Hanukkah is just one week away, and we couldn't be any more excited! We love this time of year, because the holidays makes everything feel extra special; as we celebrate and enjoy each other's company. Hanukkah can be extra exciting for children as well, as they get a chance to relax, take part in important family traditions, and spend time with loved ones, while also looking forward to special Hanukkah gifts. There's a lot of history behind Hanukkah, and its' celebrations. We've created a list of fun activities to do with your children, that are both educational, and helps introduce them to some of the concepts surrounding the holiday. In addition to this, we've also created a list of different gift ideas, whether store bought, or Do-It-Yourself. We hope everyone has a great Hanukkah!
Gift ideas:
Store-bought
Here below are a couple of gift ideas that you can purchase from a store. Each category includes different theme gifts, that you can tailored to your children's specific interest.
1. Educational Gifts
There are many wonderful educational gifts you can give your children. This ranges from small to large gifts. Depending on your child's age, and developmental stage, these gifts, are a great way to still keep your children excited, while also continuing to learn. Some educational gifts include:
- Books (If your child is interested in a certain subject, you can gifts them books all about it! You can also buy them books about different stories and subjects that you can read to them, as they learn about the holiday)
- Musical instruments (Depending on the age of your children, musical instruments are a great way to introduce them to expressing themselves with sound. Small basic toy instruments are guaranteed to keep your children entertained)
- Flash cards (You can pick different themed flash cards that covers multiple subjects. A lot of these cards includes bright and engaging imagery, as well as facts and vocabulary. Some themes include sea animals, the planets, colors, numbers and shapes.)
2. Cozy Gifts
-Blankets and pillows (There is nothing better than having new soft and furry blankets to wrap yourself in. If your children have specific interest, see if you can find a blanket with their favorite characters on them!)
-Hats/gloves/scarves/socks (One of the most useful gifts, include things your children can utilize on a daily basis. If you are planning to go out or have a special family dinner, gifting fun, fuzzy and even silly small items your children can wear and get excited about dressing up for any event.)
-Stuffed animals ( A small, cute forever friend all in one.)
3. Family Gifts
- Games and puzzles (Games and puzzle gifts are a great way to keep your children having fun, while also giving your family a great opportunity to spend time and play together.)
- Movie night box (with this gift, you can buy one or two movies that your children love or want to see, and include them with small snacks and a written date for when the family can all watch it together)
- Family cooking (For this gift, you can choose different recipes or desserts with all the ingredients and how to instructions, then throw a family cooking night making the treats!)
4. Creative Gifts
- Journal/sketchbook (This is a simple, yet thoughtful gift that will allow your children to be as creative as they would like. You can also include small decorative items like stickers, markers, gel pens and whatever else your children might enjoy.)
- Art set (A great gift that includes every art item your kid will love to use. These sets can cover drawing and painting, and can even be personalized.)
- Jewelry/Building set (This is another great gift set, that can be personalized to your child's interest.)
5. Tasty Gifts
- Cookies (a simple tin of cookies are not only tasty but welcomed)
- Snacks/candy (put together a box of their favorite candies or snacks)
- Brownie cocoa box (you can combine sweet brownies alongside yummy cocoa)
D.I.Y Gifts
Here is a list of some Do-It-Yourself gifts that you can customize to be as personal and special as you want them.
1. Picture book/ Frame- Create your own picture book for your children. You can decorate the book or frame with things the children like, and even add a picture of a happy memory or event. If you are creating a picture book, you can also add pictures of your children's friends and all your family members. Encourage your children to also add their own memories to the book as well.
2. Clay Decor- With this gift, you can create any item you want out of clay, and decorate it for your children, If you want, you can also fill it with small keepsake items as well. Your children can be amazed that you made something for them, and you can encourage them to create their own as well.
3. Special Jars - For this gift, all you will need is a plastic or glass jar, some ribbon, and any items of your choosing. Create special gift jars for your children, that you can fill with whatever you choose. This can include small snacks, little hand written letters and notes or anything you can think of! Finish the jar off by typing it in ribbon and having your children guess what's inside.
4. Decorative food items- Make a jar or box of goodies filled with snacks you know your kids will love. Add different decorative items to the outside to make them resemble cute animals or characters that your children enjoy.
5. D.i.y playdoh- Just gather the ingredients and write out instructions for the children to follow. They'll be excited to make their very own play-doh.
Activities:
Infants
1. Sensory Hanukkah Bag- Easy to do activity that involves gathering small plastic Hanukkah items and sealing them in a bag with glitter, glue, and water.
2. Clay Dreidel- This is a fun Sensory/Science activity. Let your infants explore clay dreidels using their many senses. Ex: See, Touch, hearing (how does it sound when the dreidel falls?) and Feeling Clay dreidel
3. Oil vs water sensory Bottle- In this activity, your children can observe oil and water reactions in a bottle. During this activity, you can explain the importance of oil, and how it relates to Hanukkah and all that it symbolizes. To create your sensory bottle, fill the bottle half with oil and the other half with water. You can choose to add additional items, or seal your bottle shut, leaving only a quarter of space of air. Your infant can play and observe the oil and water reacting to one another.
Toddlers
1. Painted Hand print menorah- Make your own hand print Menorah out of paint and construction paper. While painting each of your child's fingers count with them 1-5. You can also name the fingers you are painting to help them learn body parts. This activity incorporates math with creative expression and demonstration of body awareness.
