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Teaching Rosh Hashanah Through the Lens of Jewish Values
- Talia Shir
- Jul 6, 2023
- 3 min read
Download the free discussion guide at the end of the article.
As Jewish educators, our mission is to inspire students to become compassionate, responsible, and engaged members of their communities. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, offers a unique opportunity to teach Jewish values, or Middot. Through meaningful discussions, we can lay a solid moral foundation, nurturing qualities such as empathy, kindness, and community building.
Integrating Jewish values into lesson plans helps students understand the profound impact they can have on their own lives and the world around them. By encouraging students to share their thoughts, experiences, and examples related to each value, they can create deeper connections to these principles.
Remind them that their actions, no matter how small, have the power to make a difference. To make this more tangible, set small, realistic goals that they can achieve.
Discussion Questions
Introduce key Jewish values (middot) that you will be discussing. Here are a couple of examples:
Chesed (Kindness)
Why is kindness important in our daily lives?
Can you think of a time when someone showed you kindness? How did it make you feel?
How can small acts of kindness make a big difference in our communities?
Can you share an example of an act of kindness that impacted someone?
Activity: Ask students to share a story about a moment when they performed an act of kindness and describe how it made them feel afterward.
Selichah (Saying Sorry)
Why do we often find it challenging to apologize when we make mistakes?
How does apologizing help to strengthen our relationships with others?
Compare how you felt before to how it made you feel after you apologized.
How can we make sure our apologies are genuine and sincere?
Activity: Role-play scenarios where students practice giving and receiving apologies.
Hakarat Tova (Gratitude)
What does it mean to have gratitude?
Why is it important to appreciate the blessings in our lives?
Can you think of three things you are grateful for today?
Why are they meaningful to you?
How can we show gratitude to others?
Activity: Create a gratitude tree with your students by writing things they are grateful for on paper leaves and attaching them to a poster of a tree.
Kehillah (Community)
What is a community? Why is it important to have a strong community?
How does being part of a community bring joy and support into our lives?
Can you think of a way you have contributed to your community? How did it make you feel?
How can we support and connect with others in our community?
Activity: Create Rosh Hashanah greeting cards for a local Jewish assisted living facility.
Tzedek (Righteousness)
What does it mean to be righteous?
Why is it important to make choices that align with our values?
Can you share an example of a time when you had to make a difficult decision? How did you choose what was right?
How can we demonstrate integrity and honesty in our everyday actions?
Activity: Discuss real-life scenarios where students had to make ethical choices and what they learned from those experiences.
Tikkun Olam (Repair the World)
What does it mean to repair the world?
Why is it important to take care of our planet and help those in need?
Can you think of a way you can make a positive impact in your community or the environment?
How can small actions contribute to making the world a better place?
Activity: Plan a small class initiative, such as a recycling drive or a brief awareness campaign on a social issue.
Download a Jewish Values-Based Craft
The Jewish Values-Based Activity combines learning with creativity and reflection.
This Jewish Values-Based Rosh Hashanah activity guides students to reflect on and connect their actions to six core Jewish values.
Download
Download a Free Discussion Guide
Wishing you a Shana Tova and a year filled with prosperous learning, and peace.
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High Holidays Bundle
This collection of worksheets, games, crafts, and activities helps students deepen their understanding of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. The low-prep, easy-to-implement resources are ideal for High Holiday programming, classrooms, and community events.
Contents
The Jewish Calendar Wheel is a hands-on coloring activity that helps students visualize the relationship between the Jewish and Gregorian calendars. Students will explore why Jewish holidays shift each year and learn the names of the Hebrew months while gaining a clearer picture of the annual Jewish holiday cycle.
This collection of Rosh Hashanah worksheets supports learning about the Jewish New Year through a broad range of skill-based activities. Students will complete meaningful exercises that reinforce holiday concepts while building understanding of Rosh Hashanah traditions and themes. Black-and-White and Color editions are included for the price of one.
This Rosh Hashanah game includes 32 picture cards featuring familiar holiday images such as round challah, apples and honey, and more. Only one board and a pencil per player are needed, making it easy to run in any setting.
Symbols of Rosh Hashanah Booklet
This coloring booklet introduces students to key symbols of the Jewish New Year. As students color images such as the shofar, round challah, Torah, synagogue, Tashlich scene, apples, and honey, they will build recognition and understanding of Rosh Hashanah symbols.
This reflection-based activity combines learning and creativity while encouraging students to think about their actions and choices. Through guided prompts connected to six core Jewish values, students will reflect on the meaning of Rosh Hashanah in a developmentally appropriate way. This activity works well for High Holiday programs, supplemental schools, and Jewish day schools.
This interactive Yom Kippur Flipbook guides students in learning about, connecting with, and reflecting on Yom Kippur through a series of meaningful prompts.
Yom Kippur Worksheets
This set of Yom Kippur worksheets introduces the meaning and practices of Yom Kippur while guiding students through reflection and personal growth. Students will apply ideas such as teshuvah, fasting, prayer, and forgiveness through thoughtful prompts, real-life examples, and guided reflection.
This collection of fun and educational Sukkot-themed worksheets offers a variety of activities perfect for the classroom, inside a sukkah, or at community events. Black-and-White and Color editions are included for the price of one.
