These 5 Pesach mazes are a super fun Passover activity for kids – and include a free printable as well! Check out this Kids’ Interactive Haggadah Craft Template as well! This post contains affiliate links.

It can be hard to find tabletop activities for kids who are a bit less crafty, but puzzle-type activities that require a bit of brainwork are often a big winner. For Passover, when neat boredom busters are often in high demand, I figured that some Pesach mazes are in order!

Get the Pesach Mazes

I created a total of five Pesach mazes for you to download and print. They cover various cleaning and Pesach themes. I’ll explain more in-depth on each below, but meanwhile, here is where you can get them.

I decided to offer the first one for free – the “A Chametz Maze.”

Get the Full Bundle

The full bundle includes all five mazes as well as printable solutions – “spoilers”. That is the Chametz maze (the one available for free as well) a 4 cups maze, an Afikoman maze, a Seder Plate maze, and an exodus themed maze.

The full bundle of Pesach mazes is available for a few bucks in my shop, on Etsy, and on TpT. Purchasing premium products from me enables me to keep doing what I do, to give more focus to my Jewish blog, creating authentically Jewish resources for homes, educators, and parents.

Get the free printable Passover Maze

The free maze is a challenge to “bag” all the ten pieces of Chametz. It’s in the shape of a piece of bread. some pieces are off the solution path and are detours, some are along the way. It’s highly educational, and serves as a pseudo “bedikat chametz” (searching for Chametz) activity for kids.

Download your free maze! It’ll arrive right in your inbox. By downloading, you’re subscribing to our FREE newsletter with updates on cool printables like this, ideas to simplify Jewish life, and more. Unsubscribe at any time at the bottom my emails. I respect your privacy and the law, and won’t share or sell your email address.

More about the 5 Pesach Mazes

My 9 year old, Y, is very into mazes and he tests them for me. This is important because he HAS found mistakes that I then went and fixed.

All my mazes are hand/digitally drawn using graphing paper and a very simple (but painstaiking and long) technique. In a world of AI, I hope you can appreciate it!

The designs

A 4 Cups Maze is one of my favorites. It has multiple entry and exit points, and you need to figure them out! Y took a few tries but he got it. If you have a child who doesn’t love that concept, you can simply look at the solutions (spoilers) pages and make arrows for them. But I wanted to add to the challenge and switch things up a bit.

An Exodus Maze is the only one that really focuses on the story behind Passover. It’s shaped in a kind of tapered squiggly rectangle intentionally to symbolize a journey. The maze starts at the pyramids (for Egypt) and ends at the date palms (for Israel.)

A Ke’Arah (seder plate) Maze is a simple shaped maze that uses the circles of the “bowls” on the seder plate as part of the maze. The pathway goes through some of the circles.

An Afikoman Maze focuses on the kids’ favorite part of the Seder – finding the Afikoman. Solvers need to help Moshe unearth the Afikoman before midnight.

A Chametz Maze has a really cool twist – and is the one you can download for free above. I added some pieces of Chametz (mostly bread, but a few others too) througout. Some were added along the solution pathways, and some are detours. All pieces must be collected.

It sounds hard, but it’s not! Kids can complete the whole maze, circle pieces as they pass them, and then go back along the path (starting from the solution) to collect the ones they miss. The goal of this one was twofold: 1. They learn the basics of Bedikat Chametz (searching for Chametz) and Biur Chametz (they collect the pieces and bring them to a dumpster fire) 2. They get a bit of a review of different foods that in their standard wheat form are Chametz.

Tips for solving and completing it

I don’t REALLY have a system for “grading” the mazes. I have a system for drawing them to make sure they are solvable one way and not too easy. I switch between grid sizes and try to add a little twist to switch things up.

My best system for doability is my 9 year old. He gets excited when I’m done a new set and does them right away.

My goal is to have him need to use a pencil, but able to solve it with minimal frustration. So I definitely recommend doing this with a pencil – as I encourage him to. That way, it can be erased and restarted. Of course, since it’s printable, you can always print a new copy if needed.

When the maze is completed, I usually encourage him to outline the final path with a marker. I used to color in my maze solution pathway totally.

Since I also provide Spoilers with your purchase, you can also provide hints for kids as needed. And of course, when complete, kids can always color them in too!

If you didn’t get get the Pesach mazes in my shop, on Etsy, and on TpT.

The post Pesach Mazes to Print – 5 Medium Passover Maze Printables appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

The highlight of every Chanukah party in our house is the kids’ craft or activity table. We always have something fun to do to keep the kids happy, away from lit Menorahs, and not just eating junk.

Hanukkah party activities can also serve as bonding experiences when people don’t know each other so well. Instead of just milling around, it provides a conversation starter. And yes, these Hanukkah party activities are great for adult parties too. In-fact, the icebreaker element is stronger at adult parties!

