National Jelly Bean Day (April 22)
National Jelly Bean Day on April 22 is one of those easy wins, no prep, no planning, just a bag of jelly beans and something fun to do with them.
Over the years, these have worked surprisingly well for quick activities at home or in the classroom, especially when you’ve only got 10–15 minutes to fill and need something simple that still feels a bit different.
When is the Holiday?
National Jelly Bean Day falls on April 22 each year. It usually lands right after Easter, which is probably why most of us already have a half-open bag sitting somewhere in the kitchen.
Who Invented the Holiday?
No one really takes credit for this one, and honestly, it feels like the kind of day that just happened because people already liked the candy.
Jelly beans themselves go back to the 1800s. A Boston candy maker, William Schrafft, advertised them in the 1860s and even suggested sending them to soldiers during the Civil War. From there, they stuck around, especially at Easter, where their egg shape made them an easy fit.
The “holiday” likely came much later, more as an excuse to enjoy them than anything official.
The History of Jelly Beans
Jelly beans didn’t just appear out of nowhere. They’re actually a mix of two older candy ideas, a soft, chewy center and a hard sugar shell.
Similar sweets existed long before, but by the 1800s, jelly beans were being sold in the U.S. as penny candy. You could buy a small handful, mix colors, and not spend much, which made them easy to sell and even easier to share.
By the early 1900s, they had become tied to Easter. Not because of marketing at first, but because they look like tiny eggs. That association stuck, and it’s still when most people think about them.
The biggest shift came in the late 1970s when Jelly Belly started making more detailed flavors. Instead of “red = cherry,” you suddenly had things like buttered popcorn. That’s when jelly beans stopped being just a basic candy and started turning into a bit of a guessing game.
Top 5 Facts About Jelly Beans
- Ronald Reagan didn’t just like jelly beans, he used them as a cigarette substitute and kept jars of them everywhere, including his desk at the White House.
- Making one jelly bean is slow. The shell is built up in layers over several days, which is why they have that smooth, glossy finish instead of a rough coating.
- Buttered popcorn is one of the most recognizable jelly bean flavors, but it’s also one of the most disliked, people tend to either love it or avoid it completely.
- Jelly beans went to space because they don’t melt, crumble, or float apart, which made them one of the easier candies for astronauts to eat.
- Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans pushed the idea of “weird flavors” further than most people expected, turning jelly beans into more of a dare than a snack.
Coloring Page
If everything starts getting a bit loud (or sugar kicks in), this is usually when a coloring page helps. It gives kids something simple to focus on while still keeping the theme going, and it works well as a reset between the more active ideas.
Fun Ways to Celebrate
A jelly bean taste test is always the one that gets the biggest reaction. Pour a mix of flavors into a bowl, blindfold the kids, and have them guess each one, it starts off easy, but once the strange flavors sneak in, it turns into a lot of laughing (and a few dramatic reactions).
If you want something calmer, jelly bean art works surprisingly well. Laying out patterns or simple pictures with different colors keeps kids focused longer than you’d expect, especially if you turn it into a challenge like “who can make the most detailed design.”
For something more active, a quick jelly bean hunt is an easy win. Hide different colors around the room or yard and give each one a point value. It takes minutes to set up but feels like a full activity.
You can also use them for simple STEM-style play. Dropping jelly beans into different liquids and watching what happens over time sounds basic, but it’s one of those things kids actually get curious about once they see the colors change and the candy break down.
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Links to Resources
If you want to keep things going a bit longer, these are a few easy extras you can add in without needing much setup.
The Jelly Belly Bean Boozled game is always a hit if you’re happy to lean into the chaos. It mixes normal flavors with some pretty questionable ones, so it quickly turns into more of a dare than a simple taste test.
For something quieter, a Jelly Beans Busy Bag works well with younger kids. Sorting by color sounds simple, but it keeps them focused for longer than you’d expect and helps with fine motor skills at the same time.
If you want to bring in a bit of learning without making it feel like a lesson, using jelly beans and toothpicks to build small structures is an easy way to introduce basic engineering ideas. It’s one of those activities that starts small and then gets more competitive.
You can also keep things fun (and edible) with Rice Krispie treat tic-tac-toe, using jelly beans as the pieces. It’s simple, but it works well if you’ve got a mix of ages.
And if you’re planning ahead or just know they’ll disappear quickly, a large jar of jelly beans is worth having on hand. They tend to get used faster than you think once the activities start.
Related Holidays
Among the many fun food-themed celebrations, National Gummy Worm Day on July 15th is a tribute to the playful, chewy candy loved by kids and adults alike.
On February 15th, we celebrate National Gum Drop Day, honoring the sugary, jelly-like treats that have been around for generations.
National Bean Day (January 6) shifts the focus from candy to real beans, celebrating their role in cooking, nutrition, and even genetics.
Summer brings another sweet holiday, National Cotton Candy Day on July 31st, spotlighting the fluffy fairground favorite.
For those who love indulging in all sorts of treats, National Junk Food Day on July 21st is the perfect excuse to enjoy your favorite guilty pleasures.
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