Sukkot BINGO
Have fun in the sukkah with Sukkot BINGO! This low-prep game encourages interaction and friendly competition among people of all ages while they learn about the symbols of this important Jewish holiday. The set comes with 32 cards featuring adorable Sukkot-themed images, including children decorating a sukkah, lulavs, etrogs, Torahs, and more!
Before You Buy
Always be prepared to teach Jewish holidays with the Jewish Holiday Survival Kit.
$64
High Holidays Clipart Collection
Add some holiday charm to your Jewish classroom with this collection of colorful illustrations featuring the traditions, symbols, and foods of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Each colorful illustration captures the joy, traditions, and symbols of the holiday, making it easy to design creative and meaningful materials for your classroom, website, Etsy shop, TPT store, KDP projects, and beyond.
Contents:
Colorful Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur Clipart
Holiday Traditions: Shofar blowing, apology, dipping apples in honey, fasting, path to Teshuvah
Symbols: Shofar, scales of justice, Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur book
Foods: Apples, honey, pomegranates, round challah
Special Additions: Bee with honey pot, children with siddur, and more
Canva Access
A Canva link is provided so you can easily copy and paste the images into your designs. If you don’t have a Canva account, you’ll be prompted to create a free one when you open the link.
Commercial Licensing
All images are provided in high resolution and may be used for personal or commercial classroom projects.
Image sizes are reduced for thumbnails only. Example worksheet not included.
$7
Rosh Hashanah & Jewish Values Craft
This Rosh Hashanah activity highlights new beginnings and self-improvement by introducing six core Jewish values. Students will demonstrate their understanding of these values by answering guided prompts that encourage them to think about real-life examples of how they can live out each one in the coming year.
Chesed (Kindness): I am kind when...
Hakarat Tova (Gratitude): I am grateful for...
Slecha (Sorry): I apologize for...
Tzadik (Righteous): I can be a better person by...
Kehillah (Community): I can help my community by...
Tikkun Olam (Repair the World): I can repair the world by...
Once complete, display them on your bulletin board or send them home as a keepsake.
Before You Buy
Save when you upgrade to the High Holiday Bundle.
$6
Rosh Hashanah BINGO
Rosh Hashanah BINGO is designed to help children of all ages learn to identify the meaningful symbols of this special holiday. The set features adorable Rosh Hashanah-themed holiday symbols, including round a challah, the Torah, shofars, apples, honey, and more! No need for markers or chips—just grab a board and a pencil for each player. Use chips instead for Yom Tov.
Contents
32 assorted BINGO cards
Call Sheet
To play, select a call card at random and show it to the players while reading the caption aloud. Players then search for the matching image on their boards and mark it with an "X" using a pencil. The first player to mark five images in a row, in any direction, calls out "BINGO!" to win. For the next round, the winner can take the role of calling the cards for the next game.
For added convenience, opt for pencils instead of chips to mark the spaces. Cleanup is a breeze! Simply laminate them for durability or reprint as needed.
Turn the Call Cards into a Memory Card Game! Just print two copies, cut, and shuffle!
Before You Buy
Upgrade to the Jewish Holiday Picture BINGO Bundle!
Never Worry about Lesson-Planning for a Jewish Holiday Again!
$6
Rosh Hashanah Worksheets
This delightful collection of Rosh Hashanah worksheets helps students connect with the customs, history, and traditions of the Jewish New Year. An assortment of activities, including crack-the-code challenges, word searches, crossword puzzles, Sudoku, and Mad-Libs style worksheets, reinforces key holiday knowledge and vocabulary.
A student-friendly handout explains the holiday’s key traditions, with charming clip art to support comprehension and reinforce key terms. The set also includes two decorative handouts of the Rosh Hashanah blessings, one with transliteration and one without, along with a Shalom BINGO icebreaker.
These no-prep pages are ideal for High Holiday programming, classroom use, or community events. Answer keys are included.
Contents
Rosh Hashanah Overview Handout
Rosh Hashanah Word Search
Rosh Hashanah Crossword Puzzle
Rosh Hashanah Crack-the-Code Sudoku
Create a Wacky Rosh Hashanah Story (similar to Mad Libs)
Rosh Hashanah Coloring Pages
Plus More!
Contents
Rosh Hashanah Overview Handout
Rosh Hashanah Word Search
Rosh Hashanah Crossword Puzzle
Rosh Hashanah Crack-the-Code Sudoku
Create a Wacky Rosh Hashanah Story (similar to Mad Libs)
Rosh Hashanah Coloring Pages
Plus More!
Before you Buy
View this resource in black-and-white or get both worksheet sets for the price of one when you upgrade to the High Holidays Bundle.
$8
Symbols of Rosh Hashanah
The Rosh Hashanah coloring booklet introduces young learners to the symbols of the Jewish New Year. Each page showcases delightful illustrations accompanied by informational text that explains their role in the Rosh Hashanah celebration.
Featured Symbols
New Year Jewish Calendar
Round Challah Shofar
Tashlich
Teshuvah
Apples and Honey Pomegranates
Prayer
Synagogue
Assembly is simple—just print and fold, and you're ready to start! No cutting is necessary.
Before You Buy
Save when you upgrade to the Jewish Holidays Booklet Bundle.
$4
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