Hanukkah STEM Challenge - Dreidel Making Workshop

If you’re looking for a fun Hanukkah STEM challenge, try this dreidel making workshop – a really fun Chanukah activity for kids! When you’re done, try learning how to make a dreidel out of clay too. This post contains affiliate links.

I’m always looking for ways to entertain kids who don’t love very structured activities and this one is a win! As the mom of some boys who are very into STEM, anything that brings those kinds of elements usually go over very well.

A while ago, we threw M a Dog Man themed birthday party and as one of the activities, we had a “robot making workshop”. I put out all sorts of supplies and told the kids to go to town with it. Really, that’s all.

It entertained them for longer than I’ve ever managed to keep boys busy at a tabletop activity.

I wanted to replicate that with a dreidel making workshop – as really fun and open ended Hanukkah STEM challenge. The main difference? In this case it actually needs to work!

M wasn’t around when we did it but me, Y (9 year old boy) and A (5 year old girl) all had fun with it. A didn’t actually make anything that worked but Y and I did. She still had lots of fun with it.

How to Set up a Dreidel Making Workshop for a Hanukkah STEM Challenge

I’m going to walk you through different ways to run this workshop. First, we’ll start with the actual setup. Then I’ll share some tips for different age groups, settings, and group sizes.

I will, of course, also share what we made!

Choosing Supplies

The core of this Hanukkah STEM challenge is to offer the correct tools. Offer supplies with dreidel structure in mind, but don’t tell kids what to do or how to use them. Let them figure all that out.

I’ve categorized it for your convenience but I don’t recommend categorizing it for them – just put it all out!

How many you choose should depend on your group size – for smaller groups, go for a few choices in each category, and for larger groups do more. We didn’t put out all of this because we were a small group – I’m including ideas that I can simply recommend.

A fabulous place to start is simply to walk around your house (or explore your craft closet) and see what can be used. Then fill in where you think it can help. Tip: if doing this in a school setting, send home a list of materials kids can bring in – the “found” ones from the list especially.

I included some ideas with a specific use in mind and some to let them just experiment with.

Basic Craft Supplies

You’ll want to have some basic tools out to support their crafting. These aren’t specific to any part of the dreidel, and some are more essential than others.

Scissors
Glue – something like tacky glue can work with different materials. Older kids (12+) should be able to handle hot glue which might be needed for some things.
Paper Tape such as washi, masking tape
Air dry clay – this can be used in so many ways, definitely have it there
Paint Markers
Cardboard scraps
Pom Poms
Chenille stems
Face stickers – just for fun

Dreidel Body

Wood Cubes
CDs and DVDs
Wooden wheel – and similar wood turnings
Wheels from old toy cars or LEGO wheels
Large buttons
Bottle caps
Plastic shot glasses – we didn’t make a successful dreidel with it, but it can be played more with making a cone base, etc.
Other recyclables like small boxes, bottles, etc. for jumbo dreidels

Stem & Base

Some things in what we crafted worked for both since it’ll often spin on a stick-like item, so I’ve combined these sections.

Wood spools (works on larger dreidels)
Toothpicks, skewers
Old crayons
Pencil stubs
Paperclips
Mini and full size clothespins
Marbles
Wood beads
Half-ball wood pieces
If you can find shapes like cylinders, pyramids and cones from wood – go for that.
Toy pieces – like snowflake toys, etc
LEGO bits and pieces – don’t give too many of these, unless you want them just building LEGO! Stick to 1-2 shapes to offer – like cylinders and cones

Letters

You don’t need to provide anything for letters. On this wood dreidel craft, we used Cricut letters. I had planned to do the same for this dreidel making workshop but didn’t get to it, so we just wrote it on with paint markers.

Aleph-bet stickers
Nun, Gimmel, Hey, Shin/Pey stickers cut on a Cricut
Small Aleph bet stencils
Preprinted letters cut from paper that they can glue on.

Laying it out

You want to have everything laid out in a way that kids can easily see what they have and choose their materials.

Place smaller items that roll in bowls. Especially if crafting with a larger group, clear bowls or jars can help them see it easier. Larger items should be on plates.

Place tools like scissors and glue in easy reach.

Items that you have only a few of should be combined.

You can organize it for larger groups into “choose a body” and “add a stem” etc. This works for groups that need more direction and support. My preferred way to run this is to let kids totally work it out on their own.

Tips for running this Hanukkah STEM Challenge

When running any group activity, coordination is everything – here are some favorite settings for a dreidel making workshop, as well as tips for doing it based on different circumstances.

Different Settings & Different ways to run a dreidel making workshop

Family – since it works so well with different age groups, you can do this as a family activity. Set it up after Menorah lighting as a bonding activity. If you’re the type of family that does different themed nights or activities each night, this one is a unique one that they’ll want to repeat! Follow it up with a game of dreidel.
School – My kids often have PTA events or crafts on Chanukah in school and this activity is perfect for that. You’re dealing with kids close in age so you’ll be able to offer more targeted supplies.
You’ll want to set up a long table with the supplies (as opposed to doing it at desks) so kids can choose, pass, etc. Kids can have more help here, as it’ll be a highly supervised activity.
You can also divide kids into smaller groups and turn it into a contest with an impartial set of judges. Judge based on functionality, fairness (does it fall on all the letters a good amount of time), how well it spins, how creative it is, how well constructed, etc.
Family parties – I always like to set up a craft or activity table at a family party, and no, there is no one there to run it. The kids do their own thing. In this setup, you want it as easy as possible. You’ll have kids from lots of different age groups here. Set out a few samples that they can learn from and keep supplies basic. If it’s the kind of crowd where parents will supervise, you can go a little further with it. And you can also do a contest for this one.

This is also a fun Hanukkah STEM challenge for Sunday workshops, shul parties, and virtually any setting – you’ll just need to adapt.

Adapting it by age

If you’re targeting a specific age group, you can really get much more specific with you you set up your dreidel making workshop. Here are some age-based pointers:

For younger kids, I’d recommend aleph-bet stickers. You won’t be able to use a glue gun, of course, but you can have an adult there to glue things on as kids instruct. You may want to stick to lightweight, porous materials to avoid the need for a hot glue gun.
For older kids, you can provide more options – and a hot glue gun. Skip the more “classic” craft supplies like pom poms but go double on the paper and cardboard- they’ll know how to use it better. They can form stems by rolling it, bases by forming a cone, etc.

The outcome of our dreidel making workshop

Ready to see our results?

Our favorites (Y copied me on these) were the CD dreidel – with a clothespin shoved through the center and a bead glued to the base. The wooden wheel with a straw through the center was hands down the best.

We also used clay to make bases for wooden blocks. Y’s straw stem worked better than my clay stem. The clay does need to be reglued after it dries.