And a final note: craft activities done at parties can double as a fun take-home activity too.

Different types of parties and choosing activities

A Chanukah party can be so many different things – and so while I categorized the ideas below by activity type, I figured I’d also share some pointers for how to choose, which categories to look at based on who’s attending.

The small, intimate family party

For smaller family parties, gift-giving games can be a hit – especially if you’re not the type of family where everyone is exchanging gifts anyway.

You can also do slightly more involved crafts that require supervision or instruction. Choose ones that are good for multiple age groups and have parents help. Dry time shouldn’t be a big issue if all family is local – it can stay at the host’s house until pickup time. If family traveled in, look for crafts that dry within an hour, and close down the activity early enough for things to dry.

For very small families, Hanukkah-themed (or not!) board games can really be a win.

The “friends and family” party where not everyone knows each other

For parties where not necessarily does everyone know each other, activities serve as ice-breakers too. Avoid games (like those gift-giving ones I mentioned above) where knowing each other is more necessary. Stick to open-ended crafts that can be put out and enjoyed without much instruction.

Things like decorating crafts that don’t require assembly – you’re just decorating an item – work best. Opt for those with minimal dry time so that they can be brought home the same day. We also like non-craft activities like coloring pages, activity sheets, sensory bins, etc for this type of event.

The large extended family party

When the crowd is very big, the activity needs to be staggered and very simple. Each family member can contribute for a larger activity (I have one super cool idea that our extended family has been doing below) or keep it to a simple puzzle that people can do individually.

Another idea is once again to have a very simple no-explanation-needed tabletop decorating activity. Avoid food for this (it’ll make such a mess and get chaotic fast) but coloring, decorate-your-owns, etc work well for this. Printables work well here too as they are super cheap and self-explanatory.

If doing a craft, make sure there’s no dry time at all – parents should be able to tuck it right into their bags to take home.

The classroom party

Classroom parties can be hyper-targeted towards the age group you’re working with. That means you can do much cooler things as it’s a naturally calm setting, where oversight is the norm.

Dry time won’t be an issue with crafts done in the classroom – that’s the norm.

The shul or school-wide party

When working with a very large group with various ages, activities that work best are passive entertainers – like magicians, game shows, or similar receptive activities. If you want something the kids (or adults) can actually do, follow the model of the large family.

For schools, if it’s for students only (and not families), you’ll want something kids can do totally independently, with a staff member or two there for oversight. If you want to do something more involved, you’ll need a few helpers and to do it in batches.

Since shul parties are usually family parties, you can work with things that parents can oversee for their own kids, just avoid crafts that require dry time if you can.

An Adults-only (work, shul, etc) party

Here’s where I highly recommend that you work with the workshop model. You can do a real cool take-home project that teaches a DIY skill.

You can also do gifting games in this setting but a workshop is really a cool thing to have.

The Big List of 32 Hanukkah Party Activities

Ready for some actual ideas? Choose the ones that work best for the crowd that you’re hosting! Some of these are ideas I’ve shared in this space, some are fresh ones, and some are more generic or third-party ideas. For those that I have a more involved tutorial, I’ll share a link with more info.

Kids Crafts and Craftivities

Crafts and craft-type activities are always a win with kids. I try to have a craft table at any get-together with kids, but for a Chanukah party, let’s give it a Chanukah theme!

Tip: cover your craft table with a colorable tablecloth! We do this most years and the kids ask about it year after year.

Low-Supervision Crafts for Kids

These are crafts that can be set up for kids to do. Some require more supervision than others – especially for the toddler and preschool age, but all can be supervised by a parent. None of these need any real instruction.

Hint: for items that require dry time, choose fast-dry supplies. Tempera paint sticks are my go-to for younger kids, and paint markers are great for kids who are old enough for it. Both dry in minutes.

Color and craft projects are really fun for this category – bonus points if they can be pre-cut to avoid mess.

• Decorate Dreidels – simply decorating wooden dreidels is a fun on-theme project with a take-home end product.
• Clothespin Menorahs – this color & craft project is fun for toddlers and preschoolers. Provide cut out, ready-to-go elements (base, clothespins with candles attached) and coloring supplies.
• Hanukkah suncatchers – While this does require some prep-work, it’s a really fun one for any age group. Just cut the black cardstock frames, attach them to clear contact paper, and have kids toddler and up tack on tissue paper squares.
• Hanukkah puppets – Another fun color & craft project! When I do stick puppet crafts at parties, I always prep the craft sticks with some double-sided tapes/glue lines with backing. That way, when the puppet is colored, the stick is self-adhesive and ready to tack on.
• Black glue watercolor painting – you’ll need to prep it, but once you do, all you need is watercolors for everyone to make artwork they’re proud of! Watercolors are washable and dry relatively quickly so they’re party-friendly if you can allow for some dry time.
• Dreidel making STEM challenge – this is a really fun any-age activity where you set out supplies and challenge kids to make their own dreidels that are playable! It’s super creative and great for a school setting.
• Dreidel lacing craft – I provide the template and you can do dreidel lacing two ways: either as flat lacing cards, or as a felt plushie.

