Kids Crafts!

30 Passover Crafts & Activities!

3/25/2015

PREFACE: You will notice that this post is not yet 100% complete, as many of the projects are currently in progress. But I wanted to give those who would like to do some of these crafts with their children over the next two weeks a heads up, as posting the day before Pesach would be of little use :)

1) Touch & Feel Hagaddah

My children actually made this last year and they loved using it during the seder because 1) it was their own creation, and 2) it brought an exciting sensory aspect to the hagadah. I downloaded the template from www.chinuch.org, a wonderful resource of projects, and we used a variety of crafting materials and supplies from around our homes to decorate each page. I put each page into a slip cover, to keep all the glitter glory, poofies, and googly eyes contained, and the kids took them out at each stage of the seder and enjoyed walking around and inviting guests to look and feel their artwork. We stuck all the contents into a binder, which they decorated a cover for.

2) Books Galore!

PJ Library, book stores, library.

3) Model Matzah Bakery

Many Chabad Shuls around the world the world are running a model matzah bakery the weeks leading up to Pesach. We attend each and every year, and it never gets old, my kids love it!

4) Ten Plagues Booklet

5) Giant Wine Bottle & Grapes

6) Miriam Saves the Day Puppet

7) Baby Moses in a Basket

8) Batya's Outstretched Arm

9) Pharoah's Stop Sign: No No No, I Will Not Let You Go!

10) Coloring Pages

11) Multimedia Resources

There are many great Passover music and video clips on websites such as:
chabad.org
aish.com
youtube.com

There are also a variety of apps for the phone that include: recipes, menus, songs, videos, kids games, learning mah nishtana.

12) Broom for Pesach Cleaning

13) Searching for Chametz Supplies Baggie

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of this, but your child can make a special baggie that includes the items used on the night before Pesach to search for chametz. The project can include: a paper baggie (decorated with marker of course), 10 balls of tinfoil (symbolizing the 10 pieces of chametz involved in the search), a candle (or flash light), a feather, and a wooden spoon.

14) Playing with Puppets

15) Mah Nishtana

My children love singing the Mah Nishtana at the seder. For children who are pre-speaking age, you can teach them the actions to each of the phrases. For children who love to sing, you can start reviewing several weeks before Passover. There is also a phone app called "Passover" put out by chabad.org that helps the kids review Mah Nishtana line by line. My daughter especially loves reading a book called "The Littlest Levine" by Sandy Lanton about a little girl who doesn't like being so little, but she has a wonderful opportunity to shine come Passover.

16) Free Activity Packs for Kids

There is a fantastic website called Jewish Homeschool Blog (www.jewishhomeschool.blogspot.com) that has a wealth of crafts and activities year round! The Pesach Activity pack in particular is fantastic, it involves shape tracing, crosswords, coloring pages, find the difference pictures, etc. I filled a binder with several different printables from this website, and my daughter enjoyed working on them during some downtime leading up to Pesach.

17) Wine Bottle Toppers

18) Wine Bottle Beading

My kids made some necklaces with their collection of beads and wound them around the wine bottles for a nice festive look. If you don't have beads at home or are short on time, you can use beaded necklaces. We have a variety of those and my daughter loved making different color combinations on the bottles.

19) Pesach Seder Songs

Children love being able to sing along and participate in the seder, they feel so good when they know the songs. We started singing several of the popular songs at the Shabbos table leading up to Pesach. You can also make a CD of the various songs you sing at your seder, ranging from dayenu through to chad gadya, and play it in the car, so your kids can become familiar with the tunes and words.

20) Crossing the Red Sea: A Fun Table Runner

We will be making a fun table runner once our home is cleaned and the food is prepared (priorities, right?). I have had this idea for a few years now, and decided this was the year! I would love to share a beautiful table setting I came across yesterday by a very creative Event Planner from Israel, Daphna Kaminetsky. Be sure to check out more of her work at https://www.facebook.com/dkdesign2006

21) Props for the Seder

We have a grab bag of a variety of toys and props, including squishy frogs, stuffed animals, balls, etc - to represent the various plagues. It brings a lot of fun and excitement, especially for young children (as well as adults who are young at heart). Each year we add something new to the bag, this year we included a special surprise, my youngest couldn't believe that the water turned to blood right at our table when we got to the first plague, while my oldest immediately guessed that it was beet juice.

