by Amanda Roberts

Created on: February 21, 2010   Last Updated: February 22, 2010

Hanukah is a beautiful festival that is not given a significant place in our public primary schools. In fact, besides making paper menorahs in school, we did not touch on the subject at all. In order for children to fully grasp the history and respect the custom, an in-depth bulletin board project is called for. Here are just some ideas to celebrate this lovely holiday.

Before the beginning of Hanukah, children should design a class menorah to place at the center of the bulletin board. This class menorah should be clearly labeled and eight students should be chosen to "light" a candle each day. Before the holiday, children can also research the history behind Hanukah. Students can then prepare illustrations of the Maccabees and write stories about the significance of the day. Older children can also prepare essays of how they would feel if they were in situation of the Maccabees, and completed essays can be posted on the bulletin board.

Once the holiday has begun, the children can color dreidels, draw latkes, and draw pictures of gelt (coins). Children can also post their names written in Hebrew on the board and they can research Hanukah songs to post on the board. Another fun activity is to have children create or color their own Star of David. Scholastic has multiple cut outs for just this purpose and free templates can be found at judaism.about.com for a variety of coloring activities.

Depending on how much time you have, these activities can continue to be spread throughout the week and can be coupled with multiple drawing and writing activities. Some potential prompts are:

How would you feel if you were with the Maccabees and the oil burned for eight days instead of one?

How is Hanukah different or similar to what you celebrate?

Who are the Macabees and what happened to them?

Why are lights lit during Hanukah?

How you would explain Hanukah to someone who has never learned about it before?

The background of the bulletin board can be simple blue and white. A boarder can be constructed around the edge by having each child trace their names in Hebrew in a square around the outside edge of the board. Children can also draw stars of David around the edges of the board to make a simple outline, or cut outs of stars can be pasted along the edges.

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