Disclosure: This blog post contains affiliate links; as an affiliate and Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. Please read my full disclosure policy for more information.
April Fools Day is the perfect opportunity to inject some fun and laughter into your family’s daily routine. Whether you’re looking to prank your kids or you’re a kid wanting to prank your parents, there are plenty of harmless and hilarious ideas to choose from.
So Many April Fools Pranks Parents & Kids Both Love!
From simple food swaps to more elaborate tricks, here are more than 55 family-friendly April Fools pranks parents and kids will all laugh about.
Silly April Fools Breakfast Ideas
1. Undrinkable Jell-O Juice
Use a Jell-O mix to make jello inside your child’s juice cup. And, make sure to add a straw before it sets. Then, watch your little one try to drink their undrinkable juice!
2. Blue Milk
And, use food coloring to turn the milk in the carton blue. Then, watch your family members’ reactions when they open the fridge.
3. Easy Frozen Cereal Trick
Plan ahead and place your child’s bowl of cereal in the freezer the night before April Fool’s Day. Then, watch them try to dip their spoon into it at breakfast.
4. Broccoli Cereal Box Swap
Or, swap their regular cereal box with this funny Broccoli Buddies Prank Cereal Box instead!
5. Cereal Bowl Eyes
Make edible eyeballs by rolling Rice Krispies Treats, dipping them in white chocolate, then pressing a chocolate chip into each one. Now, add some to your child’s cereal bowl for April Fools morning laughs.
6. Bacon & Eggs Sweet Treats
Or, serve bacon and eggs for breakfast on April Fools Day. But, serve cute little bacon and eggs treats on their big plates instead! Make them by dropping some melted white chocolate on 2-3 pretzel sticks and pressing yellow M&M on top. Then, pop them in the freezer to harden before serving.
7. Salty Coffee Trick
Finally, swap the sugar in the sugar bowl with salt! Then, wait for someone to spoon some into their coffee mug and take a sip.
Funny Food Swaps for April Fools Day
8. Candy Box Carrots Prank
Empty the kids’ boxes of candy and fill them with baby carrots instead. (But, let them have the candy after they finish their healthy snack.)
9. Candy Easter Egg Caper
Or, carefully open foil-wrapped candy Easter eggs and replace the chocolate candy with grapes or cherry tomatoes!
10. Un-Frosted Animal Crackers
Swap your kids’ frosted animal crackers with regular (unfrosted) ones. Then, act just as surprised as them when they open the bag!
11. Toothpaste Oreo Trick
Or, untwist some Oreo cookies, scrape the white filling off, and add some white toothpaste before putting them back together. Then, see what your kids say when their Oreos taste different.
12. Fake Cake Pops
Pop some brussel sprouts onto cake pop sticks and dip them in melted chocolate. Then, let the chocolate harden and serve them as cake pops!
13. Tomato Lollipop Trick
Or, make fake lollipops using cherry tomatoes on lollipop sticks! Wrap them using pieces of colorful napkin and twist ties for an April Fools surprise!
14. Vinegar Ice Cubes
Finally, fill an ice cube tray with white vinegar the night before April Fool’s Day. Then, wait for someone to add ice cubes to their drink!
More Food Pranks & April Fools Recipes
15. Fake Chicken Wings
Form Rice Krispies Treats into chicken wings and smother them a fake BBQ sauce made out of apricot preserves. Then, use Laffy Taffy to make celery and vanilla yogurt for blue cheese dressing.
16. Pot Pie April Fools Dessert
Or, make individual fake chicken pot pies using mini graham cracker pie crusts, vanilla pudding, and fruit chew candy for a funny April Fools Day dessert.
17. Ice Cream Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Swap out your dinner mashed potatoes with vanilla ice cream. Then, drizzle caramel sauce on top for gravy.
18. Mashed Potato Ice Cream
Or, scoop mashed potatoes into sundae cups and add gravy to make fake ice cream sundaes!
19. Pepperoni Pizza Cookie
Surprise the family with takeout pizza, but serve a giant pepperoni pizza cookie inside the pizza box instead.
20. Fake Dunkin Donuts
Or, form meatloaf into donut shapes and top with frosting made from mashed potatoes, cream cheese, and food coloring. Then, pop them in a Dunkin Donuts box to trick the kids!
21. Sweet and Sour Truffles
Or, use chocolate chips and pickles to make a sneaky sweet and sour treat that’s sure to surprise.
22. Brown E Prank
Finally, tell the family you baked brownies. But, pull a baking pan out of the (cool) oven filled with brown construction paper Es instead! (Make sure to have some real brownies on hand to enjoy afterward, too.)
Easy April Fools Pranks Parents Can Play on Kids
23. Family Photo Mustaches
Use fake mustaches or a dry erase marker to add silly mustaches to all of the faces in your framed family photos.
24. Googly Eye Photos
Or, stick self-adhesive googly eyes over the eyes of every person in the photos.
25. Silly Shoes
Move the kids’ shoes to strange places all around the house. Like, hang one on the wall in place of a framed photo. Or, put one under each leg of your dining table!
26. Everything Upside Down
And, turn a bunch of household objects upside down. If you can’t turn framed photos upside-down, flip the photos inside the frames instead.
27. Easy Blue Bath Water Trick
Sneak some blue gel food coloring inside the bathtub faucet for an April Fools bathtime surprise.
28. Marshmallow Picking April Fool’s Joke
Or, stick mini marshmallows on the branches of a bush outside. Then, take young children marshmallow picking when they wake up on April Fools morning.
29. Play Food Prank
Serve the kids’ play food intermingled with their real food for an easy prank even little ones love.
30. Giant Googly Eyes
Finally, make giant googly eyes with large white plastic plates and smaller black plastic plates. Then, put them on large objects around your home, like on a garbage can or outdoor bush.