22) Mock Seder

23) Lego Pyramids

24) Pesach Puzzles

25) Afikoman Bag

26) Cleaning the Car

No, I'm not joking. My children look forward to this activity each and every year (shhhh, you heard correctly, we only do a major clean of our car once a year). If it weren't for Pesach, it would happen even less frequently. My kids come equipped with rags, a spray bottle, the vacuum, and some q-tips and get the car spic and span in no time. As my daughter was finishing up, she called my husband and me over, "look how beautiful we made the car!"

27) Personalized Seder Cup

28) Leaning Pillow

29) Pesach Puzzles

My children really enjoy puzzles. My 4 year old enjoys the large piece puzzles that end up 3 by 3 feet or so. She's also starting to get into more intricate puzzles. My 2 year old loves the wooden chunky puzzles. There are a variety of manufacturers that put out some great puzzles of the seder plate, matzah & wine, 10 Plagues, etc.

30) Cleaning and Organizing

I mentioned cleaning the car above, however I have discovered over the past week that my kids are really enthusiastic about all cleaning. Although it's not specifically Pesach cleaning, my daughter also loves re-organizing everything that's hers and putting her own systems into place, whether it be her desk, closet, drawers, etc. So while I'm vacuuming their room (after my toddler has his turn of course), she enjoys arranging her toys. Also, I've given my kids the broom and dust pan, a damp cloth, the swiffer, and they get right down to business. Couldn't resist sharing a joke my husband made while we were both cleaning our kitchen last night. "We, the Jewish people, did a big service to the world, we are the originators of spring cleaning."

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20 Chanukah Crafts & Activities!

12/21/2014

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1) Stained Glass Dreidel

My kids loved displaying their stained glass dreidels in our kitchen window for all to see!

Supplies:

a colored piece of construction or cardstock paper
cellophane paper
tissue paper or streamers
glue
scissors

Fold the colored paper in half, cut out the shape of a dreidel, and cut out the inside leaving an inch border. Glue cellophane paper to the dreidel and trim the excess. Glue pieces of tissue paper or streamers to the cellophane.

2) Chanukah Card & Decoration

We were left with the insides of the dreidel from the above project and they were the perfect pieces to make a Chanukah card and decoration.

Supplies:

the leftover dreidel from the Stained Glass Dreidel
stickers, pictures, and any other decorations you have on hand
markers

3) Dreidel Splatter Art

This project was so much fun to do. My toddler can't quite spin the dreidel just yet, so this craft is geared for preschoolers (and adults). I also enjoyed making one!

Supplies:

piece of paper
a box (I used a mandarin box from the produce shop we did last week)
paint
plastic dreidel
scissors

Cut the piece of paper into the shape of a dreidel. Put the paper into a box to contain the mess. Dip a plastic dreidel into paint and spin it inside the box. The splatters and swirls that come off the dreidel create beautiful designs.

4) Play Dreidel

It would be wrong to talk about Chanukah activities and crafts without mentioning playing the game of dreidel. Our family loves playing dreidel right after lighting the menorah. There is something so special about sitting together in front of the beautiful candlelight while enjoying the timeless game of dreidel!

Supplies:

a dreidel
something to keep track of points (ie: marbles, chocolate chips, pennies, small candies)

5) Latkes & Donuts Craft

This craft is very simple, yet my kids loved playing with their delicious creations in their toy kitchen. They also gave all our guests who visited over Chanukah a nibble of the goodies. My daughter made the donuts and my son made the latkes.

