Lesson Ideas to Integrate Jewish Representation in December

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Congratulations, Educators! As we look toward December planning, we also look toward the halfway point of the 2024/2025 academic calendar. December can be one of the most fun and creative months of the school year and is a great time to bring diverse perspectives and experiences to your students.

According to the Association for Middle Level Education, “Research shows that representation in the classroom not only boosts feelings of belonging but also supports a positive school environment, where students feel more confident and achieve more” (Reginal, 2021). This guide offers simple and California State Standards-aligned ways to include representation of Jews and Judaism in the month of December, helping you enrich your classroom with fresh perspectives and traditions!

This year, the eight-day Jewish holiday of Chanukah begins on the evening of December 25, 2024.

Chanukah Overview

Chanukah, which means “dedication,” commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the year 165 BCE, but metaphorically celebrates faith, freedom, and perseverance, emphasizing the importance of cultural identity and religious liberty.

In Jerusalem over 2,000 years ago, a group of Jewish fighters (called the Maccabees) stood up against a powerful king and his army. The king, Antiochus, wanted the Jewish people to stop practicing their religion and follow his Greek customs instead. He even took over their holy Temple and used it for things the Jewish people didn’t believe in.

The Maccabees fought hard and, even though they were a small group, they won. After their victory, they cleansed and repaired the Temple so they could worship there again. But when they wanted to light the menorah (a special lamp that was supposed to stay lit all the time), they could only find enough pure oil to keep it burning for one day. It would take eight days to make more oil.

Then something amazing happened. That small amount of oil lasted for eight whole days. This was considered a miracle, and is one of the reasons why Chanukah is eight days long.

To remember this event, Jewish families light a special menorah called a Chanukiah during Chanukah. Each night, they light one more candle until all eight candles are glowing on the last night. They also celebrate by eating foods cooked in oil, like potato pancakes (latkes) and jelly doughnuts (sufganiyot). Other festivities include songs, games and playing with a spinning top called a dreidel.

Chanukah is a time to remember standing up for what you believe in, being brave, and celebrating miracles!

Chanukah Themes

One way to integrate new cultures into your current curricula is through a focus on common themes. Universal and unifying ideas can be used to help students find a common ground with a new culture and are an opportunity to use the new cultural content to explore familiar ideas. Below are some of the themes of Chanukah:

Triumph of Good over Evil.
Light vs. Darkness (both literal and metaphorical)
The Underdog Success Story
Resilience/Persistence
Resisting Assimilation
War/Warriors/Military

Symbols of Chanukah

In addition to the lessons suggested within this document, you may find it fun and helpful to bring in physical symbols of Chanukah. The use of realia in the classroom increases student engagement and can support their exploration of a new culture.

Menorah/Chanukiah

A Chanukiah is the menorah (ritual candelabra) lit during Chanukah. It has nine spaces for candles. One candle, called the shamash, stands slightly apart from the rest. The other eight candles each represent one night of Chanukah. On the first night of Chanukah, Jewish people put one candle in the menorah in addition to the shamash for a total of two candles. On the second night, two candles are put in, in addition to the shamash, for a total of three candles. The shamash is lit first and then it is used to light the other candles. Prayers are recited during the candle-lighting. Menorahs are then set in the window and the candles allowed to burn down completely.

Dreidel/Sevivon

A dreidel (in Yiddish) or sevivon (in Hebrew) is the spinning top used in a traditional Chanukah game. In the Chanukah story, Jewish religious study was outlawed and punishable by death by the Greeks. It is said that Jewish children would hide in the mountain caves to study Torah (the Jewish holy text) despite the risks. When the Greek patrol would come, the children would take out the spinning tops and use the game as a cover for their studies. The letters on a dreidel (Nun, Gimmel, Hay, Shun) each stand for an action taken during the game. See “How to Play Dreidel” below for detailed game instructions.

Latkes

To commemorate the miracle of the oil, many Jewish people enjoy foods fried in oil during the holiday. One popular dish is called latkes. They are fried potato pancakes that are often eaten with applesauce or sour cream.

Sufganiyot

Another popular fried food to eat on Chanukah are sufganiyot. These jelly-filled doughnuts are a special holiday dessert on Chanukah.

How to Teach Dreidel: For Teachers

Supplies

One dreidel per group of students.
Items to use as playing chips/tokens like beans, gelt (chocolate coins), math manipulatives, loose crayons or other classroom supplies. Usually 15-20 per student.
One “How to Play Dreidel” (below) page per group or posted on the whiteboard/projector.

Setup

Divide the class into groups of three to six people. Groups can be slightly larger if needed.
Provide each student with an equal number of tokens to play the game with.
Give each group one dreidel and directions.

Directions

Preview the history and Jewish cultural significance of Dreidel (see page 2 of this document).
Preview the game meaning for each Hebrew letter on the dreidel.
Read the directions as a class/to the class.
Lead the class in watching one group play a “test game” where you walk the group and class through each turn until the round is over (someone got a Gimmel and the pot is emptied)
Instruct the groups to begin playing and circle the room to support.

How to Play Dreidel

Letters on the Dreidel: The symbols on the sides of a dreidel are Hebrew letters. Each letter corresponds to an action in the game.
- Shin (ש): Put one token into the pot.
- Nun (נ): Take none of the tokens. Lose none of your tokens.
- Hay (ה): Take half the tokens in the pot.
- Gimmel (ג): Winner! Take all of the tokens in the pot.
Get into groups of three or more. Make sure each person has tokens or game pieces. A popular choice is Chanukah gelt(chocolate coins).
To decide who gets to play first, each person should spin the dreidel. The person with the highest spin gets to start the game. Shin is the lowest, then Nun, Hay, and finally Gimmel is the highest.
Before the first round can begin, each player must put one of their tokens into the “pot.” People will add to and draw from the pot throughout the game.
The player who is starting the game spins the dreidel. The dreidel will fall and land with one of four letters facing up.
- If Gimmel (ג) is facing up, the player wins the round and takes all the tokens from the pot as their winnings and the game play begins again with everyone putting in a token.
- Hay (ה) is facing up, the player gets half of the tokens in the pot. If there is an odd number of tokens in the pot, round down. The dreidel is then given to the next person to spin.
- If Shin (ש) is facing up, the player must take one of their own tokens and add it to the pot. The dreidel is then given to the next person.
- If Nun (נ)is facing up the player does nothing, and the dreidel is given to the next person.
The round is over when someone gets Gimmel or there is only one token left in the pot. At this point the group begins again with putting one token into the pot to start the next round.
Once someone is out of tokens, they can continue to spin until they get Shin and cannot put one in or they cannot put in the starting token—after that they are “out.” If they are able to win tokens before getting out they can continue to play as normal.