Coloring Pages

While coloring pages don’t make for high profile Hanukkah party activities, they are one of the easiest things you can set out, especially in mixed adult/kid gatherings, just so that there’s something to do.

In years where I had low energy, low patience, or just didn’t get to it, I still set out a pile of coloring pages and art supplies.

• Dreidel coloring page – a really pretty adult coloring page that’s fun for big kids too
• Hanukkah coloring pages for Kids
• Hanukkah coloring pages for adults (great for kids7+)
• Dreidel Game Rules Coloring Page – This any-age coloring page features a fun poem with the dreidel rules. Put it alongside dreidels and coins for a 2-in-1 activity.

Printable Activity Pages

Activity or “fun” pages are grea tfor kids who might not strictly enjoy coloring but will enjoy pen-to-paper activities. They are low key and easy to set up – some are even easier than coloring pages!

• Hanukkah Mazes – I designed these with my son in mind and they are a classic fun activity.
• Hanukkah Dot to Dot – my son had also been asking for dot to dots so I created this set as well. Kids can color them in when they’re done the drawing.
• Hanukkah Do a Dot – Bingo markers are always a hit, but you can also do this super fun activity with dot stickers! These are ideal for toddler, preschool, and maybe early elementary aged kids.

Family Games

When you get together with family, games are often a hit! These require more face to face interaction than craft tables so go ahead and give them a shot. Some are only for smaller crowds, some can work for bigger crowds.

Just as an FYI: “Jewish” versions of games should always be vetted in advance of giving it to kids – sometimes there are some cards that are a bit off, you may want to remove.

• White Elephant – this is a popular gift exchange game. Full rules here, but in a nutshell: Everyone brings a wrapped gift within a budget (you can choose a theme too.) It’s placed in the center. First player chooses a gift, unwraps it. Next player can choose a new gift or steal a previous one (and then the one who it’s stolen from chooses or steals again.) Find some favorite white elephant gift ideas here.
• Dreidel Game – Of course you can simply put out supplies to play some rounds of dreidel! Bonus points if you play with something real that the can take home. Pennies are a bit obscure right now, but you can do nickels, chocolate coins, jelly beans…
• Dreidel Roulette – a twist on the dreidel game where you need to knock the balls into the slots.
• Hanukkah Mad Libs – classic mad libs but in a Hanukkah theme! This top-rated game comes with 21 pages that can be done as teams or individually.
• Hanukkah would you rather – Would you rather always makes for some fun and hilarious conversation, and this one is in a Hanukkah theme.

Guided Craft Workshops

Craft workshops have their time and place – especially in an adult setting, or with older kids. For a more structured party format with a timeline, a craft workshop offers not only a cool way to fill the time – but an incredible take-home project. These tend to lean pricier (but these types of parties are also often fundraising events with a fee). Here are some favorite guided workshops to do at a party for ages tween through adult.

Most (but not all) of these require finishing and/or dry time rather than immediate take-home.

• Resin Menorah Trays – resin is a popular workshop type, just make sure you have the proper protective gear for each participant, as well as good ventilation. Menorah trays are a fun spin on Chanukah crafts – they’re so popular but you don’t see them a lot! I put Chanukah candles in mine.
• Mosaic Menorah Trays – if you don’t have the ability to work with resin, these mosaic trays are even cooler! I made mine on a sheet pan base!
• Clay dreidel making – Go with the popular song, and make dreidels out of polymer clay!
• Clay Menorah making – This craft is one of my most popular Chanukah crafts and it’s a classic. Always use non-flammable materials when making Menorahs.
• Hanukkah stained glass – a classic that can be done on cheap frames. You an provide a few templates and work with Gallery Glass supplies for easy results.
• Easy Hanukkah Pillow Craft – perfect for tweens, this classic summer camp craft spinoff requires no sewing and can be taken home the same day.
• Beaded star of David – as trivets or as pendants. This easy beading tutorial requires no dry time at all.
• Clay star of David – Use air dry clay or polymer but the air dry clay does do best with an after-it’s-dry layer of paint.
• Hanukkah candle making – and finally, grab a candle making kit and craft some candles! Allow participants to make 9 candles for a full menorah rather than the 44 required for the full Hanukkah.

More fun Hanukkah Party Activities

Looking for even more ideas? Try these!

