Passover is steeped in tradition and commemoration.
While this spring holiday is full of historical significance and reflection, it’s also a chance for loved ones to gather, make memories and create traditions of their own. For kids, especially, Passover can be a wondrous time, particularly when they’re busy with creative activities and imaginative projects!
Wondering how you can get your kids more involved in preparation and celebration this Passover? Don’t miss out on these exciting educational activities to get your little ones inspired!
Create culinary traditions together
Let’s face it: the kitchen isn’t always a stress-free environment to let kids run wild! But during Passover, it’s an especially meaningful time to create culinary traditions for the whole family.
While you might be busy preparing the Seder (the ceremonial feast that takes place at the beginning of Passover) you can still involve kids in things like meal preparation: whether that’s working together to whip up a simple-but-flavorful matzo ball soup or letting them take the reins and mix the fragrant and flavorful haroseth.
Perhaps teach your child a family-favorite recipe, or look up some traditional or more adventurous ones for them to assist with.
If your kiddos are still walking around in toddler sets and not quite ready to let loose in the kitchen – we totally get it – they can aid in other ways. Let them put out decorations, set out place settings, or assist in other meaningful ways during the Seder.
Once everything is prepared, all that’s left is for them to do is dress up in their Passover best, whether that’s adorable dresses, rompers, sweaters or comfortable tops.
Make a DIY Seder plate
The Seder plate is a symbolic, sensory-rich dish that represents the Exodus story. While many households that celebrate already have a dedicated plate on hand, creating a DIY Seder plate is a fun and informative activity to tackle with kids.
Crafting a Seder plate not only teaches children about each integral, influential part of Passover, it’s also a great tradition that you can repeat annually, especially in those adorable family-matching pajamas.
What’s great about a DIY Seder plate is you don’t have to splurge on porcelain and paints. A paper plate and some colorful cupcake liners will even suffice.
You could even make it super easy on yourself and print out a completed Seder plate, like this gorgeous, well-designed template, for ultra sufficient, seamless crafting.
Let your kiddo’s inner Picasso take the reins decorating the plate and swoop in to help them glue or tape down dedicated sections, explaining the meaning and symbolism of each specific provision or piece and its connection to Passover.
Recreate the crossing of the Red Sea
Passover is full of important details. Introducing children to the meaning of each event, like the ten plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea, can be heavy and difficult to explain, so it’s useful to complete a craft that explains the story in an age-appropriate way.
We’ve seen some fun activities that detail things like ten plagues through finger puppets, but one make-it-your-own activity we’re particularly inspired by is a recreation of the crossing of the Red Sea, and the best part is there’s no wrong way to do it.
Whether you want to snag some blue construction paper and roll it into shapely waves, borrow some of your children’s Legos or peg dolls to cross down the parted sea, or turn your tablescape into the inspiring event, you can craft this seascape however you like, and the visualization of this miracle will certainly mesmerize.
Decorate a vibrant Elijah cup
A key part of the Seder is the ceremonial wine left untouched for Elijah. Those who take part in this tradition often utilize goblets and glasses for the beverage, but one great way to get children involved in the Seder is through letting them decorate a bright and bold Elijah cup.
Depending on your child’s age, you can source different materials, like a paper cup, plastic glass, or even a thrift store-purchased wine glass. Whatever material you’re comfortable with your kiddos handling will suffice.
Unsure on where to start? Well, we love this inspiring and colorful tutorial that transforms a secondhand wine glass into a vibrant, rainbow-hued container for Elijah. Kids might need to help along the way, but we promise fun and fascination is in store for all.
Embrace the magic of reading
Reading takes us on a journey to other worlds, but it can also teach us about the one we live in as well. There’s a lot of intricacies and details to teach your children about Passover as they grow, which is why it’s nice to call in reinforcements in the form of literacy.
“I like to choose a mix of books that include the story and history of the holiday and explain how we celebrate it,” Marion Haberman of @myjewishmommylife says of reading books to her children during Passover.
No matter your child’s age, there are plenty of children’s books you can buy online or check out at your local library that discuss the significance and meaning of Passover for all ages.
Here are some great suggestions to start with:
My First Passover by Tomie dePaola
It’s Passover, Grover by Jodie Shepherd
Pippa’s Passover Plate by Vivian Kirkfield
Let My People Go! by Tilda Balsley
Welcoming Elijah by Leslea Newman
Make reading a nightly routine: Cuddle up in your cozy adult pajamas while your kids snuggle in their Cloud Blankets® learning all the ins and outs of this holiday from the pages in front of them.
Make your own Afikomen bag
The hiding of the Afikomen bag is a Seder tradition many children come to love. Usually, a broken piece matzah is tucked away in this bag for eager children to find and retrieve, and while you could invest in a frills-free bag for this tradition, decorating a Afikomen bag is a wonderful opportunity to involve kiddos in a core memory-making way.
The bag itself can be made from felt, linen, cotton, construction paper – really any moldable material that can be glued or sewn into an envelope; you can also use an unadorned bag you already have on hand.
Here are two great tutorials for making your own Afikomen bag if you decide to go that route:
Paper Afikomen Bag
Felt Afikomen Bag
Once you have your bag prepared, have your child add the embellishments in the form of stickers, markers, paints, buttons, beads, glitter, sequins and other adornments that will make this bag sparkle and shine.
Create Passover popsicle puppets
The cast of characters central to Passover include those like Moses, Miriam and Pharaoh. For the youngest kiddos, it can be difficult to keep track of the importance of each formative person, which is why it’s helpful to give a face to a name.
One way to help your children recognize the influence of each character in the story is to create easy-to-assemble puppets, which you can create from print-outs and popsicle sticks.
You can source images of Passover characters from free printable templates and even places like Etsy. Once these puppets are cut into shapes, let your kiddos bestow them with color and character before gluing them onto the handheld sticks.
What you do from here is up to you, whether you want to walk your children through each character detailing their influence, or bring to life the whole cast by reenacting key parts of the Passover story. The world is your oyster with this one!
Make it your own & you’ll succeed!
Preparing for Passover can be a busy, bustling time for your household, but don’t fret so much that you miss out on the opportunity to reflect, relax and spend time together making memories.
If your children are still learning about this holiday, any of the crafts suggested above are sure to enlighten and engage, and as long as you make them your own, you are sure to succeed and have some fun along the way.
If you do tackle any of these crafts, be sure to tag us!
