This weekend we were all excited to give the playroom a good clean (maybe less excited about that!) and set up our 2024 Purim Shelfie + Starter Activities! Purim is a favorite of the kiddos and they were so excited to see what activities I set up for this year’s kick off.
I kept it pretty simple this year. As always, even simple activities have so many opportunities for meaningful and fun learning, review, fine motor skills, hand eye coordination, creativity and imagination! Play is the work of the child and we love learning through play in our house!
What You’ll Need
- Your favorite Purim books (check out our recommendations here!)
- Your favorite Purim 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 Purim Shelfie as we create them.
- Purim Book Box + Reading Bingo Challenge
- Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards
- Purim Nomenclature Cards
- Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners
- Purim Story Felt Board
- Basket of Groggers + Purim I Spy Groggers
- Boo Haman Posting Box
- Crown Jewel Numeral Match
- Hamantaschen Counting Cards
- Hamantaschen Match Sensory Tray
- Loose Parts Crown Invitation
- DIY Interactive Megillah
- Paper Plate Crowns
- Purim Costume Match Sensory Tray
- Shushan Build Invitation with Acrylic Cubes
- You Fill Grogger
- Purim Decorations
Finished & Loving It!
Purim Book Box + Reading Bingo Challenge
You know how much we love gathering all our holiday books together to make pulling out and reading holiday-themed stories as easy as possible. We made this book box years ago and have space to store it and bring it out each year. Of course, creating a new book box could be a special holiday activity each year in and of itself if you didn’t want to store one year from year.
I love that one of my guys quickly pulled down one of his favorite Purim books and just sat down and started reading. Books are such amazing learning tools! And so much fun as well 🙂
Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards
I love using our Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards to review and teach the story of Purim. It’s a simple way to state the holiday details, story, traditions and symbols. The kids love getting to match the images. My not-yet and early-readers match the summaries by me reading them then remembering and matching which image connects to that summary. So great for identification, matching, memory, and early reading practice!
The Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards are available on their own, or as part of the Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners.
Purim Nomenclature Cards
I love our Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards for explaining about the holiday with lots of helpful details. But these Purim Nomenclature Cards are perfect for exposing, teaching, and reviewing the main symbols and traditions of Purim. Even very young children can be taught about these symbols and traditions through the associated images. Point to the image and state the name of the symbol or tradition. You can stop there for the very beginning learners but can easily go into more detail about what these mean for your family.
Make sure to point to the word and say it out loud as well, even for children too young to read. This helps expose them to the words and making connections between the letters and these words.
The Purim Nomenclature Cards are available here on their own or in our Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners.
Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners
Last year I made this Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners. There are so many different types of activities in it, all easy to print and then have available for your kids to explore (some require cutting).
I’ll be setting up these activities for my kids again this year, but I set out some on the Purim Shelfie so wanted to make sure I shared here too!
Purim Story Cards
This Purim Sequencing Story set is such a great way to focus on the story of Purim with more details than the Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards. The story of Purim is of course central to our celebration of the holiday. There are many lovely books that tell the story of Purim in creative ways that I absolutely love (like this one!) but I really love these cards as a straightforward, simple, and concise way to tell the story.
These cards are great as an introduction of the story or as review. And it’s also a wonderful way to have the kids match the pictures with the content and practice sequencing the story chronologically. I love giving them the opportunity to be storytellers.
This year I had the cards out on a tray and I read the backs of the cards (where the story content is), then the kids took turns racing to our large felt board and placing the card in its chronological order. You just need to add a little velcro dot to the back of these cards and they become wonderful felt story cards, for home or school!
The Purim Sequencing Story is available on its own or as part of the Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners.
Basket of Groggers + Purim I Spy Groggers
You can’t have Purim without some groggers!! This Basket of Groggers included some store bought ones that we’ve decorated in the past and of course some of our favorite DIY and kid-made groggers.
I included our Purim I Spy Groggers because they are such a great way to review Purim symbols and enjoy shaking a real grogger!