Supplies:

smaller paper plate
popsicle stick (preferably the larger size, but a standard one will work too)
construction paper
markers
glue
scissors

Color the popsicle stick and glue it to the paper plate. Cut out shapes of donuts and latkes and glue them to the pan (ergg, I mean plate).

6) Make Latkes

Speaking of making play latkes and donuts, you must enjoy a savory homemade latke on Chanukah! There are a variety of recipes online to suit your taste. My husband, together with his friend, recently put out this video in their new program called The Rabbi & The Chef, which includes a wonderful latkes recipe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9hOiMjAyP0

7) Make Donuts

And Chanukah would be missing some flavor without some traditional donuts, also known as sufganiot. You can find another video from The Rabbi & The Chef here with wonderful tips and a recipe for jelly donuts at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJtJdqUMBF4

8) Hand Print Menorah

There are so many creative ways to make menorahs, we experimented with a few different mediums.

Supplies:

1 piece of paper
paint
a pair of hands

Dip your hands in paint and make a hand print on a sheet of paper with the thumbs meeting. Use your finger to draw a shamas above the thumbs, and then make dots on top of each finger as the flame.

9) Spaghetti Menorah

My kids love pasta (who doesn't?), so this was the next natural step for our menorah exploration.

Supplies:

uncooked spaghetti or linguine noodles
glue
paint or glue
a piece of paper

There are several variations for this craft, depending on the age of your child. For younger children, you can draw a menorah and pre-cut the pasta strands to be the appropriate sizes, and the children can glue them on. For older children, they can do these steps themselves. I didn't trace a menorah outline for my daughter, as she wanted to do everything by herself. Through trial and error, she carefully broke off the excess pieces from the spaghetti so each branch would fit nicely, and then glued them on. She dabbed her finger in paint for the flames, but you can use markers if you prefer. My daughter also wanted to decorate the page with stamps before assembling the menorah. I had a menorah on the table, so she could visually see what she was creating and make adjustments as necessary. She then took the extra pieces and came up with a "mock menorah lighting" so she could practice the blessings before Chanukah arrived. I love when children come up with their own creative activities!

10) Foam Menorah

This is more of an activity than a craft. Or rather, it is a craft for the parents and an activity for the children. Because cutting through foam sheets requires sharp scissors, I recommend the parents do the involved cutting.

Supplies:

sheets of foam (can be purchases at any craft store or Walmart)
velcro
stickers
scissors

Draw and then cut the shape of a menorah on a sheet of foam. Then cut out 8 rectangles to use as candles from a different color sheet of foam, and 1 more longer rectangle that will be the shamash. Children can then decorate the menorah and candles with stickers. Put a piece of velcro at the top of each branch of the menorah and a matching piece on the back of each candle. At first we glued down the menorah to a paper, but we took it off and taped it directly to our front window so that everyone could see it. My kids enjoy adding a candle to the menorah each night after we light the "real" menorah.

11) Cohen's Hat

We actually made this last year as a parsha craft, and while we don't save many of our crafts, this is one that was added to my kids dress up chest. My kids enjoyed acting out scenes from the Beis Hamikdash, as if they were the Cohen Gadol, the high priest, especially in the menorah lighting ceremony.

Supplies:

cardstock paper
tissue paper
stapler and/or tape
markers

Cut out a thick band to go across your child's head, measure the fit and staple or take to close. Cut out two thin pieces to attach to the top of the hat. Inside of those, attach the tissue paper.

12) Olive Press Workshop

This is one community program you don't want to miss. Most cities have this annual program either before or during Chanukah and it's a fantastic hands on opportunity for children to see live and up close how exactly olive oil is made. We attended one that was put on by Rabbi Yechiel Baitelman of Chabad of Richmond and both of my children were spellbound. Between the press machine and the centrifuge, there was never a dull moment.

13) Dreidel Topper

Speaking of oil, this is a great accessory to hang on your bottle of olive oil, if that is what you use to light the menorah. Alternatively, you can hang up as a decoration anywhere you please.

