Whether you’re teaching students about Easter as an important Christian festival or as a fun seasonal celebration, Kialo Edu is here to help! Our eggs-tensive Topic Library contains Easter-themed discussions on both the religious and seasonal aspects of the festival. Whichever option you choose, all Kialo discussions share a common purpose — to have a fruitful exploration of a topic and train your students’ debate and argumentation skills.
So, let’s eggs-plore our Easter discussion topics and eggs-amine how you can use them to foster your students’ critical thinking skills!
Fun Easter debate topics and activities for class
1. Who has the more difficult job: Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny?
Ideal for: Younger students to compare the jobs of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny
This discussion is an ideal way to introduce critical thinking to younger students by building their comparison skills. Begin with a fun hot-seat activity where students take on the roles of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny to explore their respective challenges.
Then, model how students can compare the two jobs by transforming their ideas into pros and cons on the argument map. This visual structure will help students organize their comparisons and reach a final conclusion on this important topic!
2. Should kids be allowed to eat all their Easter chocolate at once?
Ideal for: Students to reason through the consequences of eating all their Easter chocolate at once
While this discussion is ideal for a science lesson on healthy lifestyles, it’s advisable not to make it a practical investigation! Instead, students can use books and the internet to research the short- and long-term impacts of gorging on Easter chocolate.
Then, they can develop their reasoning skills by using the argument map to analyze the consequences of each option — hopefully leading to some healthier choices this Easter!
3. Which is the best Easter candy?
Ideal for: Students to explore bias and perspectives on the best Easter candy
This discussion is a fun way to teach students about bias, especially if they believe that everyone shares their tastes in Easter candy! Group students with different tastes together in Teams, so they can build the discussion with as many pros and cons as possible.
This will demonstrate to students that there can be multiple perspectives on any issue, helping to combat their bias. And naturally, for students to make an informed response, taste tests are essential — so having some samples in class can give extra motivation!
Religious-themed Easter debate topics and activities for class
1. Should Easter be celebratory or serious?
Ideal for: Students to research sources to support their claims on the nature of Easter
Introduce this discussion with a quick word association game. Give students the word “Easter” and ask them to respond with the first word they think of. This will help reveal students’ current perceptions of the festival.
Based on their existing knowledge, students can then conduct research into the celebratory and/or serious aspects of Easter. Every time students find a useful supporting source, they can simply link it to a claim, giving them more time to deepen their topic comprehension.
2. Which holiday is more important for Christians: Christmas or Easter?
Ideal for: Students to challenge their own assumptions about the importance of Christmas and Easter
Students’ personal experiences may lead them to make assumptions about whether Christmas or Easter is more important to Christians. Encourage them to challenge their assumptions by researching Christian perspectives on the origins and importance of each festival.
As they record their findings on the argument map, the structure will help students identify and address gaps in their reasoning. This will guide students towards making informed conclusions and away from uninformed assumptions.
3. Should we use pagan imagery when celebrating Easter?
Ideal for: Students to reflect on Easter imagery and make connections with pagan celebrations
To kick off this activity, send students on a virtual scavenger hunt for examples of traditional Easter imagery. Then, ask them for their initial reflections on why these images are associated with Easter.
Once students have a background understanding, guide them to investigate the pagan origins of the imagery and make connections with the Christian messages of Easter. Recording their research on the argument map will help students visualize the connections between their ideas.
So, set your students on the path to developing egg-cellent critical thinking skills with our Easter discussions. Give these activities a try and you might find that your class is all ears! And remember, Kialo discussions are not just for Easter. Our Topic Library has a whole host of egg-citing curriculum-linked discussions that are ideal for training students’ critical thinking skills throughout the year.
However you plan to celebrate, we would like to wish all you peeps out there a Hoppy Easter. We hope you have an eggs-tra special time, and share with us what Easter class activities you did with your students at feedback@kialo-edu.com or on our social media platforms!
