Passover kits make it easy to share religious story with friends and classmates
“Why is this night different from all other nights?” When a child at the Seder dinner table asks this question, it prompts the telling of the Passover story and how Moses led the Jewish people from slavery into freedom.
Recounting the Passover tale is a way to connect to the past, as well as the future, said Hilary Kamin, community engagement director for the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston.
“The story of Passover is told across the globe at every Seder in every place where there are Jews,” Kamin said. “This same story that we tell at our Seders has been told by countless generations before us and will be part of our heritage for infinite generations to come.”
Kamin is working to share the Passover story in a whole new setting: classrooms around Houston.
The Jewish Federation’s PJ Library program has debuted its Passover in a Bag. The kit includes everything needed for parents who want to teach about the holiday in their children’s classroom: a picture book, finger puppets, Seder plate, stickers and a lesson plan.
Families register in advance to pick up the kits at the Jewish Federation or on porches in the Heights, West University Place and Meyerland.
In the past, PJ Library has provided Hanukkah in a Bag. The kits have expanded with time and become increasingly popular. Last year, 1,200 were distributed.
Kamin previously taught third grade at the Shlenker School and then served as director of education at the Houston Congregation for Reform Judaism.
Jewish children are often a minority in the classroom, she said, It’s something she experienced herself.
“I grew up in Memorial, and there were a handful of Jewish students in my classes,” she said.
Kamin’s mother would come to school to teach the children about Hanukkah. She would bring a rug to school and invite the children on a magic carpet ride back in time to hear the story.
“My mom used to come in and be the Hanukkah mom,” Kamin said. “She did a great job, but imagine if she had the tools to do more?”
Before the kits launched, the PJ Library often received requests from parents for Hanukkah storybooks they could bring to their children’s schools.
“We realized that we needed to do more than give them a storybook,” Kamin said. “We needed to give them a tool kit.”
Hanukkah in a Bag included activity sheets, a picture book about the holiday and a classroom set of dreidels, along with instructions for the game.
“We encouraged parents to donate the book to the teacher so it can live in the classroom,” Kamin said.
Lenee Bien-Willner, a resident of The Woodlands, used Hanukkah in a Bag to visit her three children’s classrooms in the past. As a former community connector for PJ Library, she also helped distribute the kits to other area parents.
“Having access to those tools to go into our kids’ classrooms was amazing,” Bien-Willner said. “It was very popular here in The Woodlands.”
Jewish children enjoyed sharing their traditions and holidays with their friends, she said.
“As a parent, to see on my kids’ faces that they felt loved and accepted by their friends — and that their friends were excited about their holidays — that meant a lot,” she said.
The non-Jewish classmates wanted to learn about different religions, Bien-Willner added.
“They all loved it,” she said. “It was very meaningful. And now Passover is getting its moment.”
Bien-Willner was glad to hear that the kits were expanding to a new holiday this year.
“Passover is one of our more important holidays,” she said. “And Passover is all about sharing the story and making sure our kids can share the story, too. Having your kids own that story is what these bags are all about.”
Bien-Willner added that the kits help parents get their creative gears turning for their own Seders, thinking about ways to engage their children more in Jewish learning.
“Our Judaism is something to be celebrated,” she said. “PJ Library really focuses on amping up the fun.”
Bellaire resident Melanie Spelkin picked up her Passover in a Bag from the Jewish Federation on March 27 and plans to share it with her kindergartener’s class.
She has visited her three children’s classrooms to teach about Hanukkah before. “I’ve never done it for Passover,” she said. “The kits have really been helpful. If you have any interest in going to your kid’s class, this is a great way to pull it all together. It makes it super easy.”
The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston also is planning a pool party called Take a Dip for Passover on April 2.
“Every month, we do some kind of family program to build community and connection,” Kamin said. “This is an opportunity for parents and families to meet, to get excited about Passover and to remind the kids of the traditions at the Seder table.”
She is eager to learn how well Passover in the Bag works. “We’ll see how it goes,” Kamin said. “Then maybe, who knows, Rosh Hashanah may be next.”