Supplies:

pipe cleaner
beads
ribbon

Bend a pipe cleaner into the shape of a dreidel and then string beads on it. You may have to fix up the shape once the beads are on. Attach a ribbon and voila!

14) Rolling Cotton Wicks

There are many options these days for supplies to light the menorah. Our family enjoys using the age old traditional method of olive oil and cotton wicks. Sure, you can buy pre-made cotton wicks, but that would take away one step of fun. This is a perfect hands on activity for tiny little fingers. It is wonderful for working on fine motor skills. My 4 year old daughter enjoys getting the menorah ready with me in the late afternoon. She rolls the most perfect wicks and is so proud when she tells her father upon his arrival home from work that the menorahs are ready! Even if you don't use olive oil for candles, children love trying this fun experience.

Supplies:

100% cotton balls (not the synthetic ones)

Break off a small piece from the cotton ball and roll it between both hands until it's very thin (you may need to stretch it). When lighting with these, be sure to dip them completely in the olive oil.

15) Wax candles

Another great hands on experience!

Supplies:

sheets of wax
strings of cotton wicks

Place the wick along the inner edge of the sheet of wax and roll tightly outwards. If you do not have enough supplies to use these for all the candles or if you are using oil, these are great for the shamash candle.

16) Candles or Wicks Box

Has this ever happened to you where your entire family is gathered around the menorah, you have everything ready, except for one item? Happens to me all the time, and not just when it comes to lighting the menorah. This box is handy for storing candles or cotton wicks. Being that my birthday is on Chanukah, my husband decorated this beautiful wooden box one year as a gift. It can also be used to store dreidels or any other items you'd like to keep nearby.

Supplies:

a small wooden box (can be purchased at the dollar store)
paint

The instructions for this one are pretty self-explanatory: paint the wooden box. Yup, that's it. And then find a special place to display it.

17) Menorah Challah

A festive challah shaping special for Chanukah! On the top is a picture before the dough is baked, and below it is the finished product. We all enjoyed eating the delicious challah on Friday night, the fourth night of Chanukah.

18) Build a Menorah

The Home Depot as teamed up with a variety of Chabad Houses in Canada and the United States, where families are invited to build menorahs. My children made the top two menorahs in the picture below this year at Home Depot through a wonderful program put on by Chabad of Richmond. My daughter made the bottom menorah last year at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, and she keeps it in her room and stores her mini accessories (ie: rings, hair ties, etc) inside the cups.

19) Attend a Public Menorah Lighting

These are such fun programs for both children and adults. Such a wonderful way to show Jewish pride and unity. From top to bottom, the following pictures are from the Kollel Menorah Lighting outside the Richmond Public Library this year, followed by a picture from last year, and the Center for Judaism Menorah Lighting at the Semiahmoo Mall last year. As you can see, all four of us are having a wonderful time!

20) Light Menorah at Home

This list would be incomplete without this final activity, lighting menorah surrounded by family and friends.

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Cows, Corn, and a Wagon (Parshas Miketz)

12/17/2014

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Pharoah's Dream: Cows

In this week's parsha, we learn about two dreams that Pharoah has. The first is about seven healthy fat cows and seven skinny cows who are grazing by a river. Unexpectedly, the seven thin cows eat the seven fat cows, yet they do not become any fatter. Pharoah is alerted about Yosef, who has a skill at interpreting dreams, who explains that this dream, as well as his second dream about the corn stalks represents seven years of plenty in Egypt that will then be followed by seven years of famine.

This project is from chinuch.org, which is a wonderful resource filled with a variety of crafts, projects, and learning strategies. You can find the templates for this project at http://www.chinuch.org/item_detail/Parshas-Mikeitz-Project-Pharohs-Dream

Supplies:

envelope
glue
scissors
7 pictures of fat cows
7 pictures of skinny cows
optional: colored paper

You will begin by cutting out both sets of cows and you can then color them. My daughter stuck the cows to colored paper to make the cards a little sturdier. Glue the skinny cows to the front of the envelop and the fat cows are placed inside to represent the skinny cows eating them.

