It’s been so incredibly hard to get in the Hanukkah (and actually, any kind of activity) mindset right now but I do know and understand that the world needs as much light and love as we can pour into it so here is my small contribution for right now, our 2023 Hanukkah Shelfie + Starter Activities. I hope you find some inspiration, some ideas for creating joy and light in simple but meaningful ways. Chag Hanukkah Sameach!
What You’ll Need
- Your favorite Hanukkah books (check out our recommendations here!)
- Your favorite Hanukkah arts, crafts, toy sets, and activities that you already own and/or look below to see if any of ours inspire you to create similar ones!
Putting It Together
Here is the list of activities that I set up. Get inspired or grab whatever of your own! I also plan to add new activities to this Hanukkah Shelfie as we create them.
- Hanukkah Book Box
- Hanukkah 3 Part Cards
- Interchangeable Maccabee Peg Dolls
- Hanukkah Countdown Blocks
- Hanukkah Gross Motor Dice from 3Dinosaurs
- Dreidel Creation Light Table Invitation
- Latke Count and Match Game
- Hanukkah Sensory Bag
- Dreidel Color Sort and Match
- Hanukkah Candle Shape Building Invitation
- Hanukkah One to One Correspondence Candle Match
- Jewish Together Hanukkah Banner
- Dreidel Spin Art Banner
- Hanukkah Beading Invitation
- Jewish Together Hanukkah Matching Game
- Hanukkah Clothespin Match
- Hanukkah Chunkies
- Jewish Together Would You Rather Game
- Hanukkah Candlestick Posting
Finished & Loving It!
Hanukkah Book Box
You know how much we love our Hanukkah Book Box and Hanukkah Reading Challenge Bingo! It’s a wonderful way to gather your favorite Hanukkah boxes, snuggle up together, and enjoy a beautiful Hanukkah story.
We have so many in our collection! What is your favorite Hanukkah book?
The Hanukkah Reading Challenge Bingo is available as a free printable and is also part of the awesome Hanukkah Activities Packet for Early Learners.
Hanukkah 3 Part Cards
As always, I love having our Hanukkah 3 Part Cards available for an easy review of the holiday of Hanukkah. It’s a great reminder of the traditions and symbols of the holiday and is a great reading and matching practice.
Interchangeable Maccabee Peg Dolls
You know how much I love small world play. And we have some beautiful Maccabee Peg Dolls (see them on our Shelfie from last year here!). But Woodpeckers Crafts has these parts that make the perfect interchangeable peg dolls. It allows children to have control and creativity over how they want to mix and match their peg dolls. So I had to make my own Maccabee version!
And of course, you can too! Just buy equal parts of the bodies and heads from Woodpeckers Crafts then paint as you wish. I added little shields in the front to help remind us they are the Maccabees.
I loved watching my kids engage and act out the Hanukkah story. So much fun to see and listen to them be the storytellers. I also loved watching them mix and match the parts to create their favorite Maccabee style!
Hanukkah Countdown Blocks
I think we could all use some build up and excitement for this holiday, am I right? I can’t wait to fill our house with the light of our Hanukkiah candles. When I saw this block set from Woodpeckers Crafts I knew it would be a wonderful way to create a visual countdown so we can all look forward to the holiday approaching. I just added some paint and ta-da our own customized Hanukkah countdown now exists!
Get your block set, Hanukkah chunkies, and so much more from Woodpeckers Crafts! Use code WithLoveIma5 for a discount!
Hanukkah Gross Motor Dice from 3Dinosaurs
When I saw these Hanukkah gross motor dice from 3 Dinosaurs I knew it would be a great addition to our Hanukkah Shelfie and our Hanukkah experience. The dice let the kids review different common Hanukkah symbols and move their bodies at the same time. Genius!
3 Dinosaurs has the print out to make the dice available for free on her website. I also prepared a set for the preschool because this is such a great activity for Circle Time!
Like the wooden dice that I mod podged the print outs to? You guessed it, they are from my favorite, Woodpeckers Crafts! Just imagine all the fun customized dice and games you could create!
Dreidel Creation Light Table Invitation
There are so many creative and beautiful ways to bring more light into your Hanukkah experience. If you have a light table, I encourage you to bring it out! We love this DIY version and have used it in so many different activities.
I invited the kiddos to use our magnatiles to create their own dreidels. We all loved seeing the light shine through the tiles and I also loved their critical thinking and creativity skills at practice.
Latke Count and Match Game
Here’s another fun and adorable way to use dice and incorporate some Hanukkah learning! These latkes and latke pans are so easy to make. Roll the dice and find the correct pan and matching dotted latke. If you don’t want to use dice, just have your kiddo grab a latke, count the lines and then find its matching pan. Such a great way to practice counting, one to one correspondence and have some latke fun!
Hanukkah Sensory Bag
I prepped one of these Hanukkah sensory bags for the preschool and knew my kids would enjoy it as well. All you need is a ziplock bag, hair gel (yes Dollar tree has a big tub!) and Hanukkah symbols. Put them all in the bag, seal it shut (I added extra tape so it doesn’t pop open) and let the kids explore. They have to work to maneuver the Hanukkah symbols in the bag while receiving tactile feedback in the squishiness of the hair gel. It’s a great (and mess free) sensory activity that can easily and safely sit on your Hanukkah Shelfie.
