Rosh Hashanah is fast upon us, and besides the date (Sundown, September 16th through sundown, September 18th) here are five quick things you’ll want to remember about the Jewish New Year.
1. It’s all about the apples and honey. If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, then Rosh Hashanah should keep you healthy for a very long time. After you’re done dipping and eating, try doing some apple-y crafts with your kids, like this apple-print blessings placemat (including an apple and honey blessings cheat-sheet), an apple bowl for honey, an apple tablecloth craft, and this stained glass apple plate.
2. There are some great kids books about the High Holidays. Clean that sticky honey off your hands and grab some of these great reads that teach your kids all about the holidays without being totally boring. Here’s a list of our favorites. And if you’re in the New York metro area, be sure to sign up through Kveller for PJ Library to receive free Jewish books every month!
3. Tekiiiiii-ah! That is the sound of the shofar. It is best to embrace these loud, long, gasp-worthy sounds made from a ram’s horn, as it’s an icon of the High Holidays and your kids will love to watch the shofar blower’s face turn bright red. And they may just want their own toy shofars.
4. It’s a walk in the park. Or at least the tashlich part is. Tashlich is the Rosh Hashanah tradition of tossing bread into water to cast away your sins. Even if you don’t live near any water, here are some great interpretations of the tradition that your kids can get behind (one of them involves a kiddie pool, for crying out loud!)
5. Eat already! We like to think of Rosh Hashanah as the perfect excuse to have a downright feast. Jewish holiday classics are the favorite among many the family dinner table, from brisket to matzah ball soup to challah (only this time, it’s round and topped with honey). For more ideas, check out these deliciously inventive apples and honey recipes. See also this very blog, on which we’ve been running a Rosh Hashanah recipe of the day and will continue to do so up to the main event.