Pharoah's Dream: Corn

In Pharoah's second dream, a stalk with seven sickly ears of corn eat a stalk of seven healthy ears of corn.

Supplies:

a piece of lego
yellow paint
a white sheet of paper
green construction paper
glue
scissors

This is a really fun project. Begin by cutting out the white paper into the shape of corn. Pour some yellow paint onto a plate. Dip a piece of lego into the paint and 'stamp' it onto the corn until the sheet is filled. Cut out and glue green leaves to the top.

The Brothers Travel to Egypt

Yaakov and his families suffers when the seven years of famine begin. He sends all of his sons except for Binyamin to buy food in Egypt. In this project, we depict the scene with the brothers on their way to meet Yosef in Egypt. My friend gave me the template for this project, so unfortunately, I do not have the pictures used here, however you can use clipart to find pictures of 10 boys.

Supplies:

2 colours of cardstock or construction paper
clip art or drawings of brothers
drawing of a horse
pipe cleaner or ribbon
stapler
scissors
glue

Take one of the pieces of cardstock and form it into the shape of a wagon (or a box) by folding the edges and stapling them. Cut out 4 circles for the wheels and staple or glue them to the wagon. Color, cut, and glue the pictures of the brothers inside the wagon. Poke a hole in the front of the wagon and attach a horse with a pipe cleaner or ribbon.

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Yosef's Multi-Color Coat & Dreams, Tie Dye Tshirt, 12 Tribes Dolls (Parshas Vayeshev)

12/10/2014

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Yosef's Coat of Many Colors

Yosef is the apple of his father's eye, and Yaakov makes him a beautiful coat of many colors. We made our own version this week.

Supplies:

1 sheet of white paper
streamers or tissue paper of a variety of colors cut into squares
glue stick
scissors

Cut the paper into the shape of a coat. Either you or your child can cut or rip pieces of the streamers or tissue paper into squares. Glue down the pieces to make a beautiful coat of bright vibrant colors.

Tie Dye T-shirt

Having a tissue paper coat wasn't enough for us, we wanted a real life multi-color garment, so we tried our hand at tie dye. It was a first for my daughter and me, so definitely a learning experience.

Supplies:

white t-shirt
elastic bands
tie dye colors
ziplock bag

You can purchase a simple white t-shirt at a store like Michael's for $4 or you can use an old undershirt. Each tie dye package will come with its own instructions, but here's roughly what we did. I got mine at Walmart for $1 per color (my daughter naturally chose her favorite colors, pink and purple). Gather fabric in various places on the tshirt and wrap them in elastic bands. You will have bulges sticking out all over the place. Then take your tie dye solution and you will dip the tshirt areas into it or squirt it on, depending how it's packaged. We did this leaning over the bathtub to contain the mess. Put the t-shirt into a ziplock bag and let it absorb the die for several hours. We left it overnight so that the colors would be more vibrant. Take out the elastic bands and wash and dry twice to set the color. My daughter has decided that this t-shirt is her favorite pajama. There are a variety of designs and patterns that can be made using tie dye, if you'd like something on the fancier side, just do a quick internet search for tutorials.

Yosef's 2 Dreams

Yosef has two dreams, one about wheat and the other about stars. In his first dream, there are 12 bushels of wheat and suddenly his rises up, while the other bushels bow down to it. In the second dream, the sun, moon, and stars bow down to him. This was a craft my friend sent me, so unfortunately I don't have a link for the templates, but you can find the pictures in clipart.

Supplies:

a sheet of construction or cardstock paper
cotton balls
star stickers
a picture of the sun, moon, and 12 bushels of wheat, and 2 big empty blurbs for each dream
glue
scissors

Cut out the pictures and glue one bushel of wheat in the middle of one of the blurbs with the 11 other bushels bowing down to it. In the other blurb, place the star stickers, the sun, and the moon. Glue down cotton balls around the perimeter of the page.

