Easter Island Facts for Kids

Settlement

• The earliest settlers were likely from eastern Polynesia. History.com estimates that they may have arrived approximately between 300 and 400 A.D. According to SacredSites.com, the island's original name was either Te Pito o Te Huana, which means ̶0;the Center of the World,̶1; or Mata-Ki-Te-Rani, which translates to ̶0;Eyes Looking at Heaven.̶1; Tahitian sailors changed the name to Rapa Nui in 1860. The current name, Easter Island, came from Dutch explorers, who landed on the island on Easter Sunday of 1722. To get your kids interested in the geography, put up a large map of the world. Cut out paper boats and have them "sail" the boats along the different routes. The old names sound somewhat silly to modern ears, so try having your kids guess how to spell them.

Statues

• Nearly 900 massive stone statues, or moai, are scattered around Easter Island. The average statue is approximately 14.5 feet tall and weighs around 14 tons. The biggest moai that still exists is roughly 33 feet tall and weighs more than 80 tons. The statues were carved out of stone from the island̵7;s volcanoes. The majority of the statues once stood on stone platforms called ahu, of which 250 still remain. These numbers are sometimes hard for kids to get their brains around, so use proportional math. Coins and poker chips work particularly well for this. Explain that one coin or chip equals one foot. Make a stack of objects that approximates your child's height and another one that approximates your height. Then make a third stack of 14 chips to represent the average moai and a fourth stack of 33 to represent the largest. Ask your kids to imagine standing on the island looking at something that big, and ask how they might feel about it. Miniature statues work well to help kids understand just how crowded with moai the island truly is.

Mystery of the Trees

• According to "National Geographic," Easter Island was once covered by a dense palm forest consisting of as many as 16 million palm trees. It would have taken several hundred people between six and eight centuries to remove all the trees from the island, and it is unclear why so much wood was required. Use this fact to spark a discussion on what might have happened to the trees. Talk about common ways that we use wood, as well as ways that it might be used by more primitive people. Depending on your kids' ages, you might also discuss logging methods and the sheer amount of labor that would go into chopping and utilizing that many trees under primitive conditions.

Mystery of the Statues

• Despite centuries of research, scientists working together in multiple disciplines have not discovered the purpose of the moai. According to SacredSites.com, ritual stone carving was a common practice in ancient Polynesia, and it is possible that the statues represented an evolution of that practice. History.com notes that some of the ahu platforms contained burial chambers, and the moai might have represented important people who became gods after their death. In addition, scientists do not fully understand how the ancient people of Easter Island were able to move the heavy pieces of stone around the island. SacredSites.com suggests that with as many as 150 people working together in an elaborate sled and roller system, it might have been possible to move a statue of that size. Use these facts as a jumping-off point for discussions that could range from religious traditions to mechanics.

  For religious discussions, compare the burial practices of the ancient people of Polynesia with the practices of the Egyptians. Talk about Stonehenge and other sacred sites. Discuss ancient astronomy and whether that might have played a role in the statues' placement.

  For mechanics, ask your kids to come up with creative ways of moving very large and heavy objects. Have them use an erector set to build different machines that can move items around, and then compare their efficiency using a block of wood. Brainstorm ways of using people power, animal power and machine power to complete such a massive project.