making some fun egg carton Easter crafts.

Your kids will love making these cute and colorful Easter crafts with egg cartons this year!

Here are some great crafts you’ll love, from bunnies and baskets to chicks and flowers.

Which one is your favorite? I don’t know which one I like best. We may have to make them all!

What do you do with all those extra egg cartons? You can make some of these fun Egg Carton Easter Crafts. Choose from bunnies, baskets, chicks, and more.

Egg Carton Easter Crafts for Kids

Use a portion of an egg carton to make our simple Egg Carton Easter Basket that will hold four Easter eggs.

Or, you can use the entire egg carton to make a larger basket like this one from Fun-A-Day.

You can also make this other Easter basket version using single egg cups like these from Learning 4 Kids.

Cut up an egg carton to make these super-cute Egg Carton Chicken Egg Cups from Red Ted Art.

Make these colorful and cute Spring Chick Egg Carton Crafts from Typically Simple.

Use pompom chicks to create these Egg Carton Hatching Chicks from Crafty Morning.

These cute open and close Egg Carton Easter Bunnies from The Best Ideas for Kids can also hold a little bit of candy.

Or, you can make a cute Easter Bunny like this from Red Ted Art that can hold candy or an Easter egg.

Use a large portion of an egg to make a pretty Easter Cross from Teach-Me-Mommy.

Make a beautiful bouquet of Egg Carton flowers like these from Kitchen Counter Chronicles.

Or, use egg cartons and straws to make these cute flowers from I Heart Crafty Things.

Make beautiful bluebells out of egg cartons like these from Buggy and Buddy.

Which of these egg carton Easter crafts do you want to make with your kids?

Extend the fun with a great Easter book

We love to combine a craft with a book. So, when you’re making one of these awesome Easter crafts from egg cartons, choose one of these fun Easter books for a perfect craft afternoon.

Do more activities with your family

Easter Word Scramble Printable

March 15, 2018 By Terri Thompson

What words remind you of Easter?

I can think of a few, like bunny, bonnet, and eggs. Oh, and jelly beans, jelly beans too!

You can find those words and more on this fun Easter word scramble printable. This is such a fun and quick activity for anyone who loves word games. We all need fun and quick activities, right?

Easter Word Scramble

I just love a good word scramble, don’t you? They’re fun, get the brain working, and take absolutely no prep time. Just print and find a pencil!

Take one of these along the next time you’re sitting in a waiting room, print out enough for all the kids to do while they’re waiting for Easter dinner, or even print enough for the classroom.

Word scrambles make great time fillers.

I created this Easter word scramble printable with ten words that describe Easter. You’ll find the words bunny, eggs, basket, Sunday, jelly beans, spring, bonnet, chocolate, chicks, and of course, Easter. How long to you think it will take to unscramble all the words?

If you’re ready to solve the puzzle, use the link below to download and print your Easter word scramble. For your convenience, I’ve also included a separate printable with the answers. Feel free to print as many as you need for all your family, friends, or students.

Download your free word scramble here.

Download the word scramble answers here.

If you’re looking for other holidays, I’ve also got a Valentine’s Day Word Scramble printable and a St. Patrick’s Day Word Scramble printable you can download and print.

Easter

Multiplication Practice with Jelly Bean Arrays