• Carnival – my mother’s parents hold a party every year for the very large extended family, including lots of kids. Last year, we did a mini carnival at the party (usually held in a synagogue or school lunch room, with plenty of space).
  Each set of siblings takes on a booth and man it. Kids can swap off with sibling so that they get to play too.
  Tickets are provided by the grandparents, and prizes are provided by families (mainly things like closed toys they don’t really need, regifted duplicates, or even good condition pass-ons of toys they really love, depending on the family vibe. You can also ask each family to contribute an actual purchased toy with a budget. It’s a bit hit – and something we’re repeating because the kids loved it.
• Scavenger hunts – I’m not a pro at this, but it’s always a fun idea! Make it Chanukah-themed of course.
• Donut Decorating – The easiest way to do this is to go to your local bakery and ask for unfrosted donuts. Provide 2-3 “flavors” or colors of frosting and some sprinkles (themed or not). Bonus points for mini chocolate chips, crushed Oreos, and other toppings. Kids hardly finish it before they eat it!
• Hanukkah Sensory Bin – this was possibly our most successful Hanukkah activity ever, but there is a germ factor to consider.
• Cookie or Cupcake decorating – at last year’s party, my sister-in-law got some simple Hanukkah cookie decorating kits and the kids went to town with it. You can DIY this by baking cookies using Chanukah shaped cookie cutters and putting out prepared icing in piping bags, and of course loads of toppings.

Got any favorite Hanukkah party activities to add to the list? Comment below!

The post Hanukkah Party Activities: Fun Ideas For Kids, Families, And Classrooms appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

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.

This Hanukkah STEM challenge is one that really anyone can enjoy. It’s fun, it’s cool, and it is so satisfying.

Got any more ideas for a dreidel making workshop? Did you try it yourself? Comment below!

The post Hanukkah STEM Challenge – Dreidel Making Workshop appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

Enjoy these fun Sukkot mazes, including designs for Simchat Torah, too, and a free printable sample of the Sukkah maze! I’ve got Rosh Hashanah mazes for you to download too!. This post contains affiliate links.

Mazes are a super fun brain-building activity, and so we love having them for every holiday! I’m working through the High Holidays now with these Sukkot mazes, and we already have shared Hanukkah and Purim mazes in this space.

I find that mazes are perfect for less-creative kids who still like taking pen to paper and figuring things out. They really build spatial awareness and problem-solving skills, memory, focus, and organizational skills. Y, age 9, tests all of my mazes for me (and yes, he does sometimes catch mistakes which I then go and fix!)

All of my mazes are digitally illustrated by me, including hand drawing (on my device) and plotting the entire thing from scratch.

I try to balance out my free and paid content, and I want to offer something free for every holiday. However, this is extremely work-intensive and can’t realistically be given away totally for free. So just like I’ve done in the past, I chose one page to give away for free (in this case, the Sukkah maze, as a nice standalone classic) and the full bundle is available for a few bucks.

If you have the budget to “donate” to keep this blog alive and going, and/or want more mazes, you can get a full bundle of 5 mazes – you’ll get this maze included, and four more fun designs. You’ll also get a printable solution page with it.

Each maze is unique and was individually hand-designed with no shortcuts taken.

About the Sukkot Mazes

These mazes are mid-level to slightly harder mazes – a bit more challenging than my Rosh Hashanah ones.

Since you can print them out multiple times, they make for great fun pages for the classroom or to put out at Sukkot events for your shul or school. Just print out a pile and put out pencils too, and you have a cool activity!

The 5 Sukkot mazes included in the full bundle are:

1. A Sukkah Maze
2. A Lulav Maze
3. An Etrog Maze
4. A Shaking Maze – Help Moshe get his Lulav and Etrog so that he can shake them!
5. A Simchat Torah Maze – Help Rabbi Mendy get the Torah to shul so that everyone can dance!

I again included a less organized swirly curvy maze to create more challenge opportunities. And I included one for Simchat Torah – it didn’t make sense to do a whole bundle for that, but I figured it warranted its own maze.

The final page shows the solutions.

I’ve been working on dot-to-dot (connect the dot) pages as well and hope to eventually continue that series but for now, I need to streamline to get mazes out for every holiday. I hope you enjoy them!

I separated the Lulav and Etrog, since the shaped mazes tend to work better with simpler images.

Download the Sukkot mazes

Get the full bundle

The full bundle of 5 mazes (plus solutions)  is available for a few bucks in my shop, on Etsy, and on TpT. Purchasing premium products from me enables me to keep doing what I do, to give more focus to my Jewish blog, creating authentically Jewish resources for educators and parents.

Pages include the Sukkah, Lulav, Etrog, Shaking, and Simchat Torah mazes plus solutions.

