Sukkot is
the Jewish harvest holiday. It starts in the Hebrew month
of Tishrei, four days after Yom Kippur. In the western calendar it begins early
fall and lasts for seven days. In 2015, Sukkot begins at sundown on September
27 ends October 4. It's also known as the Festival of Booths or Tabernacles.
Based on a Biblical injunction, during Sukkot, Jews build outdoor huts called
"sukkahs. They live, eat, pray and perform ceremonies using the "four
species"--etrog (citron or lemon), lulav (palm fronds), willow twig
(aravot) and myrtle twigs (hadassim). Here are free printable Sukkot
lesson plans, Jewish activities to teach children about Hebrew holidays.
Torah
Tots is a good place to start for things Jewish for kids. It has free printable Succot activities, crafts, lesson plans, coloring pages, recipes,
songs, prayers and Parsha (scripture) readings. Children will enjoy playing
online games, too. Look for all Jewish holiday activities here. The fall ones
include Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, then Succot (another spelling), Shmini
Atzeret, Simchat Torah and Chanukah. DLTK has free printable Jewish crafts for younger children based on general
Hebrew themes. The Lookstein Center for Jewish Studies has a comprehensive list
of free printable Sukkot
lesson plans for older
children.
Chabad
is another great resource for Jewish families. Here are free printable Sukkot
coloring pages, prayers, recipes, games, crafts and activities. Tips for
building a sukkah are included, as well as activities to explore Sukkot and
other Hebrew holy days. Jewish Homeschool has a plethora of free Hebrew holiday
printables, including some for
Sukkot. There are homeschool helps, too. Judaism 101 has free printable Sukkot
prayers and kaddish (blessings) to observe a proper festival.