Dreidel Color Sort and Match
Here’s another super simple Hanukkah invitation that helps practice color identification and matching. And who doesn’t love to grab and play with as many dreidels as you can?
Hanukkah Candle Shape Building Invitation
I love the idea of using Hanukkah candles in all sorts of activities (yes, there are more to come this year!). This invitation allows the kids to manipulate the candles into different common shapes. It’s a simple way to explore the Hanukkah candles and also practice identifying and creating shapes.
You can download and print the Build a Shape with Hanukkah Candles print out here.
If you have a child who gets stressed out when things don’t line up perfectly, give them a heads up that the candle matching for some of the shapes (like the diamond) won’t line up completely because the candles are too long. But they can still make the shape themselves, following the prompt. It was so interesting to see this play out with my two youngest. The youngest really wanted the candles to match up exactly and the diamond was frustrating for him. His older brother helped show him he could still make the shape. It was a little bonus problem solving, creative thinking, real life applications practice!
Hanukkah One to One Correspondence Candle Match
You didn’t have to wait long for more Hanukkah candle invitations! This is another simple and lovely one to help practice counting and one to one correspondence. Prep jumbo popsicle sticks with stickers 1-8. Write the number at the far right. Invite your child to count the stickers/read the numeral and then match the correct number of candles to the stick.
Jewish Together Hanukkah Banner
Jewish Together has so many amazing options this year. I love her new banner! It’s set up on the Shelfie for now and once we set up our dining area for Hanukkah dinners, I look forward to transferring it over there for some prime time viewing!
Use code WITHLOVEFROMIMA10 for 10% off all Jewish Together’s Hanukkah printables and coloring pages. Enjoy!
Dreidel Spin Art Banner
I couldn’t resist multiple garlands this year. The dreidel spin banner is because we just have to have some dreidel spin art every year. Before I could get my act together to set up the whole Shelfie, the kids were excited to do this easy and simple Hanukkah activity. I might move this banner to our eating area during Hanukkah as well so we can see it and love on it throughout the entire holiday.
Hanukkah Beading Invitation
My daughter was so excited when she saw these beads arrive in the mail! They are gorgeous and iridescent. Add pipe cleaners and invite them to fill two pipe cleaners with the beads. Model how to shape the pipe cleaners into triangles then twist and create a Star of David for a sweet and beautiful Hanukkah decoration.
We loved our Star of Davids but you could also challenge yourself to create other Hanukkah symbols–dreidels, sufganiyot, what else?
Jewish Together Hanukkah Matching Game
Jewish Together created this sweet and adorable Hanukkah matching game. It’s an easy invitation that lets the kids practice their matching skills while also reviewing Hanukkah symbols.
Hanukkah Clothespin Match
Clothespin activities are such wonderful ways to practice fine motor skills. Add in a matching invitation and you get to practice those identification and matching skills as well. I had these Hanukkah Clothespin Match options set out on last year’s Shelfie. This year I made lowercase clothespins so that my first grader was challenged to find the matching uppercase and lower case letters.
There are multiple Hanukkah clothespin activities in our Hanukkah Activities Packet for Early Leaners. Have fun!
Hanukkah Chunkies
Woodpeckers Crafts has the most amazing chunkies–thick wooden cutouts that can stand up. I love their dreidels and hanukkiah for celebrating Hanukkah! My children decorated these last year and they adorned our present and games table throughout the holiday. I loved seeing them on this year’s Shelfie!
Jewish Together Would You Rather Game
Do you have a kiddo obsessed with cootie catchers (is there a more PC name now? Let me know!) like my daughter is? She absolutely loved Jewish Together’s brand new Would You Rather game! She taught her younger brother how to do it and they laughed about all their Hanukkah-related questions and answers.
Hanukkah Candlestick Posting
This Candlestick Posting has been used for years but it’s one of our favorites so out it came again! It’s such a good fine motor skill practice.
Getting in the mood …
This year Hanukkah starts Thursday, December 7th. I can’t see the date of the 7th of any month now and not think about the October 7th massacre. I know we are told that the greatest resistance is unabashed Jewish joy. May we feel that joy, pride in being Jewish, and fill the world with light and love through our traditions, our families, our hanukkiah, our crafts, and all our love.
I hope you found some inspiration for beginning your Hanukkah 2023 adventures! Continue with us, either here and/or on Instagram, as we enjoy this beautiful Festival of Lights!
Chag Hanukkah Sameach!
We have a whole page dedicated to Hanukkah, our Hanukkah Hub. Check it out! It includes some of the Hanukkah activities we plan to do this year, as well as the activities we’ve done in previous years.
And don’t forget our Hanukkah Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards, a wonderful way to introduce Hanukkah! And, now we also have all 13 Jewish holidays bundled together in A Year of Jewish Holidays 3 Part Cards.
If you want to go full-on Hanukkah with your littles, you must try our Hanukkah Activities Packet for Early Learners! I am so excited about all the Hanukkah-themed literacy, fine motor skills, math, and play fun!
The following sites are amazing resources for learning more about this holiday:
Chag Sameach!
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