Mairtown Kindergarten: Our Easter ritual

There are many things I love about Mairtown, one of them being how there is always something special to look forward to. Last week kindergarten was a hive of activity and excitement with the build up to Easter. Over the years making decorative Easter eggs has become one of those special rituals.

It is wonderful how our older tamariki often remember and ask if we are going to be making Easter eggs again this year. What’s really special is when the older children explain to their younger or new e hoa what they remember and share about their egg making experiences.

Rituals play an important role in society. Rituals remind us of what is important and provide a sense of stability and continuity in our lives. (Cathy Stucker, 2009)

Our Easter egg tree ritual started when a past German family introduced the concept to us several years ago. The creation of the eggs is a process that requires several steps over many days, which is great as it offers children the opportunity to revisit their work through to completion.

The first step of the process was to mix the papier-mâché then form it into egg shapes. This was a very sticky job, however there were plenty of smiles as they all looked happy with their work.

This process requires lots of patience as the eggs can take a while to dry (particularly with our rainy Northland days). Once the papier-mâché was dry we set about painting the eggs with a base of colour.

The next step always seems to be our children’s favourite part as this is when we use the gold or silver pens and coloured sequins to decorate the eggs with stunning details.

Our Easter egg tree ritual was inspired by a previous family’s German connections. Now we have another family who originate from Germany and who also celebrate Easter by decorating trees with eggs. It was lovely to talk to Maximilian’s family, who shared the special significance of having an Easter tree and what it means to them. Maximilian brought in an egg from home to show an example of how they had decorated it, making these connections in such a meaningful way supports their sense of belonging.