April's First Friday Fun

This month we flip-flopped themes with March so that we could coordinate with one of the great holy days of April: Passover. We began by telling the story of the Israelites and their journey out of Egypt where they had been enslaved by Pharaoh. How Moses proclaimed, “Let my people go” and God brought 10 plagues upon the Egyptians until they agreed to send the Jews from their land. And of course, the great miracle at the Red Sea, and how the water parted allowing the Jews to pass through before rushing in on the pursuing Egyptian army.

After lots of good listening, we moved to the table and discussed the Seder meal that commemorates this story. The kids tried the bitter herbs dipped in salt water and colored a plate that described several of the traditional and symbolic foods that are served.

Our final craft was a depiction of the parting of the Red Sea. Many of the kids took great care picking out the sea shells they imagined would be left on the sea bed.

Several kids continued to sort shells while the rest of the group rounded out the evening with a game of Passover Bingo — we had lots of fun learning about this sacred tradition in creative and fun ways!