White House expects about 40,000 at annual Easter egg roll

Some 40,000 people are expected to participate in Monday's "EGG-ucation"-themed White House Easter Egg Roll, about 10,000 more than last year. Jill Biden, a teacher for more than 30 years, is transforming an annual tradition first held in 1878 into an "EGG-ucational" experience. Various stations on the South Lawn and Ellipse will help children learn about farming, healthier eating, exercise and more, the White House announced Thursday. They'll still get to coax hard-boiled eggs across the lawn to a finish line. A large schoolhouse set up on the South Lawn will offer kids activities in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, such as making circuit-breakers or simulating a fossil dig. The kids will also have the opportunity to write notes to U.S. troops and first responders with Operation Gratitude, a nonprofit organization. Guests include thousands of military and veteran families, their caregivers and survivors. Members of the general public claimed tickets through an online lottery. They will be admitted in nine waves, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday's "egg-stravaganza" will be the third Easter egg roll hosted by President Joe Biden and the first lady, who still teaches English and writing at a northern Virginia community college. They did not host the event in 2021, Biden's first year in office, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The White House Easter Egg Roll dates to 1878, when President Rutherford B. Hayes opened the White House lawn to children after they were kicked off the grounds of the U.S. Capitol.