Printable Simanim Puppets - Rosh Hashanah Craft for Kids

Craft these printable simanim puppets for educational Rosh HaShana play! When you’re done, check out these color & craft Rosh Hashanah cards too! This post contains affiliate links.

Rosh Hashanah – the Jewish New Year – sets the tone for the entire year to come. At the festive Rosh Hashanah meals, it’s customary to eat simanim – foods that represent various blessings for the new year. These delightful simanim puppets will help you share these traditions with your kids and guests.

I’m a huge fan of puppets because they are so fun and imaginative to play with – but there are other things you can do with cute simanim figures, too:

You can use them as part of your table decor or holiday greeting cards.
You can stick them onto the ends of toothpicks and use them as cake toppers
Or, stick them into the actual simanim foods you’re serving to give the dishes an adorable character.

When your kids work on this puppet craft before Rosh Hashanah, they’ll learn about what to expect and build anticipation for the holiday. They’ll also be engaged in a fun activity that exercises their fine motor skills of coloring, cutting, and gluing or taping.

This is a great, easy activity for a school or shul group to engage the children as they learn about this important custom.

But if you’re short on time (or on kids. You don’t need to have kids to have adorable holiday decor!) I’ve created a pre-colored downloadable for you! You’re even getting a PNG file so you can put your die-cutting machine or Cricut to work for you!

In addition to the puppets, this premium download includes an illustrated, concise explanation of the foods and their significance. You can use this to guide you as you discuss this project with your kids or students, or as you present the simanim at your holiday table.

GET IT HERE!

About the Simanim

The apple and honey are iconic, but did you know there are actually many foods that symbolize Jewish New Year blessings? This project template includes the most common simanim traditions: Apple and honey (of course), fish, fish head, pomegranate, gourd, carrot, leek, beets, date, and black-eyed peas.

Did I mention that this is a great way to get your kids excited about trying a variety of healthy fruits and vegetables?!

Downloading the templates

The puppet template includes a two-page PDF of simanim characters (to print and cut by hand), transparent .png images that you can use with a cutting machine, and a one-page explanation of the simanim.

You can choose a color-your-own version, which can really extend kids’ involvement and engagement with this craft, or you can download the colored version for quicker assembly.

This is a premium template, available in my Etsy shop. Your purchase gives you a personal and classroom use license. Yes, you can even use it for your shul too, or in a free library event (up to 30 copies). For large institutions or other uses, reach out to me at [email protected].

GET IT HERE!