The free printable sample

Download your free Sukkah maze! It’ll arrive right in your inbox. By downloading, you’re subscribing to our FREE newsletter with updates on cool printables like this, ideas to simplify Jewish life, and more. Unsubscribe at any time at the bottom of my emails. I respect your privacy and the law, and won’t share or sell your email address.

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Enjoy these fun Rosh Hashanah mazes, featuring a free printable sample of the Rimon (pomegranate) maze! When you’re done, check out my Purim mazes too. This post contains affiliate links.

Y, my 9 year old, loves it when I make new mazes so I’m all in! Today, I’m sharing with you five new Rosh Hashanah mazes for the Jewish New Year! It’s a fun brain-building activity for slightly older kids who might not be as crafty and creative but love taking pen (or pencil) to paper.

Y tests out every single one for me and sometimes he does find mistakes which I then go and fix. Each one of these mazes was digitally illustrated by me with the whole path plotted out and planned.

Since I like to offer regular free printables, but something as work-intensive as this can’t realistically be given away for free, I have been choosing one page from my maze bundles to give for free. From this one, you get to download the pomegranate maze as a free printable at the end of the post.

If you have the budget to “donate” to keep this blog alive and going, and/or want more mazes, you can get the full bundle of 5 Rosh Hashanah mazes – on Etsy, in my shop, or on TPT. You’ll get this maze included, and four more fun designs. You’ll also get a printable solution page with it.

Each maze is unique and was individually hand-designed with no shortcuts taken.

About the Rosh Hashanah Mazes

These mazes are mid-level mazes – not too easy, but Y figured them all out in decent time with a few tries.

Since you can print them out multiple times, they make for great fun pages for the classroom or to put out at Rosh Hashanah and back to school workshops and events. Just print out a pile and put out pencils too, and you have a cool activity!

The 5 Rosh Hashanah mazes included in the full bundle are:

1. A Rimon (pomegranate) Maze
2. A Shofar Maze
3. An Apples ‘n Honey Maze
4. A Dipping Maze
5. A Shul (synagogue) Maze

The dipping maze features a new style with less organized lines Most of my mazes use graph paper to build it. On that one, I decided to add some interest by making swirls and curves instead. This gets the brain working slightly differently to adjust to the new format.

The final page shows the solutions.

I’ve been working on dot to dot (connect the dot) pages as well and hope to eventually continue that series but for now, I need to streamline to get mazes out for every holiday. I hope you enjoy them!

Download the Rosh Hashanah mazes

Get the full bundle

The full bundle of 5 mazes (plus solutions)  is available for a few bucks on Etsy, in my shop, or on TPT. Purchasing premium products from me enables me to keep doing what I do, to give more focus to my Jewish blog, creating authentically Jewish resources for educators and parents.

Pages include the Rimon, shofar, apples n honey, dipping maze, and shul maze, plus solutions.

The free printable sample

Download your free Rimon maze! It’ll arrive right in your inbox. By downloading, you’re subscribing to our FREE newsletter with updates on cool printables like this, ideas to simplify Jewish life, and more. Unsubscribe at any time at the bottom my emails. I respect your privacy and the law, and won’t share or sell your email address.

Enjoyed this resource? Which Rosh Hashanah tutorial or activity would you like me to share next?

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I’ve created sensory bins for Passover before – including this splitting the sea one, as well as a really fun ten plagues one.

But with the amount of prep and teaching that goes into Passover, it’s the perfect opportunity to switch up the sensory play weekly!

So the theme of this one is the Israelites traveling in the desert. Now, before I start, I will tell you: I make a small bin that is designed for one or two kids to play with at a time. That means that our space is limited and we need to prioritize. If you’re making larger classroom-sized bins, you can add so much more and I’ll drop a list at the end!

Meanwhile, I’m going to walk you through the process of creating an Exodus themed sensory bin.

The bin foundation

We always start with a big box, but of course if you have a dedicated sand table, you can use that. It’s a generic storage container on the flatter end of things that will fit what we need it to fit.

Next is our filler. This lays the foundation for the play-style of the bin. This one was a shoo-in for using natural colored Kinetic sand.

What we put inside

Next are the things inside that the kids play with. I divide these into two categories: tools that work with the filler, and props. You want some of each. In some bins they overlap, but in this particular one they are two distinct categories.

The people

A big feature of this bin was the people – in particular, the Passover peg dolls that I created to put inside.

In the past, I’ve used just the plain wood dolls to represent non-specific people but in this one I had fun including my artwork.

If you are not going to be creating these peg dolls but want alternatives, here are a few to try:

• I sell printable Passover puppets in my Etsy shop – you can use those. Get the full-color set as they can just be printed, cut out, and used. The cool part is that the stick will hold in the sand – just cut it shorter so it sits better.
• I’ve seen in the past Pharaoh LEGO figures – a really cool addition thanks to the imprints it makes
• Commission an Etsy artist to make peg dolls for you – it might cost quite a bit but it’ll feel like a keepsake that you can use year after year in different applications.
• You can use any toy figurines and just call them Israelites. Find one with a beard for Moses…

More props

To bring the various story of the exodus to life, I added some more relevant props – again, be creative, find what works best.

