Welcome

Welcome to Jewish Kids Create. My two young daughter love doing craft projects and I am always looking out for craft ideas. They especially love Jewish themed projects that tie in to the season or Jewish idea they have been learning about in school. But finding just the right one can be challenging.

My criterion for a great project:

1. Age appropriate: Three year olds can only do so much. If the directions involve a lot of cutting (especially in a specific shape), folding, or other specific tasks, then I am likely to pass it by. The point of doing a craft with kids is that they get creative, rather than have Mommy do 95% of the work while they watch.
2. Time: Sometimes you want a quick project,sometimes you are looking to fill a winter afternoon. While kids don’t necessarily want to sit for hours, if they themselves are doing the craft rather than watching you cut out 50 circles, they will a more willing to spend the time. And of course play with the finished results!
3. Wait Time: Does this project involve steps like “Paint the circle brown. Wait 2 hours for it to dry.”? Because I most likely will pass that by. That type of thing works in a school setting where you have short periods of time over multiple days to do the project. At home, kids want to be able to complete the project all at once and use it ideally right away. Not to rule out any paint or glue, but too long of a wait can be  killer.
4. Supplies: Does it require some kind of supply that I am unlikely to have at home? Especially here in Bergen county where stores are closed on Sundays, I have no desire to run out to the store for an obscure material where there is plenty to be done with what we already have around the house.
5. Meaning: There are times when it’s fun to just scribble, but I do like to introduce Jewish themed crafts. It really excites the kids to explore the Jewish season we are currently in, whether it’s a holiday, parsha or mitzvah. Here on Jewish Kids Create, I will mostly leave Parsha crafts for the Morah at school, who already does an excellent job. We will focus here on more seasonal ideas.

On Jewish Kids Create, I plan to post a variety of crafts, and will mark them with suggested ages, how long it should take, and whether it’s a “finish now” or “requires a wait” type of project. All the projects will also be posted on facebook, so like our page to be notified when something new is up. I would love to see pictures if you and your kids do one of our projects! Post them on our facebook page so we can all admire them!