The program activities listed below fall into one of four categories:

1. Teaching the Story of Purim
2. Developing Purim Themes
3. Observing Purim - Activities to Enhance Purim Observance
4. Celebrating Purim through Parody and the Carnival

The mitzvot (observances) of Purim are especially suited to child-participation. Students will enjoy making their own holiday supplies.

General Educational Goals: Students will go into the holiday with increased enthusiasm about participating in its rituals. Their celebration will be enhanced through using their own utensils. The build-up of pre-Purim excitement will also increase.

This activity should be made enough in advance of Purim that the children can bring their noisemakers to the Megilla reading. The teacher should explain to the class when and why groggers are used on Purim.

Good noisemakers can be made from: empty shoe polish tins, other metal tins, plastic bottles, yogurt containers, juice containers - you name it! The teacher can either provide the materials, or students can bring the container of their choice. For different effects, fill with rice, beans, screws or other metal objects.

1. First clean and dry the container thoroughly.
2. Give each child something to put inside.
3. Seal the containers with heavy tape, or glue. (Tape is easiest!)
4. If handles are desired, use wooden tongue depressors or something similar. Affix firmly with more tape.
5. When the containers are sealed and functioning, decorate. Use colored construction paper, contact paper or poster paints. Then attach sparkles with glue, or other details, like googly eyes (for groggers with faces) or jingle bells.

Before the session, the teacher should explain to the children that they will be making costumes. Ask them to bring in pieces of old clothing, including hats and accessories that are not needed at home. They can bring in materials for their own costumes, but should also bring in extra articles to share with the class. The teacher should provide an ample supply of needles and thread, safety pins, strong tape, thread, scissors and any other tools available for costume making (like pinking shears or a glue gun).

At the next meeting, the teacher assists the students to make costumes, suggesting ideas and alternatives. The children can wear their costumes to the Megilla reading, the Purim meal, and any Purim parties they attend. At the end of the class, you can feature a Purim parade for everyone to show off their costumes.

Depending on the resources available, simple or elaborate masks can be made. Possible bases for masks are brown paper bags, white paper plates, construction paper, and paper mache. They can be decorated with construction paper, poster paints, feathers, glitter, sequins, other beads, and fake hair. The teacher should choose materials appropriate for the age group and budget. As above, masks can be worn to the Megilla reading, the Purim meal, and any Purim parties the students attend. At the end of the class, you can display the masks.

Although this megilla can't be used on Purim, students will like drawing their own illustrations to accompany the story. Explain to the group that for many years, Jewish artists have decorated the Megilla scrolls with beautiful illustrations. If you like you can print an example from our Gallery to show the class. They will understand there is even a historical basis to the activity.

The teacher divides the class into groups, or assigns each part to an individual. The Megilla itself, has 9 chapters, which serve as natural divisions. Use either a roll of butcher paper, or tape large pieces together after they are illustrated to create a scroll. Assign students to illustrate different parts of the story. They can either work together on collaborative pictures, or each can have a subsection of their own. A summary of each section should be printed on the page, so that they can illustrate around the text.

The students work with markers, crayons or paint to illustrate the events in the Megilla. The pictures are finally attached into a scroll which can be brought and displayed in the synagogue on Purim (good for a synagogue Sunday School). Or it can be displayed in the classroom.

The moderator first teaches the students about the mitzva of mishloach manot. See the Mishloach Manot pages in our site for reference. The class will then prepare their own mishloach manot to deliver to either a Jewish nursing home, hospital, or other similar institution.

Educational Goals:The students will get to participate in the mitzva of mishloach manot, and to fulfill the mitzvah of chesed, lovingkindness, by reaching out to others within the community. This activity also emphasizes the Purim theme of Jewish unity, with tangible results. The student feels him/herself as part of the larger Jewish community.

You need:
1. Something to put the mishloach manot in. If you can find inexpensive baskets, or plastic bowls, fine. Otherwise, use colorful disposable plates. Use clear or colored cellophane to wrap the packages. If unavailable, use plastic wrap.

2. Food for the mishloach manot. This will depend to some extent on who will be receiving them . If it will be for senior citizens, low-sodium and low-sugar baked goods, soft rolls, and other baked goods are good for those with restricted diets. As would be fruit, sugar-free lollipops, juices, etc. The teacher can even phone ahead to ask advice from the nutritional counselor in the nursing home. For hospital patients, some sensitivity is required, but most patients can eat chocolates, pretzels, and other "nosh." There must be at least two different types of food in each package. (See Laws of Mishloach Manot for more details.)

3. Wrap up the packages and decorate the outside with ribbons and cards. Each child can decorate his/her own Happy Purim card and so personalize the package.

4. If it is feasible to deliver the packages on Purim, do. If not, go a day or two before. Remember that the 13th of Adar is Ta'anit Esther, a fast day. Even if people will not be fasting (as in the case of the elderly or sick) it would be more sensitive to avoid going on day of the fast itself.