12 Tribes: Playing with Dolls

My daughter has quite the doll collection, this seems to be a popular birthday gift for a preschooler and she is happy to receive 2 or 3 at each birthday. She enjoyed dressing up her dolls (and some stuffed animals) and then practiced singing the tribe's names and acting out scenes from the parsha.

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Soup (Recipe Included), Puppets, Shapes (Parshas Toldos)

11/28/2014

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Lentil Soup (Real)

Who doesn't love a good hearty soup on a cold (almost) winter day? I always joke to my kids about various Torah portions and their "perfect timing." For example, it works out well that the story with Avraham greeting the 3 men who were sitting under a tree takes place in the fall, when the foliage is so beautiful and glorious. Leads to some great tree crafts. In this parsha, Eisav sells his birth right to Yaacov for a bowl of lentil soup. So while my son was napping, my daughter and I whipped up a nice big batch to last us several days, perfect for the sudden shift in weather. Besides being delicious, lentil soup is super healthy. In addition to all the wholesome vegetables that go into it, lentils alone are a great source of iron, protein, and fiber.

Supplies (aka Recipe):

onions
garlic (I prefer cloves, but you can use powder as well)
carrots
celery
yams or sweet potatoes
lentils (anywhere between 1 - 3 cups, depending on the size of your pot)
salt & pepper to taste
optional: ginger (I love using fresh ginger, it adds great flavour to soups, can also use powder)
optional: beef marrow bones

When I cook, I often use whatever ingredients I already have at home, and I base quantities on our family's taste. I came up with the above recipe for lentil soup based on what I have in the pantry. I made it fleishig (with meat) because I had an extra package of beef marrow bones that I didn't put in the cholent on Shabbos. But I've also made pareve (vegetarian) lentil soup and it tastes great! I like to saute the onions and garlic for a few minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients, it adds a wonderful flavour to most soups. But if you're short on time, you can certainly skip that step.

Lentil Soup - Pretend Play

Just like his big sister, my son also had a go at making his own lentil soup! You can also play a game where you ask your child to pass you a variety of vegetables based on their name or color.

Supplies:

play food
bowl & ladle

Yaacov and Eisav Puppets

We made Yaakov and Eisav puppets to use as we talked about the parsha. My friend sent me the templates for these puppets, I wish I could link the project but I don't have the name of the website. You can cut your own. We used red yarn for Eisav, and identified Yaacov with his kipa and tzitzis. We also used scraps of fabric for his arms when he went to Yitzchak for the bracha. If you have velcro on hand, you can attach the fabric with velcro and put it on when talking about the specific scene involving the bracha. Alternatively, you can glue it on.

Supplies:

A cut out of 2 puppets (preferably on cardstock paper to make it sturdier)
kipa and tzitzis images
scraps of fabric
red yarn
googly eyes
popsicle sticks
scissors
glue
optional: velcro

Song about the Names in this Parsha

A great song to learn the names in this parsha:

Yaacov and Eisav were twin brothers,
Rivka their mother, Yitzchak their father.
Do you think they were the same?
No no no, say that again.

Shapes: Differences & Similarities

Taking cue from the above parsha song the kids sang almost every day, I thought it would be a great week to learn about (for my toddler) and review (for my preschooler) shapes. We discussed what they are called, their unique characteristics, their similarities, and their differences. My 2 year old enjoyed working on a shapes puzzle (by Melissa and Doug). I had precut each shape in a small and large size for my 4 year, she matched each one, and then glued them down when I called out their name. If you'd like, you can write down the name of each shape beside it.

Supplies:

2 colors construction paper
glue
scissors

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Well, Camels, and Jewelry (Parshas Chayei Sara)

11/11/2014

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Eliezer's Journey to Find a Wife for Yitzchak;.

Avraham and Sara ask their trusted assistant Eliezer to travel to find a wife for the son Yitzchak. In this parsha we learn of a beautiful scene where Rivka assists Eliezer and all 10 of camels by providing them with water. He recognizes Rivka's kindness and he asks if she will take Yitzchak's hand in marriage.