I also saved our egg carton groggers from last year because they are such a fun and easy way to make groggers and the kids really love them.
Boo Haman Posting Box
I made the original Boo Haman Posting Box years and years ago then revamped it into this fancier and more durable version a couple years ago. It’s such a simple concept but has so many opportunities for learning and skill building.
This activity is a wonderful way to introduce the character of Haman and his connection to the Purim story. Including an explanation of why we cry out “Boo Haman!” (as if you couldn’t resist ha!) helps explain the story and is also a major tradition of Purim so your kiddos will be ready when they hear the Megillah or a Purim book read.
The posting box also allows for a simple and effective fine motor skill practice. Having to grasp the popsicle stick base and insert it into the slit takes concentration, hand eye coordination and yep, fine motor skills!
If you top the popsicle sticks with Purim symbols like we did you have another opportunity for exposure, explanation, learning and review. Awesome!
Crown Jewel Numeral Match
I loved this Crown Jewel Numeral Match invitation because it’s another simple concept with lots of learning and practice opportunities. I used the Cricut to cut my crowns but of course hand cutting would totally work. I made 5 crowns, but you could make as many as you want. I liked that my counting dots corresponded to the number of crown spikes but of course that’s not necessary for the counting and matching purposes.
All you really need is the numeral to give that exposure and practice identifying numerals, the corresponding number of dots to make that connection and to practice one to one correspondence while counting, and enough jewels to match to the dots and to count by using one to one correspondence when placing each jewel on a dot.
For our jewels I used Dollar Tree glass vase filler discs but you can use whatever you have around the house. Using manipulatives like this helps with sensory feedback and the one to one correspondence.
And of course using crowns helps make the connection to royalty in the Purim story–to Queen Esther of course, but also King Ahashverosh and also Queen Vashti.
Hamantaschen Counting Cards
I made these Hamantaschen Counting Cards a couple years ago and they are another tried and true simple activity that exposes, teaches, and reviews an important Purim symbol (hamantaschen!) and also helps practice and develop important skills (math, counting, color identification and matching, one to one correspondence).
These Hamantaschen Counting Cards are available as a free printable here or as part of the Purim Activity Bundle! It could be a very easy way to print and prep, then let your kiddos explore connections to Purim.
Hamantaschen Match Sensory Tray
You guessed it, MORE activities that I store and pull out from year to year! I know not everyone wants to store so much holiday content, but it has really made my life so much easier. We love these activities so much and it’s so nice not to have to start from scratch each year.
These felt hamantaschen are easy to make–cut a circle out of felt and pinch into a triangle and glue those points with a glue gun. You can use them as a way of teaching how to make real hamantaschen. Using matching colors like I have on this Hamantaschen Match Sensory Tray allows for color identification and matching. Add corresponding colored pom poms and you have that matching opportunity and fine motor skill practice as well.
When added in a sensory bin or tray then you have that sensory feedback that’s always a delight. But they also work well on their own, one a tray, basket, or table like we did last year.
Loose Parts Crown Invitation
This Loose Parts Crown Invitation was a previous year’s favorite. And it can definitely be a stand-alone activity, but it worked really well on the Purim Shelfie this year as well.
Loose parts invitations allow for creativity and imagination. Kids came and made their creation then a sibling changed it up. Thankfully, that did not cause a riot this time! I loved seeing how they chose to design their crown. My youngest chose a rainbow. My daughter made sure the loose parts were all symmetrical. So many options!
Of course using the crown as a base is the perfect opportunity to discuss this symbol of Purim and its connection to Queen Esther, King Ahashverosh, and Queen Vashti.
DIY Interactive Megillah
I made this DIY Interactive Megillah years ago and use it both at home and while teaching in my K/1 classroom. It’s such a fun way to have the kids help read the story of Purim and shout out the character names when I point to each character image. They really get invested and also have so much practice at identifying and remembering who the Purim characters are.
I typed out the story in a Word Doc then inserted images of the characters every time their name popped up. I used the character images from Beyond the Balagan but you could find others or draw your own. I liked that my kids could color in the images as well.