First, I “sourced” this huge rock from the great outdoors for the one that Moses hit for water. I forgot to include the stick – oops! Just add any small twig from outside.

As I share the details of this Passover sensory bin, you’ll notice that I’m trying to include as much texture as possible.

For Manna, I included pom poms. Both my middle kids (Y, age 8, and A, age 4 – who’s the “tester” of this bin) LOVE pom poms. It’s soft, and it’s cozy.

I used white and beige pom poms in both plain and sparkly varieties. If you are purchasing special for the bin, I do think that the tinsel pom poms have more of a fun vibe that gives kids the excitement of the fantasy of the Manna – that sparks their wildest imagination with their “taste like anything” feature.

Now add in tools. Sometimes we “theme” the tools, sometimes we don’t, and in this case, I chose not to. I just pulled out a small selection of our best Kinetic Sand tools that we have from our odd assorted kits from over the years.

And finally, some PolyFil fiber makes for the cloud that led them by day.

More tips & tricks

There are lots more things that you can add to an Exodus themed Passover sensory bin. Some I considered, some I just didn’t have space for.

Here are some ideas you can try if they work for you.

• Fire by night – Since they were led by a fire by night, you an add that too. I didn’t have a standout idea for it – and ran out of space – so I ditched it.
• Water – to incorporate the sea behind them, or the water coming from the rock, you can use washable sensory sand and add a small bit of water. Make sure everything inside is allowed to get wet and prepare for some fun mess.
• Desert props – I do kind of regret not having space for desert props, such as small cacti and possibly additional “normal” sized gravel or rocks.
• Desert animals – I also considered adding toy desert animals, but again, I prioritized the tools for space.
• Tents, flags – In a larger bin, mocking up the encampment of the tribes with more neutral/vague props can be fun and create more of a “small world”.

Got any more ideas to add to an Exodus/Desert themed Passover sensory bin? Comment below!

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My 8 year old, Y, loves dot to dot sheets and is always asking me to find some to download for him! Since Jewish resources that are true to Judaism are harder to find, I’ve been trying to make some for him.

My first set was these Hanukkah dot to dot sheets, and I do love how they came out! However, each time I do something, I streamline the process and learn new things.

On that one, I hand lettered the numbers, on this one I typed them out – mainly because it’s easier to adjust the sizing if needed. On the Hanukkah sheets, I made the letters too small and needed to totally redo them.

I did, however, like the handmade charm of those and I’m curious to hear what you think (so drop a comment if you have an opinion).

I decide to offer one Purim dot to dot sheet free at the end of this post, and the rest are a premium download available in my Etsy shop and Teachers Pay Teachers.

Check out the Purim Dot to Dot sheets

About the pages

I illustrated these by hand using Adobe Fresco on my Surface pro. That means that I did all the drawing from scratch using a digital pen on digital paper – giving you the quality of something truly hand drawn.

They are meant to be coloring pages as well, with plenty of detail to color in once the outline of a basic shape has been created by connecting the dots.

It’s always a dilemma how complicated to make these sheets, and I opted for a somewhat intermediate level on some, and easy on others. I think Y likes doing these with minimal challenge because it’s satisfying to connect those dots and he feels like he’s contributing something more meaningful to the artwork than “just” coloring it.

All that is accomplished with something simple – and then younger kids can do it too.

Pages included

I decided to make these Purim dot to dot sheets a mix of Purim traditions and iconic moments from the Purim story. Each page was designed specifically for this and is only available as of now in the Dot to Dot version.

• A rabbi reading the Megillah in shul
• Three hamantaschen
• A hand holding a Mishloach Manot basket
• A hand giving charity – one of the 5 Mitzvot of Purim that is often neglected in educational materials – and I wanted to highlight it!
• A boy wearing a mask (this is also the free sample you can download)
• Esther being coronated
• A hand extending a scepter
• The signet ring stamping a document

Download your Purim Dot to Dot Sheets

The free printable boy-with-mask dot to dot

I chose this one to offer free because it’s pretty universal and relatable for kids!

Download your free worksheets! It’ll arrive right in your inbox. By downloading, you’re subscribing to our FREE newsletter with updates on cool printables like this, ideas to simplify Jewish life, and more. Unsubscribe at any time at the bottom my emails. I respect your privacy and the law, and won’t share or sell your email address.

The full Purim dot to dot bundle

The full bundle of 8 page is available for a few bucks in my Etsy shop and on TpT. Purchasing premium products from me enables me to keep doing what I do, to give more focus to my Jewish blog, creating authentically Jewish resources for educators and parents.

