Perfect Purim Crafts and Activities!

Purim is a wonderful holiday to celebrate with children. Costumes, groggers, and hamantaschen afford many opportunities for creativity, imagination, and fun. Below we have some fun takes on these traditional activities, as well as some new crafts to celebrate at home or in the classroom!

Make Some Noise with Sammy Spider
This simple grogger is made using a paper plate, and is the same one in one of our favorite Purim books - Sammy Spider's First Purim! Get ready for the Megillah reading with this fun and easy craft for all ages. Instructions here.


Find a New Favorite Flavor of Hamantaschen
In addition to old favorites, give one of these unique recipes a try! Lemon? White chocolate and cherry? Sounds tasty! Check out these 10 new hamantaschen recipes and spice up the table with something new!

From Joy of Kosher.

Easy Purim Masks Complement Any Costume
With a little help, any kid can create their own costume using this simple DIY Purim mask! A perfect Purim craft for the classroom, or to accent an almost-complete costume, this masks allows kids to add their own artistic flair. Instructions here.

From Here We Are Together.

Beaded Crowns for Older Kids
If you kids are a little old for paper masks, or would enjoy more of a challenge, try these beaded crowns! They'll also last longer than paper masks, so could potentially be used in years to come. Different colors of beads can be used to complement different costumes, and instructions include both a "Queen's Crown" and a "King's Crown." Instructions here.

From Chadis Crafts Fun Pages.

Put on a Purim Puppet Show
Make your own puppets to put on a Purim play! These instructions and templates from JewishKids.org make it a fun and simple way to let everyone participate in telling the story of Purim. Instructions here. 

Test How Much You Really Know!
This fun and interactive Jeopardy-style quiz lets two people compete to answer Purim questions. Test your knowledge on your own, challenge a friend, or set up a family or classroom-sized competition to see who knows the most! Take the quiz here.

From Quia.com.

Make Your Own Megillah Scroll
Color the pictures on this page, then cut them out into two strips. Tape the strips together and tape the end to an empty paper towel roll cut to size. Roll up your Megillah and fasten with a ribbon or rubber band. Now you have your very own Megillah scroll that tells the story of Purim!


Make Your Own Haman Puzzle
Color this picture of the evil Haman, then cut along the lines to make a puzzle! Great for the classroom or at home.





Learn More About Purim with a Good Book!
Children's books about Purim are a great way to enrich the holiday celebration. From learning all about Purim traditions with Sammy Spider to animals putting on a Purim play, these stories offer fun and interesting additions to any Purim celebration. These and other Purim books available on the Kar-Ben website!

Barnyard Purim
Purim is a topsy-turvy time, even on the farm. The animals decide to stage a Purim play, and Chicken assigns the parts. Blushing Duck is Queen Esther, Silly Horse is Ahashuerus, and Bearded Goat is Mordechai. But when they try to transform Shy Little Sheep into mean-looking Haman, something unexpected happens.

Sammy Spider's First Purim
Sammy Spider wants to help Josh get ready for Purim. Instead, he gets stuck inside a grogger. How will he escape?

The Queen Who Saved Her People
The Purim story has never been more fun! This lavishly rhyming tale is a wonderful read-aloud book, and its color-coded dialogue is perfect for Reader's Theater performances.



The Purim Superhero
Nate loves aliens and he really wants to wear an alien costume for Purim, but his friends are all dressing as superheroes and he wants to fit in. What will he do? With the help of his two dads he makes a surprising decision.

Treats for Hanukkah with Maccabee Meals

It is already November, and Hanukkah is just around the corner. The first candle is on December 8 this year (next year Hanukkah begins on Thanksgiving!). People are already in Hanukkah event and party planning mode, if the number of repins on our Pinterest are any indication! 

Looking for new ideas this year? Check out Kar-Ben’s cookbook Maccabee Meals, which features over 30 recipes and many explanations that are sure to add a kick to your celebrations. Learn how to make all sorts of latkes, cookies, salads, and sides. Try this recipe from Maccabee Meals for your next Hanukkah Celebration! This is a great project for kids!


Alef-Bet Pretzels
Ingredients
1 pkg. dry yeast
1 c. warm water
3 c. flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten with 1 Tbsp. water
Kosher salt
Margarine or oil spray

1. In a bowl, dissolve yeast in water.
2. Add flour, sugar, and salt and work into a dough.
3. Cover with a towel and let rise 1 hour.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
5. Grease cookie sheet.
6. Divide dough into pieces the size of a golf ball. Dust hands with flour. Roll dough into sausages and shape into the letters on the dreidel.
7. Place on cookie sheet, brush with egg mixture, and sprinkle with salt.
8. Bake for 25 minutes or until brown.


Enjoy Maccabee Meals during the festival of lights and B’Tayavon (Bon appetite)!

Win a copy by posting your favorite Hanukkah treat in the comments here or at our Facebook page. A winner will be selected at random.

Dreidel Variation for Little Ones

Have little ones who don't have the patience to sit and play dreidel but still want to be involved?

Try this variation called Dreidel Hunt from the book All About Hanukkah ($7.95, paperback) by Judyth Groner and Madeline Wikler:

One player (the little one) leave the room while the others hide a dreidel. When the player returns to hunto for the hidden dreidel, the rest of the players sing a Hanukkah song. As the searcher comes closer, the singing should get louder. See how long it takes each player to find the dreidel. As an alternative, use a CD of Hanukkah music and turn up the volume to note when the player is closer. Have prizes like gelt and trinkets for everyone!

How to Get Moving

First Lady Michelle Obama recently made an announcement about a new campaign we can all get excited about. It's called Let's Move, and it's based on four principles: encouraging children and families to make healthier food choices, improving the quality of foods in our schools, make healthier, more affordable food available to across the nation, and educate children about the importance of physical activity.


Adults can learn a thing or two from this program as well! For me, the easiest way to eat healthier was to shop at local farmers markets during the summer and fall. I can get affordable, fresh, locally-grown produce. I'm inspired to cook new dishes and look forward to the return of my favorite fruits and vegetables that are in abundance at various times of the season.

A simple way to get kids excited about new foods is to invite them into the kitchen to cook with you! Little hands can help out with basic tasks like as kneading your challah dough for Shabbat, mixing the charoset at Passover, or picking out apples to serve at Rosh Hashanah. Kids learn how to make traditional foods and even the pickiest kids will be curious to try new dishes if they see how they're made.

Check out Matzah Meals and Tasty Bible Stories for easy, kids-friendly recipes with a Jewish twist!

That takes care of the food portion of Let's Move. The physical activity part isn't so easy!

Alef-Bet Yoga for Kids combines yoga poses with the letters of the Hebrew Alef-Bet. Kids use their imaginations and their bodies to form Hebrew letters. Alef-Bet yoga can be done indoors as well as outdoors and it doesn't require more than a book and some floor space.

Sometimes, all it takes is some music to get you moving! Rabbi Joe Black's book Boker Tov! includes a CD with his catchy tune about waking up and getting ready for the day. Perfect for slow movers, sleepyheads, and grownups on the days when coffee isn't enough.

Does your class or family practice Alef-Bet yoga? Do you have any ideas of how to integrate Let's Move into your Jewish home or classroom? Send us your photos and we'll post them on our blog and Facebook page!