Print, tape, and roll up and you have your own DIY Interactive Megillah!
Paper Plate Crowns
My amazing friend Lisa from Make It Jewish has been making Tu B’Shevat Paper Plate Crowns for her students for years. This year we decided to give it a Purim twist and the kids loved it! I set out sticky jewels and paint sticks and they decorated the plates however they wished. Fold back the cut triangles and ta-da! Amazing Paper Plate Crowns!
Purim Costume Match Sensory Tray
This Purim Costume Match Sensory Tray was another super simple but fun activity that I prepped for both my own kiddos and the preschool. I printed out our Match the Purim Costume free printable, cut out the images, then cut them in half. Laminated all of them, then scattered them on the tray with some bright and fun sensory filler on top. The goal: the kids had to search through the filler to find the images, then match the correct halves together.
This activity was a fun take on Purim costumes, parade and carnival fun that is a tradition in our family and community. I loved that the images show different diverse kiddos all in costumes. These are simple ways to expose your children to diversity and remind them how diverse the Jewish population is.
It’s also great for young children to see other young children in photos, books, etc. They love seeing other children and it’s helpful for them to have these connections in their community.
Shushan Build Invitation with Acrylic Cubes
The kids got these gorgeous acrylic cubes for Hanukkah and I love including them in activities whenever I can. They are of course amazing on a light table so if you have one of those, spill these out and encourage your kiddos to build Shushan on that!
I didn’t set up our DIY light table this time, but the kids still loved building little Shushan buildings with the blocks. They are so smooth and colorful and just a delight to create with.
Of course I set out our DIY Purim character peg dolls I made years ago and a horse so they could act out the Purim story, or life in Shushan, however they wished.
Want to make your own DIY Purim character peg dolls? Paint or use colored sharpies to bring blank peg dolls to life! We love getting our peg dolls (and all other wooden products!) from Woodpeckers Crafts. If you do too make sure to use code WithLoveIma5 for a discount!
You Fill Groggers
Our DIY grogger invitation this year was … drumroll … super simple! Notice a theme? Simple can just be so great. I had these little leftover plastic bottles and set them on a tray with a few filler options.
The kids were welcome to fill their groggers with whichever fillers they desired. I reminded them that the best groggers wouldn’t be filled to the top because the filling needs room to move to make noise.
Later on the kids got out sharpies and stickers to decorate their You Fill Groggers. And yes, the sound of shaking groggers filled our house! That’s when you know it’s countdown to Purim time 😉
Purim Decorations
Did you notice any of the following Purim decorations we scattered on the shelves?
- Marbled Masks
- Tissue Paper Masks
- Purim Playdough Mats (used on this Shelfie as symbol signs)
- Egg Carton Groggers
I love saving the kids’ art from previous years and bringing it out again as decoration. So fun and special!
Getting in the mood …
This year Purim starts the evening of Saturday, March 23rd and ends at sundown Sunday, March 24th.
I hope you found some inspiration from our 2024 Purim Shelfie + Starter Activities for beginning your Purim 2024 adventures! Continue with us, either here and/or on Instagram, as we explore bravery, pride in being oneself (and Jewish!), delicious food, booing loudly and continuing Jewish life, storytelling, and history as we prepare for and celebrate Purim!
Chag Purim Sameach!
We have a whole page dedicated to Purim, our Purim Hub. Check it out! It includes some of the Purim activities we plan to do this year, as well as the activities we’ve done in previous years.
And don’t forget our Purim Montessori-Style 3 Part Cards, a wonderful way to introduce Purim! And, now we also have all 13 Jewish holidays bundled together in A Year of Jewish Holidays 3 Part Cards.
If you want to have a ton of Purim early learner activities ready at your fingertips, try our Purim Activities Packet for Early Learners! I am so excited about all the Purim-themed literacy, fine motor skills, math, and play fun!
The following sites are amazing resources for learning more about this holiday:
Chag Sameach!
*This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link!*