Lunch Box April Fool Pranks for Parents
31. Lunch Box Bugs
Add some plastic bug or spiders to your child’s lunchbox for an April Fools Day surprise at school.
32. Fruit Faces
And, stick self-adhesive googly eyes on your child’s fruit! You can even use a permanent marker to draw details on fruit that has a peel, like bananas and oranges.
33. Gummy Worm Apple Joke
Or, cut a small hole in their apple and stick a gummy worm inside. Make sure to leave it looking like it’s crawling out a bit.
34. Moldy Sandwich Prank
And, pack their sandwich in one of these sandwich baggies with fake mold on it!
35. Cheesy Joke Cards
Then, add some laughs to their school lunch by including some of these cute Cheesy Joke Cards in their lunchbox.
36. Squishy Food
Finally, pop a food-shaped squishy toy in their lunchbox to give them a smile! Like, this realistic (and even scented) banana squeeze toy. Or, this stretchy cheeseburger kids can build themselves.
Simple April Fool Day Pranks for Kids to Prank Parents
37. Creepy Crawly Surprise
Hide small plastic bug, spider, or snake toys throughout the house, like in the freezer, dad’s underwear drawer, or on mom’s pillow!
38. An Alarm-ing Prank
Then, set all of the alarm clocks around the house to go off a few minutes apart. Or, set the kitchen timers (like on the microwave and oven) instead!
39. Cardboard Keyboard Trick
Next, replace dad’s computer keyboard with a cardboard one. Simply draw keyboard buttons on a rectangle of cardboard. But, spell out “April Fools!” (But, only do this trick if you’re able to without breaking anything!)
40. Broken Computer Mouse Prank
Then, place tape over the sensor on the bottom of your parent’s computer mouse so it doesn’t work.
41. Post-It Note Joke
And, cover their computer screen in Post-It notes! Make sure to write “Happy April Fool’s Day!” on one of them.
42. Easy Broken Remote Trick
Next, take the batteries out of the TV remote when your parents aren’t looking.
43. Plastic Wrapped Remote
And, wrap the remote control in plastic wrap, too! (But, don’t leave plastic wrap around if young children are in the house.)
44. Bubble Wrap Rug Joke
Sneak some bubble wrap (large bubbles work best) under a random rug. Then, watch mom get a scare when she steps on it.
45. Banded Phone Prank
Finally, wrap their smartphone in a bunch of rubber bands!
April Fools Bathroom Pranks
46. Taped Faucet Prank
First, apply a piece of clear tape to a sink faucet so it sprays the family member who turns it on.
47. Toilet Paper Spider Prank
Next, unroll the toilet paper a bit and draw a spider on it. Then, roll it back up and see who discovers it while using the bathroom!
48. Rubber Band TP Prank
Or, wrap the toilet paper roll with a bunch of rubber bands. Then, put it back on the holder for the next person to find.
49. Duct Tape Toilet Paper Joke
Or, replace the toilet paper roll all together with a roll of duct tape! Add a little “Good luck!” sign for extra laughs.
50. Funny Shampoo Bottle Prank
Finally, take the cap off dad’s shampoo and conditioner or body wash. Then, cover the opening with a small piece of plastic wrap before replacing the lid. Now, listen for dad to yell when he takes a shower!
April Fools Crafts & DIY Tricks
51. Water Bottle Prank
Use a pin to poke tiny holes all around a bottled water. Then, watch it squirt the person who picks it up!
52. Spilled Coffee Prank
First, use glue, brown paint, and a disposable coffee cup to make a fake coffee spill. Then, leave it on a computer for the best reaction from a parent.
53. Melted Ice Cream Cone
Or, make a fake melted ice cream mess out of playdough and an ice cream cone. Next, position it on dad’s computer or the furniture for the best reaction.
54. Blue Icing Toothpaste Prank
Next, squirt blue icing into an empty toothpaste tube. And, see who ends up with blue teeth!
55. Rattlesnake Eggs
Then, make an envelope of “rattlesnake eggs” with a simple contraption inside that rattles when you hand it to someone.
56. Moving Dollar Trick
Or, rig a dollar bill with fishing line, and make it move when someone tries to pick it up!
57. Fake Sponge Cake
Finally, serve the kids a special dessert of sponge cake — made out of a real sponge! Or, help them make their own to prank daddy.
Tricks & Pranks You Can Purchase
Looking for some easy, no-prep pranks instead? Then, consider these tricks and pranks you can purchase right online…
Marvin’s Magic – Fifty Pranks to Freak Your Friends50PCS Fake RoachesLaughing Smith Snake in a Can PrankKetchup & Mustard Novelty Squirt BottlesRemote Controlled Fart MachineGagster No Tear Toilet PaperSchylling Joke BoxRemote Control SnakeMagic Flying Butterflies
Or, check out the fun gifts in B-Inspired Mama’s Amazon Shop: Gross, Weird, & Funny Gifts for Kids of ALL Ages!
Like these Funny Ideas? Save ‘Em & Share ‘Em!
Now, make sure to save these April Fools ideas to come back to later. And, share it with friends! Simply use the share buttons at the top or bottom of this post. Or, click here: Share on Facebook | Tweet It | Pin It | Email to a Friend
More Ideas for Family Fun from B-Inspired Mama:
- 40 Fun Leprechaun Tricks to Play on Kids this St. Patrick’s Day
- 100 Family Traditions for Every Holiday!
- A Super Fun Family Game Night — Made Easy!
- 9 Family Football Game Day Party Ideas
Disclosure: This blog post contains affiliate links; as an affiliate and Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. Please read my full disclosure policy for more information.
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Catalina says
I will definitely play these on my mama