The post Purim Dot to Dot Printable Worksheets for Kids appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

We love a good sensory bin as our go-to activity for any holiday! Today I’m sharing you a sample Purim sensory bin, however, you can really make this however you’d like. My main goal is to start with sharing ideas.

I like to include a mix of textures, things to discovers and ways to play with the main filler. Of course, different things might be accessible to you, and you may prefer to craft some things for it (or not).

The Purim sensory bin base filler

The main filler you put in is the real core of the play the kids will get and sets the tone – will it be molding and shaping, cutting, sorting, scooping, or wet play?

Kinetic Sand

We always start with a base material and this time I chose Kinetic Sand. This is one of my favorites – my kids can play with it for hours. It’s moldable and holds. While not quite neat, it’s easy to vacuum up the mess after.

We used natural colored sand from this set but you can definitely go for something that feels Purim-y – like a rainbow spectrum or purple…

You should get more sand than we had (and in fact, I’ve since purchased more for our next bin… coming soon!)

I put mine into a relatively small container as it was a single-person sensory bin – you’ll need much more if doing this for a few kids.

More filler ideas

Shredded paper is a really fun sensory bin filler – just make sure to toss in scissors if that’s what you’re using – it’s great for cutting practice! It fits with the Purim vibe, and you can even put the whole sensory bin in a picnic “Mishloach Manot” basket to be on-theme.

However, it’s not quite moldable so it’s not something that’s really compatible with the shaping tools I’ll be sharing below.

Another fun moldable substance that I love using in sensory bins is Pluffle. I really only use it for sensory bins, and didn’t have one that I liked for this bin handy.

And finally, you can do Play Doh but you’re better off using it as an open activity tray due to quantity concerns. You’ll also want to use dedicated play dough tools since they tend to get dough stuck in the cracks.

What to put into a Purim sensory bin

The perfect balance of any good sensory bin is a few good tools to scoop, mold, and dig around with, and a few additional items to discover. Here are some ideas for a Purim sensory bin.

Tools

Purim cutters – What’s a sensory bin without a good cookie cutter?

Castle scoops/molds – These came with my sand and I thought they were cute for making Achashverosh’s castle (or just scooping sand with.)

Hamantaschen party picks – I had these handy already made in my craft room as I was assembling this Purim sensory bin, and decided to put them in too so that kids can make shapes in the sand with it! However, had I crafted them special for this, I would have put them on something bigger, like craft sticks for digging.

Things to discover

We like to pack our sensory bin with things to discover, and while I found it easy to put in small holiday-centric “real” items for our Hanukkah sensory bin, our Purim sensory bin was a bit tougher. Many of the classic Purim items are larger or more edible…

Still, I found enough things to make it fun, and I’ll share some more suggestions below. A lot of these items work fabulously with the sand because you can press them in and make imprints.

• Plastic Graggers – use the flat plastic kind – that almost works as a cutter too!

• Costume accessories – small things like toy glasses, necklaces or plastic bangles are lots of fun for kids to play with while discovering, and adds another dimension of play to this Purim sensory bin. They’ll probably put them on, press them in to make shapes and listen to the beads jangling.

• Felt hamantaschen – you can’t really put in real ones, but make them out of felt for a new texture introduced to the bin. Sand will get in, so don’t expect to save them.

More ideas for a Purim sensory bin

My bin was small, like I said, and I didn’t want to overwhelm, so I stopped here. However, here are some more ideas for what you can add to a Purim sensory bin:

• Make hamantaschen from clay – a lot of small ones can be hidden throughout the bin for a cool dig.
• Small plastic masks – This is another material that can be used as a fun mold for the clay.
• Mini plastic baskets – if you can find these in the right size, they are fun “mishloach manot” scoops.
• Mini crowns, scepters, horses, and other elements of the Purim story. You can also choose to do the whole bin based on the story instead of the traditions.

Got any other ideas for a Purim sensory bin? Comment below!

The post Purim Sensory Bin – Toddler & Preschool Activity! appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

Mazes might be a recent addition to this blog, but they’re really making me excited! My boys don’t go too crazy over crafting, and they just love mazes, allowing me to really test them out on a third party. Y loved these Purim mazes – so they’re maze fanatic approved.

Confession: mazes are HARD and TEDIOUS to do. But they’re also an exhilarating challenge and so satisfying when they come together. Yes, I hand draw every single element of these Purim mazes (well digitally, but each line by hand). I plan it all on digital “paper”, sketching it, and then drawing over.

It takes time and brain bandwidth. But still, I wanted to offer a freebie so that it’s good for every budget, so I made Moshe delivering the Mishloach Manot free for you to use.

