#HAYS EGGY CHALLAH HANUKKAH FULL#

In the story of Hanukkah, Judah and the Macabees defeat the Syrian army and defend the Temple in Jerusalem. (There are, of course, lots of story-based books about Hanukkah, but the titles I’ve listed above are more of the informational variety.) Hanukkah (A Rookie Read-About Holiday Book) by Lisa M.Holidays around the World: Celebrate Hanukkah: With Light, Latkes and Dreidels by Deborah Heiligman.Unfortunately (or perhaps, fortunately), my father isn’t available for Hanukkah storytelling, so I have a few books on hand to help me explain the holiday to them.

If you’d like to know the “official” version, please visit The Story of Chanukah on. Especially if you value entertainment over historical accuracy. My mother is Jewish, but my father is not, though no one can tell the story of Judah and the Macabees like he can. That being said, a disclaimer: I grew up celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah. I’ll just do my best and I encourage my students to do the same. I’d like to say I’m completely impartial, but I’m human, so I’d say that’s pretty much impossible. I make every effort to teach about Hanukkah (or Christmas or Kwanzaa or Diwali or Ramadan, etc.) from a historical and cultural perspective, neither denigrating nor promoting any people or religion. I don’t want to be inconsiderate of any beliefs, so I try to communicate with any parents (and, in some cases, children) if I think they might be uncomfortable with what I’ll be teaching. That being said, our school has students from quite a few different faiths, and I try to be sensitive to them all.

Many a time have I been asked if Hanukkah is Kwanzaa (or vice versa) and every time a student does, a little bell dings inside me, signaling that a teaching opportunity has just reared its gorgeous head. I love teaching my students about Hanukkah (or Chanukah, it’s spelled either way) because few of my students are familiar with the traditions of the holiday. Hanukkah begins at sunset tonight! Before you panic and think you’ve missed this Jewish holiday, calm down and remember that it lasts eight days. I started to put together a Pinterest board for Lunar New Year’s activities. This makes for an exciting plethora of activities for the discerning teacher. If you’ve ever seen pictures of a Lunar New Year celebration, then you know that there’s no skimping on decorations. In fact, by all accounts, holiday travel in China puts the US to shame. Plus, all the family will be coming over for the New Year’s dinner–and I mean all the family. You might also be delighted to know that a huge part of the Lunar New Year is devoted to cleaning (or, as my students call it, “the “c” word”), so that the year can begin anew. Then the membrane has to be removed to get to the sweet inside pulp. The peel is about an inch thick and has to be cut with a knife before it can be peeled away. The combination of these two facts make them an exotic treat–but, wait! The fun isn’t over yet! Eating the pomelo is an adventure in itself. Sweeter than a grapefruit and as large as your head, pomelos are only found in January and February and they’re a buy ’em if you see ’em fruit. Citrus fruits represent wealth and prosperity. So what are some fun ways to celebrate Lunar New Year with your students? By all means, eat Chinese food, but the easiest and simplest is citrus. China Highlights offers a calendar of events for celebrating the holiday and, let’s just say, if you thought Christmas was intense…Īnd if you haven’t seen how much they put into decorating and celebrating, well…you haven’t lived:

That’s fifteen days of family, food, festivals and fireworks.

#HAYS EGGY CHALLAH HANUKKAH FULL#

Celebrations actually begin on the first full moon of January and the following new moon (in February) marks the New Year. It’s one way to drive home the importance of the holiday in your students’ minds. I hesitate to compare it to Christmas, but the temptation is there. You may or may not already know that the Lunar New Year is China’s largest holiday.

Chinese communities around the world (e.g., in the U.S., England, France and Australia).

Many other Asian countries such as Bali, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Japan (the New Year is known mainly as the Spring Festival).

Korea (the New Year is known as Soellal).

Who celebrates the Lunar New Year? Here’s an incomplete list of the countries that celebrate the Lunar New Year: Lunar New Year is also known as the Spring Festival, which may feel odd to those of us who follow the Western Gregorian calendar, given that we consider February a winter month. I try to use the term “Lunar New Year” as much as possible, and to explore other, less well-known Asian New Year celebrations. Although it is often referred to as the Chinese New Year, many Asian communities celebrate the Lunar New Year in early February.

Hays eggy challah hanukkah