to practice “hitting the mark”
I’ve used craft stick catapults for Lag B’Omer, but this year I needed a quick, thematic craft for 2nd graders right before Yom Kippur.
Yom Kippur liturgy features archery imagery: missing the mark (“al chet,” which is the closest thing Hebrew has to the word “sin”) and hitting the mark. Torah is sometimes translated as “to take aim.” Continue reading
Posted in Activity, Crafts, Jewish Toys, Lag B'Omer, Rosh Hashanah / Yom Kippur
Tagged catapult, trash art, Yom Kippur
roadkill or wax-soaked lint?
[Making flammable treasure from trash, with kids.] Continue reading
Comments Off on Dryer-Lint Fire-Starters (Fun With Trash for Lag B’Omer)
Posted in Activity, Crafts, Lag B'Omer
Tagged fire, Lag B'Omer, upcycle
swim noodle omer
Count the omer with swim noodles! I needed a BIG omer counter for a classroom (and maybe the school entrance, too), and this is it. I love abacus-style omer counters because it is a pleasure to slide something across something: I feel like I’ve counted, I’ve moved, I’ve gone from here to there. All the more so with swim noodle “cookies” and my beloved PVC pipe. The two materials create just enough friction. Continue reading
Rainbow loom omer bracelet: one rubber band per day
I made this today just to feel what it would be like to count the omer via Rainbow Loom. It felt fiddly, but worthwhile. Mindful. I had to pay attention and I had to make decisions about color coding. Some kids will like this, some kids will flee in the opposite direction. My own child preferred to watch Pokemon rather than experiment with me, but hey, Pokemon. Continue reading
the Sea of Reeds withThumbprint people
Just in time for Shavuot, here’s another Mt. Sinai project. It’s really a three-holiday diorama, but your kid can make just the Shavuot portion in about half an hour, once you’ve raced around the house collecting supplies. Continue reading
Posted in Activity, Lag B'Omer, Passover, Shavuot
Folks are asking about the chocolate Ten Commandment tablets from my Lag BaOmer post. So easy, I promise. And won’t they look splendid atop Mt. Sinai muffins?
chocolate-esque candy bark
don’t eat these
I made plaster versions, too, for some of my little Israelites on our Lag baOmer Walk. They had to “receive” the Ten Commandments at the mountain, right? But I warn you Continue reading
Posted in Edible Craft, Lag B'Omer, Shavuot, Simchat Torah
Lag B’Omer! Here’s a quick glimpse at what we did…
I wanted my K – 3 classes to “embody” the connection between Passover and Shavuot via the Counting of the Omer, to use their bodies to travel from Passover—where the Israelites became a Free Nation, to Shavuot—where the Israelites became a Holy Nation.
view from the Sea of Reeds toward Lag b’Omer and Shavuot
First, we crossed the Sea of Reeds and became a Free Nation. On the floor were 49 steps toward Mt. Sinai on the opposite side of the room. See Mt. Sinai up there, far away? Continue reading
Posted in Activity, Edible Craft, Lag B'Omer, Passover, Shavuot
Edible fire for Lag Ba’Omer
Here’s a quick snack-tivity for Lag Ba’Omer, and believe me, I need quick. My Sunday classes are about 25 minutes each, including setup and cleanup, but this little project can bag one Lag Ba’Omer tradition in 5-10 minutes, tops. Continue reading
Posted in Edible Craft, Lag B'Omer
Katniss for Lag B’Omer
Happy Lag B’Omer, the 33rd day of the counting of the Omer, those 49 days between Passover and Shavuot. In honor of the day, my family will be as thematic as is convenient: one of us will get a haircut (the one who is satisfied with a quickie trip to the walk-in salon), we’ll burn some brush in the crumbling barbecue pit, roast stale Passover marshmallows and shoot a few arrows. The arrows will be made of foam, after an incident that once put a hole through a solidly-built garden chair and very nearly put a hole through me. Continue reading
Swim Noodle Menorah
LEGO Gragger
Altoids tin travel menorah
Spin it, Eat it: The Caramel Dreidel
Edible dreidels, regular and mini
Jonah and the Whale Cracker
DIY Lego Mezuzah
PEZ + Mezuzah = PEZuzah
Menurkey (repurposed figurine)
DIY LEGO dreidel
LEGO minifig Passover seder table
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Bible Belt Balabusta 
