When I asked my kids what their favorite part of Purim is they all said the Carnival: games, tickets, costumes, and fun … ok Pandemic, we can still make this happen and over the weekend we did: enter our own DIY At-Home Purim Carnival!
We put together some games (kiddos helped make them), crafts, activities, tickets and even had some prizes. My daughter was the only one who kept her costume on but there was still the crazed energy of excitement and anticipation (and competition) even at home. And just like after a real synagogue carnival, I’m pooped and ready for my tea and book!
If your or your kids’ favorite part of Purim is the Carnival, don’t let the Pandemic stop you this year! You can easily put together a DIY At-Home Purim Carnival for Erev Purim or Purim day, or even the following weekend! Have fun!
Truly, all you need for a DIY At-Home Purim Carnival is the attitude that you’re doing something fun! Everything else is bonus. Bring out costumes from your dress bin or create new ones. Put out some fun Purim crafts or grab easy games you already have around the house, like charades, besan bag toss, and hula hoops. I’ll share the activities we did but just remember the key is to create a fun and festive atmosphere and you’ll know what activities will work best for your family!
I made Purim Tickets for each kid to get after participating in an activity. This is what our synagogue does for its Purim Carnival so it was fun to replicate that. If you’re up for putting together a table of prizes, more power to you! I was not and instead let them choose a candy at the end of the carnival.
Knock Haman Down Cup Tower
What You’ll Need
- Haman’s image
- Plastic cups
- Tape
- Ball
Putting It Together
- Google Haman and print out his face multiple times (copyright prevented me from sharing the image I used)
- Glue or tape to plastic or paper cups.
- Stack cups in a pyramid.
- Throw a ball or bean bag at the cups to knock them down.
Pin the Crown on Esther
What You’ll Need
- Pin the Crown on Esther PDF
- Tape
- Scissors
- Blindfold
Putting It Together
- Print out the Esther PDF.
- Tape Esther to the wall.
- Cut out the crowns.
- Put tape loops on the back of each crown.
- Blindfold the kiddo then call out Echad, Shtaim, Shalosh and spin them around. Then they have try to match the crown on Esther’s head.
Discover Buried Treasure
What You’ll Need
- Bin or tub
- Water beads or other sensory filler
- Treasures–can be whatever you want; we used animal figurines and matchbox cars. You could use treasures typically found at synagogue carnivals like plastic bead necklaces, coins, erasers, etc.
Putting It Together
- Hide some animal figurines and matchbox cars (or other treasures) in water beads. If you don’t have water beads, you can use any type of sensory bin filler (rice, kinetic sand, real sand, flour, beans, etc)
- Let the kids look for the buried treasure!
Push the Pom Pom Jewels on Vashti’s Crown
What You’ll Need
- Empty box
- Vashti’s crown PDF
- Scissors
- Tape
- Pom poms
Putting It Together
- Print out Vashti’s crown.
- Tape it to an empty box.
- Cut out holes at top of crown.
- Invite kids to push pom poms into the holes. You can challenge them to match the correct color pom pom to hole. They can also use tongs to grab the pom poms.
I made this activity because I needed an activity for the baby. He loved playing with the pom poms and even tried to smoosh them in the holes. He had to be closely supervised, though, since he also wanted to eat them!
Paper Plate Mask Making
What You’ll Need
- paper plates
- scissors
- popsicle sticks
- glue or tape
- decorating supplies (we used paint sticks)
Putting It Together
- These were inspired by the paper plate mask craft by Make It Jewish but the kids only wanted to use paint sticks. If you had the time and interest, you could use jewels and other decorations.
Purim Lego Building
What You’ll Need
Putting It Together
- JBrick.com has a free Purim Lego Instruction sheet that was easy and fun to make. But you can also challenge your kids to create their own Purim lego creations!
What are your kids’ favorite part of Purim and if it’s the Carnival, what’s their favorite game? And so soon … Chag Sameach!
For more Purim fun, check out our Purim Round Up 2021 page! (Or better yet, subscribe so you won’t ever miss a new post!) You can also follow us on Instagram for more timely updates!
If you’re ready to start Purim crafts and activities right now, there are many fun and meaningful experiences from previous years right here!
Purim Character Clothespin Dolls
“Boo Haman!” Fine Motor Skills Activity
For general information on Purim, check out these resources:
Bim Bam: The Purim Story in 4 Minutes
Chag Sameach!!
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[…] favorite from previous years came out because the kids continue to enjoy it year after year: our Queen Esther’s Crown Pom Pom Push! This is such a simple DIY and a great way to practice fine motor skills and color […]