Wondering what to do with all those milk jugs? Make a milk jug Easter basket, of course! What a great way to teach kids about recycling while creating a functional, cute DIY Easter basket. I love this idea! Use this idea with young learners from toddlers and preschoolers through early elementary. This Easter craft for kids is sure to engage from start to finish. Depending on the age of your children (students), you can decide which parts of the milk jug Easter basket craft they can complete with your help and which parts you might want to prepare ahead of time. Happy Easter!

Instructions to make a DIY milk jug Easter basket for kids.
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Learning About Milk Jug Crafts:

CRAFT IDEAS FOR CHILDREN

USING COMMON HOUSEHOLD ITEMS FOR CRAFTS TEACHES A SECONDARY LESSON BEYOND THE CRAFT ITSELF. USING RECYCLED ITEMS PROMOTES CREATIVITY AND THE IMPORTANCE OF REPURPOSING ITEMS.

Whether you are making milk jug ghosts or milk carton gingerbread houses, using common items to craft offers a lot of benefits.

Making crafts from milk jugs saves you money as well! With a little pre-planning you can ask students to bring in washed jugs and you’re ready to make the Easter basket DIY.

This easy Easter craft includes opportunities for creativity, cutting, gluing, drawing, and tracing.

Before showing children an example of the Easter bunny craft, I like to have a conversation about how we might turn a plain, old milk jug into a cute little bunny! Instead of showing students the final product, I show them an empty jug and ask questions, like:

  • What do we normally find inside this jug?
  • Can you imagine any other uses for it?
  • How might we make it into an adorable bunny?
  • Do you think we could turn it into a basket? How?
Eggs and pink grass inside of the Easter basket craft.

What Can Preschoolers Learn From Easter Craft Ideas?

CRAFTS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD

CRAFT PROJECTS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN OFFER MANY BENEFITS THAT GO BEYOND THE FINAL PRODUCT. IT’S MORE ABOUT THE JOURNEY THAN THE RESULT.

Young learners benefit from all art projects, from Halloween crafts to paper plate bunnies and beyond. Here are some of the benefits:

Completed milk jug Easter bunny basket.

Why Is It Important For Kids To Make Arts and Crafts?

Besides the fact that kids love arts and crafts projects, there are many other reasons to create, paint, draw, and sculpt with kids.

“They loved this more than Play doh. I was amazed. “

I did this today with my daycare kids. They loved this more than Play doh. I was amazed. With it being too cold to go outside, this was great. Honestly they played for 1.5 hours and probably would of longer, but we had to get lunch ready. Thank you so much for this.

How To Make a Milk Jug Easter Bunny Basket

How to Make the Easter Basket Craft

Supplies:

  • Empty milk jug (cleaned and dry)
  • X-acto knife  
  • Black permanent marker
  • Pink pom pom
  • Two large googly eyes
  • Scissors
  • Liquid glue
  • Pink and white construction paper
  • Pencil
  • Pink shredded paper
  • Plastic Easter eggs
  • Optional: egg fillers, candy, small toys, etc.

NOTE: Only adults should use the x-acto knife.

Directions:

1. Use a permanent marker to draw a black line around the milk jug where you want the opening for the basket.

2. Cut the black line with the X-acto knife and discard piece of plastic.

3. Use liquid glue to attach the googly eyes to the front of the milk carton. Then, glue the pom pom nose under the eyes. Let dry. 

4. Draw bunny whiskers and a mouth using the black permanent marker. (Optional: use pipe cleaners)

5. Fold each sheet of construction paper in half. Draw a larger white ear and a smaller pink ear. If desired, make a template for children to trace their own ears.

6. Cut out. You’ll have two sets for each color. 

7. Glue the pink portion of the ear in the center of the white portion and allow to dry. Assemble the ears with glue on the back portion of the milk carton.

Fill the DIY milk jug Easter basket with paper shred or Easter grass, cotton balls and other items like Easter eggs, small toys, and more! 

Materials for milk jug Easter basket craft.
Draw a line with a sharpie to cut the milk jug Easter basket.
Use an exacto knife or cutting tool to cut the milk jug.
Make bunny ears out of pink and white paper for the milk jug Easter bunny.
Glue the ears onto the milk jug Easter basket.
Place googly eyes on the milk jug.
Milk jug Easter bunny face.

Bird Feeders

Recycle your Easter bunny basket from a milk jug AGAIN by repurposing as a bird feeder. Replace the contents with seed and set it outside to watch what happens.

Egg Hunt

Hide plastic eggs around the room/outside for kids to find. They can use their bunny baskets to collect the eggs.

Dye Eggs

Make some dyed or painted Easter eggs to put into the recycled plastic basket. You might even hide those real eggs if you’re feeling brave!

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