My kids love doing pretend play and acting out scenes from the parsha. Unfortunately, we don't have any camels to use as props, so we called in our ducks, sheep, cows, giraffe, and moose to act out as camels. We used mitzvah kinder toys for Eliezer and Rivka, and we had no shortage of jewelry to be the gifts that Eliezer gave to Rivka.

Camel Cards

I thought this would be a great opportunity to practice a few different skills with my children. My 25 month old enjoyed sorting the camels into piles of 1 hump and 2 humps, counting the cards, and a basic matching game. My 4 year old worked on patterns. I set up different patterns for her and had her place which card she thought would go next. For example, 1 hump, 2 humps, 1 hump, 2 humps, 2 humps, 1 hump, ______ .

We also learned about traveling in the dessert, camels, why they are the perfect travel companions in hot places, what they store in their humps, etc.

Supplies:

printer
white paper
coloured paper

This is more of an activity than a craft, but children (depending on their ages) can help. My daughter helped with cutting and gluing. Use a clipart image of a camel with one hump and copy and paste it five times to fit on one paper. Do the same for a camel with two humps. Cut out the camels, and glue them onto another square to make them a little more sturdy and colourful. Children can also colour in the camels.

Eliezer's Gifts for Rivka - Beaded Jewelery

Eliezer presented Rivka and her family with a variety of gifts, some of which included jewelry. My kids enjoy making bracelets and necklaces throughout the year, but it was extra special this week. It's also a great activity to work on fine motor skills.

Supplies:

String, shoe lace, or plastic lace
Beads

Edible Necklaces

What's better than jewelry and a snack? When the two are combined! My kids started off their morning by making Cheerios necklaces and got to eat them right after. Breakfast and a craft!

Supplies:

String, shoe lace, or plastic lace
Cheerios

Dessert Diorama

This project was entirely my daughter's idea. She wanted to create the well scene from the dessert in 3-dimention, so we decided to make a diorama. She gathered a variety of materials from our home and asked me to help her cut some them them, but otherwise this project was her unique creation. A diorama can be made from a variety of household and crafting items, but I'll include the supplies that we used.

Supplies:

a box (shoebox, produce box, paper box, etc)
construction paper
pipe cleaners
empty tape roll (to create the perimeter of the well)
beads

Sara's Shabbos Candles

In this week's Parsha, we learn that Sara Imeinu passes away. She leaves a true legacy and her Shabbos candles stay burning the entire week!

Supplies:

2 colours of construction paper
liquid glue
glitter
aluminum foil
scissors

Take two pieces of aluminum foil and shape them into two circles. Press down and glue at the bottom of your paper. Cut out two tall candles from the other piece of construction paper and glue them to fit into the candle holders. Put some glue at the top of the candles and sprinkle on the glitter, shaking off the excess. You can also decorate the candle holders with glitter in the same manner.

Book Recommendation: Kind Little Rivka

* Kind Little Rivka, By Dina Rosenfeld, Illustrated by Ilene Winn-Lederer, Hachai Publishing

Given that we have this book both in English in Russian, I am sure that you guessed that it's one of the favorites in our home! We all love the beautiful stories of kindness and the bright pictures in this book.

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Avraham's Tent, Tent Diorama, Colourful Tree (Parshas Vayeira)

11/7/2014

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Avraham's Tent

In this week's Torah portion, Parshas Veyeira, we learn about Avraham & Sara's incredible hachnosos orchim, being kind and hospitable to guests. His tent had four openings so that he could see when people were travelling from any direction, so he could offer assistance to them.

Supplies:

A square or rectangular table
1 large table cloth or flat sheet or 2 medium ones
4 clips (can be office foldback clips or food storage clips, etc)

Drape a sheet over your table. Clip the middle of each side up to create an opening. Then enjoy hours of pretend play using the structure as a tent. My children enjoyed baking goods in their play kitchen and bringing them to the tent, where they proceeded to offer the goods to the many (pretend) people who passed by. They even helped them say the brachos (blessings) on the food.

