Try these creative ways to recycle & reuse plastic Easter Eggs!
The Easter Bunny has visited our house for more than 14 years, each time hiding a bunch of (plastic) eggs.
Sometimes the egg hunt is inside, other years there will be eggs in the yard.
And somewhere along the way, my kids got the idea that the Bunny brings different eggs each year. Not sure where it came up but there were very specific —
“We have to leave out empty baskets for him to fill but he’ll bring different eggs Mom, don’t worry” 🙂
I hate throwing things out — so with more than 100 of these crazy plastic eggs in the house, I really needed to find some good ways to put them to use!
10 Ways to Recycle & Reuse Plastic Eggs
First, I called our local recycling center to see if I could indeed toss the eggs into our reycling bin (especially those that were broken) — but nada! Our center only acccepts certain types of plastic and the eggs aren’t on their list.
However, some areas WILL accept them so do call or research with your local recycling provider.
So I needed to find some creative ways to use them — and I will say that Egg Hunts aren’t just for Easter — they can be fun any time of the year and also keep your kids busy so do keep that on your list to try 😉
Here’s a set of FREE printable Egg Hunt Clues that will work in any house!
One thing I concluded is that ANYTHING is more fun when it’s hidden inside a colored egg!
If you place a bunch of eggs in a large container and you can use them for some fun things:
1. Spelling or Sight Word Practice
Write your child’s spelling words or sight words on a slip of paper and put each one in an egg – then let them pick an egg and you can read them the word. It also works great for math facts.
Doing homework was never this fun!
2. Easter Egg Reading
Write the names of Spring picture books or your favorite Easter books on paper slips and put them in the eggs.
Then your kids can pick an egg each night to choose their bedtime story.
3. Getting Kids to do their Chores
Have a hard time getting kids to do their chores/jobs? Use the eggs!
Fill each egg with the name of a job/chore – your kids can choose an egg each day to learn how they can help around the house.
Here’s a free printable list of Spring jobs that kids can help do around the house if you need ideas.
4. Easter Egg Math
Place the eggs in the large bin and younger kids can work on their counting.
For older kids, it will help them practice their estimation skills – ask them how many eggs they think are in the jar and then take them out and count them.
This is also a fun game if you’re hosting an Easter Brunch – have each guest guess how many eggs are in the jar and give a small prize to the winner.
5. Practice Counting Money
Another idea for math practice – fill each egg with a coin, have your child choose one egg color, pull out all the eggs of that color and add up the coins.
Then move on to another color. This helps with coin recognition and counting money skills.
6. Egg Science
Visit No Time for Flash Cards for a great “Does it Sink or Float” science activity using plastic eggs. Thanks Allison!
7. Easter Egg Snack Ideas
Fill the eggs with small snacks (raisins, nuts, chocolate chips, dried fruit) and let your kids randomly choose what will be in their snack mix each day for a fun after-school treat 😉
Recycled Egg Craft Ideas
Here are a few creative ways to craft with plastic eggs.
For the next few ideas, you’ll need what I call “pac-man eggs” — the eggs that are attached when you open them. Here’s a set from Amazon (affiliate link) of Assorted Bright Color Hinged Easter Eggs
8. DIY Easter Egg Wreath
I love this because it’s so easy & colorful!
Find a dozen or more of the same size “pac-man” type eggs and open them all. Then attach two eggs together by snapping the top of one to the bottom of the other.
Continue to connect a top from one egg to the bottom of another (they should all snap together easy since they will be the same size). When you get to the last one, just connect it to the one you began with, and TA-DA! – Instant egg wreath for spring!
If you’d like, you can also use glue when connecting the eggs to make it a more permenant decoration.
9. Kid-made Easter Bracelet
My daughter gets credit for this next one (she’s so creative!) – she put the eggs together in the same way (connect the bottom of one “pac-man” egg to the top of another) and made a shiny and fun egg bracelet.
10. Easter Ponytail Holder
Or decorate a ponytail by putting an egg chain around it.
MORE EASTER IDEAS:
Personalized Easter Egg Coupon Books
50 Fun Learning Items for the Easter Baskets
8 Classic Easter Stories for Kids