If you have the budget to “donate” and/or want more mazes, do go ahead and purchase the full bundle of 5 mazes – you’ll get this maze included, and three more fun designs. You’ll also get a printable solution page with it.

Each maze is unique and was individually hand-designed with no shortcuts taken.

Learn more about the Purim Mazes

Y, age 8, found these mazes to be relatively challenging but he figured them all out. I’d say they’re probably intermediate level mazes.

They are a fabulous CHEAP activity to do at a Purim party or get-together, whether it’s at a shul, school, or with the family. Just print out a pile of mazes, provide pencils, erasers, and markers, and get busy!

It’s also cool for a Purim carnival booth called “Mirror Maze”. Place the maze in a box with the top removed, with space for the hands removed on the sides. Place a hand mirror leaning on the back wall, positioned so that it faces the maze. Players need to do the maze while looking in the mirror and not at the maze.

The 5 Purim mazes included in the full bundle are:

1. A Mishloach (Manot) Maze – Help Moshe deliver the Mishloach Manot before the Mishteh meal begins. (This is the free sample you get too).
2. A Mask Maze
3. A Messenger Maze- Help the king’s messenger cancel the evil decree on time.
4. A Megillah Maze – Help Rabbi Mendy make it through the Megillah.
5. A Hamantasch Maze

Page 6 shows the solutions.

Download the Purim mazes

The free printable sample

Download your free template! It’ll arrive right in your inbox. By downloading, you’re subscribing to our FREE newsletter with updates on cool printables like this, ideas to simplify Jewish life, and more. Unsubscribe at any time at the bottom my emails. I respect your privacy and the law, and won’t share or sell your email address.

Get the full bundle

The full bundle of 5 mazes (plus solutions)  is available for a few bucks in my Etsy shop and on TpT. Purchasing premium products from me enables me to keep doing what I do, to give more focus to my Jewish blog, creating authentically Jewish resources for educators and parents.

Pages include the Mishloach maze, mask, messenger, megillah, and hamantasch.

The post Purim Mazes – Free Printable Sample appeared first on Jewish Moms & Crafters.

I’m always on the lookout for new, fun activities for Purim, especially games that can be played at parties and carnivals. So I came up with this fun little Purim focused challenge!

Many gragger crafts come in the form of a sort of container filled with something that’ll make noise – and pretty much anything can be used. We’re talking dry pasta or rice, beans, beads, jingle bells… The possibilities are really endless.

This Purim gragger game can be made both as a game and challenge and as a Purim craft, although I have more ideas for Purim gragger crafts on the blog as well. And you can use any filled gragger to play this, not just this one.

How to Play the Purim Gragger Game

The idea of the game is that players need to guess what’s in the gragger! It’s an “identify the sound” challenge, perfect for carnivals or Minute to Win it game challenges.

There are two main variations on how you play:

1. Total mystery – Players need to totally guess what’s inside without knowing what the options are.
2. Provide a list – Give a list – either a choice between actual items that are there or an expanded list. For example, mine are filled with pasta, rice, and beads. I can give a list to choose from of pasta, rice and beads, or a list including bells, game pieces, and marbles too.

There are so many more variations to this Purim Gragger game:

• Timed vs. unlimited time to guess
• I made 3 graggers but you can make more
• Limited shakes to guess vs. they can shake it for as long as they want.

I used very small 2 oz. Solo style shot glasses, but of course you can use larger ones too.

How to Craft the Purim Gragger Game

Supplies needed

• Opaque plastic cups OR paper cups for a different sound and more glue options. You’ll need 2 for each Gragger.
• Craft sticks
• Good Quality Hot Glue gun (I used Surebonder’s high heat mini cordless glue gun) Adults only – if crafting the actual craft with kids you may want to encourage them to use a good quality paper tape instead. School glue just won’t hold on plastic. Even glue guns should be high heat as it needs to melt with the plastic a notch to really hold well. If you’re using paper cups, which is a porous material, it’ll hold with more glue options.
• Fillings for noisemakers: dry pasta or rice, beads, jingle bells, beans, etc.
• Optional: dot stickers, markers, or other supplies to decorate the Gragger. (Note: this is good for your own records to color-code the fill-ins in your notes.

Assembly

1. Line up one cup for each Gragger you’ll be making. Fill it about halfway (depending on how big the cups are – mine were 2 oz).

2. Glue a craft stick so that a bit of it sticks over the opening of the cup and the majority sticks out.

3. Now glue all around the rim of your cup, including over the portion of the craft stick that completes the circle.

4. Carefully line up the rim of another empty cup with the rim of the filled cup, covering it.

5. When the glue is dry, go back around the rim of your cups with a glue gun or tape to ensure it’s fully sealed.

6. Decorate it or color code it with dot stickers if you’d like.

You’re ready to play the Purim gragger game! Which variations will you be going for? Comment below!

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