Matanot L'Evyonim, Gifts to the Poor, is a key observance of Purim. Children can serve as shlichim (messengers) for this great mitzvah. Although classic fundraising drive mechanisms can be used (such as selling candy bars, walkathons, etc.), the most effective approach here is the simple and straight-forward one: Each student will approach the Jewish adults that they know, and explain the mitzvah of Matanot L'Evyonim to them, and then offer to serve as their shaliach (messenger) for the mitzvah. The monies must be distributed to the Jewish poor on Purim itself, but for this you can designate an adult to gather all collected monies and distribute them to at least two different Jewish people in the community.

Educational Goals: Students get to actively participate in the miztva of Matanot L'Evyonim, which is distinct from the mitzva of tzedaka (charity). Through their efforts, they also serve as the shaliach mitzva, a very great honor. When they describe the mitzva to the adults they solicit, they will internalize the outlines of the observance.

Before explaining the guidelines of the activity, the moderator gives a general introduction of the mitzvah of tzedaka , stressing its importance. The teacher can use our section on Matanot L'Evyonim, to brief the class. The explanation should include the following details:

1. This is one of the four mitzvot of Purim.
2. The mitzvah of Matanot L'Evyonim is incumbent upon even a poor person who has to accept charity.
3. It is intended to increase feelings of solidarity among the Jewish people.
4. The minimum contribution is small: a person must donate a gift worth at least 2 cents to two people to fulfill the mitzvah.

Parody, Satire, and the Carnival are all established parts of the Purim tradition. An original Purim play, complete with "in-jokes" that the students will love, is a great Purim activity. Skits, improvisations and otehr drama games can be utilized. A Purim carnival can be presented, with booths for games like "Pop the Haman" (faces are drawn on balloons, which are popped with darts), bobbing for apples, or lottery games. In addition, here are two more ideas with Purim flavor.

A spoof modeled after The Dating Game -- Achashverosh, Haman and Mordechai are on the stage. They can be played by either boys or girls. Some girl is chosen to ask questions. She could also be played by a boy. A guest show host can be added to involve more students. The questions and answers should be humorous, and the answers should reveal the great differences between the three men in question. The students should ham it up to come up with funny answers. The girl picks her Shushan shidduch, or match, from the panel of available suitors.

Students can collaboratively write the questions in advance, while the three "dream dates" are secluded.

Example Questions:
Ques: Tell me some of your favorite hobbies.
Achashverosh: Eating, drinking, and attending beauty pageants.
Haman: Indulging in hate crimes, attacking the weak and defenseless, plotting and scheming.
Mordechai: learning Torah, attending to Jewish community affairs, praying for the welfare of the Jews.

Ques: What is your favorite color?
Achashverosh: royal purple
Haman: gold and dollar-bill green
Mordechai: techelet blue

Educational goals: The students learn the differences between the different Megilla characters - using humor to emphasize the message.

This is based on the very old custom of beating Haman on Purim. (See "Eradicating Haman.")

A pinyata (paper mache figure) in the shape of a person -- preferably someone who looks as if he could be Haman -- is prepared and filled with candy. It is suspended in mid-air, and blindfolded children take turns swinging at the pinyata with a stick trying to break it open. When broken, the candy rains down.

Pinyatas are Mexican in origin. In cities with Mexican communities, it should be possible to buy one ready-made and to just add candy. But it is possible (and fun!) to make your own.

Find a paper mache recipe. Prepare newspapers and paste. You will need to make this over a 24-hour period, to allow for drying time.

You need:
A roll of masking tape
1 large bleach or liquid detergent bottle, for the body.
2 plastic soda bottles, for the legs
Two paper towel rolls, for the arms
2 round balloons, for the head

Using masking tape, connect the elements into a crude body shape. (Inflate one of the balloons!) Turn the spout of the bleach bottle downwards, to serve as a pelvis. Fit the soda bottles next to it , spout side down. It will be a very crude shape of a body. That's okay -- after all it's Haman, the more strange he looks, the better.

Lay the taped-together body on a table, and apply paper mache along the half facing away from the table. Be very generous - it should be a thick, about 5-10 layers thick. After it dries, carefully pull off the paper mache shell. You may have to pop the balloon in order to remove the paper mache from the head. You will have half a body shape.

Lay the soda bottle body down again to repeat the process. Inflate another balloon for the head, being careful to make it the same size as the first (use the paper mache shell as a guide).

When you have two dried half-bodies, carefully apply the paper mache to the two halves, to connect them. Remember to insert the candy before you seal it completely. Let dry overnight.

Once the body is dried, add hands and feet with either wads of paper mache, or construction paper. You can also add extra details to the body, like a hat, nose or a fat stomach.

Decorate the pinyata either by painting it, using construction paper, or in any other way that suits your resources and fancy.

Hang and enjoy!