2. Hanukkah how many dreidels math sheet
Here is a link to a free printable sheet that features a fun Hanukkah counting activity!
3. D.I.Y Gelt with vocab and symbols- With this activity, children will create their own construction paper Gelt coins as they practice their vocabulary. Start by cutting out coin sized shapes out of yellow construction paper. You can add felt stickers to the back of the coins to add weight to them. On each coin, write a symbol or word that relates to Hanukkah and its' celebrations. Have your children practice spelling, sounding out and defining each coin. With this, they can build onto their vocabulary, and have a better understanding of the various symbols and words used during the holiday.
4. water vs oil experiment- Similar to our oil and water sensory bottle, this activity also explores water and oil reactions. With this activity, set up a large container with equal parts water and oil. You can add small and large objects to the water to see if they will sink or float. Next, add different colored food coloring to experiment with colors. You can ask your children questions such as do they think the colors will mix, and which items will float versus which will sink.
Preschoolers
1. D.I.Y Star of David ornament frame- In this activity children make their own Star of David ornament frame. All you will need is Popsicle sticks, twine, glue and ribbon. Arrange the Popsicle sticks into the star shape, making sure to glue the ends on top of one another. using twine, you can cover the entire star to add texture to it. Another option is to add stickers or small bedazzled charms to your star. When you're finished, add a picture of your choice glued to the back, with the front of the picture visible from the front of your star. Last, attach a ribbon to the top to be able to hang your star.
2. Dreidel math game- Using any dreidel, create your own math game for your children. You can make a chart, and tally the total points each child can spin. You can also count the number of spins on each turn, and have the children add or subtract the spins from each other. The children can also make guesses on numbers, and who can spin the most in one turn. This activity helps children practice their addition and subtraction skills, while keeping things fun.
3. Make your own Hanukkah chains- In this activity, children will make their own Hanukkah chains out of construction paper. Gather multi colored construction paper, and help the children cut the paper into strips. An alternative would be to have the children rip the paper into strips. Design a pattern using the colors, and tape each strip corresponding to their order in a chain link. At the end of your final link, you can tape cut out shapes of flames, to make a candle. Tape your chains to whatever surface you want, or to a larger sheet of construction paper. This activity helps children build onto their hand-eye coordination skills, as well as improve their pattern recognition and muscle skills.
4. Hanukkah coloring number sheet. Here is a link to a free printable Hanukkah page that includes an activity to help with color and number recognition!
5. Hanukkah I spy list- With this activity, create a list with your children featuring many Hanukkah symbols, items and activities. Throughout your celebration, have the children point out every item that they can find on the list. This activity helps with recognizing and understanding the different traditions that occur during the holiday. You can practice pronouncing special names for each item and event, and what it includes.
School-aged
1. Paper Candle- In this activity, children will make their own Hanukkah candles out of paper! All you will need is cardboard paper towel holders, construction paper, glue and markers. Have your children glue construction paper around the paper towel tubes, and cut the excess off. Fold both a yellow and orange sheet of paper. Draw out the shape of a flame on both sheets and cut them out. Leave the orange sheet bigger than the yellow sheet. and glue the yellow sheet on top of the orange sheet. Roll the sheets into the tube and glue them to the sides. Once you're finished, decorate the candles in whichever way the children like.
2. Matching Vocab Sheet
Here is a link to a free printable sheet that includes a Hanukkah matching vocabulary activity!
3. D.I.Y Snow globe- This is an amazing activity, that includes creating your own snow globe. All you will need is a jar with a lid, hot glue, regular glue, glitter, and various small decorative craft items. Gather the items you want to include in your snow globe. Fill half of the jar with water and glue. Mix your glue and water mixture until it has a thick consistency. Add your glitter and other small items to your mixture. Carefully hot glue your main item onto the inside of your lid. Once you're finished, attach your lid to the other part of your jar and glue it shut. Now you have your snow globe!
4. Make your 3D Hanukkah shapes (With food)- For this activity, all you will need is straws, tooth picks, or various "stick" items; and fruit or marshmallows. Children can make their own Hanukkah shapes by attaching the fruit or marshmallows to both ends of their sticks. You can make it a game of who can get their shapes to stand up, or who can build their shapes the fastest. This activity helps children develop their building and critical thinking skills, as well as practice their shape recognition skills.
5. Hanukkah research- In this last activity, let your children research all about Hanukkah and all it involves. You can start by creating a list of questions that you want them to look up answers to. Some of these questions can include:
-What is Hanukkah?
-What are the different names for the holiday?
-What happens during Hanukkah?
-What do we celebrate during Hanukkah?
-What are some of the things we eat during this time?
-When did this celebration begin?
This activity helps your children develop their research skills, and learn more about the history of the holiday.
Below is a step by step guide for our Painted Hand print Menorah activity!
Steps for doing this craft: 1 gather supplies
Step 2 paint your child's palm blue, be sure to use enough paint so it doesn't dry before you finish the fingers!
Step 3 paint each finger white while counting 1-5 with your child. You can also name the fingers as you paint them.
Step 4 paint your child's finger tips orange, red or yellow (we mixed all three of them while naming them)
Step 5 Place your child's hand on paper and hold for 10 seconds
Step 6 Repeat steps 2 & 3 with your child's other hand
Step 7 place your child's other hand on paper with their thumb touching their thumbprint. Hold for 10 seconds then lift.
