I love teaching the students about how different people celebrate the holidays this time of year. It’s so important for the students to know that everyone is different and has special traditions just like their own family. For our literacy snack this week, we have a Literacy Snack Idea Hanukkah Read Aloud, Is It Hanukkah Yet? by Chris Barash.
“From snow on the ground to making applesauce and latkes to lighting the menorah, this sweet, lyrical story shows the seasonal and traditional ways we know Hanukkah is on its way.”
The book touches on traditions just briefly on each page, enough for you to reference back to help explain the traditions in more details afterward. I especially like to go back and talk about how the family played a dreidel game.
THIS ACTIVITY WORKS WELL WITH
Our first graders in our school each year, sing Holiday songs at an assembly. The song they sing for Hanukkah is Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel, so I like to play this video for the students so they can sing along.
And then we watch a video to help us understand how to play the dreidel game.
At the end of the video, the dad gives each of them special chocolate gold coins, and that’s what we’ll be having as our snack today to go along with the book. They’re easy to find at the store, Target Dollar Spot, Trader Joes, World Market Place, tons of places. I give each student 2 gold coins.
While they’re enjoying their special treat, I made a free printable for them to work on. They get to draw in the nine candles on the menorah that they learned about in the book.
You can download the Literacy Snack Idea Hanukkah Read Aloud free printable from my teacherspayteachers store below.
If you are continuing to teach about other holidays around the world, your class may enjoy these Holiday Around the World bingo cards. It’s a favorite for us!
And here is a fun Hanukkah scavenger hunt to help celebrate too. . Click here for the digital version and click here to grab the printable version.
Do you have any other fun ways to teach about Hanukkah in your classroom?
Thanks for stopping by!
Jenette
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