Tent Diorama

We also made the scene from this week's parsha in 3-D.

Supplies:

1 sheet of cardstock paper
1 paper or styrofoam bowl
paint or markers
empty toilet paper roll
green construction paper
glue
scissors
sand or glitter

Take a disposable bowl and cut four openings in it to represent the four entrances to Avraham's tent. Colour or paint the bowl and glue it onto the cardstock paper. Then, take a toilet paper roll and glue a green rectangular piece of construction paper at the top. Cut strips on the green paper to make a fringe from the leaves on the tree. Cut four 1cm slits at the bottom of the toilet paper roll and bend outwards so you can glue it down. Spread glue onto the cardstock sheet and sprinkle sand or glitter onto it (not pictured in our project, as it was done after uploading the photo).

A Colourful Tree
We learned that 3 angels who were in the form of people were sitting under a tree when Avraham approached them offering food and drink. This project is perfect for the parsha, and has great timing as it's a wonderful opportunity for children to learn about the fall season and the change of colours on the leaves.

Supplies:

1 sheet of cardstock paper
red, orange, yellow, green paint
some twigs or branches
green tissue paper, streamer, or construction paper

Break or cut the twigs into one long piece to be the trunk and 6 smaller pieces to be the branches. Glue them on and let dry for several hours. Glue a strip of green paper along the bottom and you can cut slits to create a fringe. Using your fingers, make dots all around the branches in a variety of colours. Both my 2 and 4 year old children equally enjoyed this project. We talked about why leaves change colours and what happens to them in each of the seasons. We had a great time walking throughout our neighbourhood finding trees that had all the different colours of leaves that we painted

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Name Change (Parshas Lech Lecha)

10/30/2014

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In this weeks parsha, Lech Lecha, Hashem changes Avraham's name from "Avram" to "Avraham." We did a great project where we learned about his change of name and got to review our Alef Beis.

Supplies:

Nice sheet of card stock paper
Alef Beis stamps
Markers

While doing this project we explained to the kids why Hashem changed Avraham's name and what the letter "Hey" represents. Bayla used her Alef Beis stamps to write the old name and the new name. Tomorrow we are going to do a name change certificate for Sarah!

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Noach's Ark & the Rainbow (Parshas Noach)

10/24/2014

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You were probably wondering why you have been saving all those little green plastic containers that strawberries come in! Well, now you know why. For this week's parsha we did two fantastic crafts. The first was making Noach's ark, and the second was making a rainbow (which symbolizes G-d's promise that He will never make another flood).

Supplies:

green plastic container from strawberries
brown construction paper
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple construction paper
cotton balls

Noach's Ark: You can shape the brown paper around the green container into the shape of a boat and then tape it at both ends. Also, you'll want to make a small door so that the animals can get in and out of the boat.

Rainbow: Cut the the various colours of the rainbow into different size arc's so that red is the biggest and purple the smallest. Then glue them onto a background sheet. Then glue cotton balls underneath.

Our kids loved both of these projects! Hope yours do too.

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Ki Savo

9/12/2014

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First Fruits Basket

In this week's parsha, we learn that when the people of Israel settle the Land, they are to take the first fruits of their fields, and bring them in baskets to the Kohen, who places them in front of the alter for Hashem.

Begin by folding one of the pieces of card stock in half and cut slits about one inch wide beginning from the folded side up until an inch from the other side. On the other piece of card stock, cut one inch strips of paper. Use the strips to weave in and out of the paper with the slits going over and under each slit, and then tape each edge. Once the weaving is complete, fold about two inches of each side over carefully taping the four edges. Use a left over strip to tape a handle onto the basket.

Several weeks ago, as a craft for Parshas Eikev, we made the seven species fruits out of sponges, so now we had a fun basket to keep the fruits in.

Supplies: