Passover is one of the most joyous of Jewish celebrations, marking the Exodus from slavery in Egypt, led by Moses.
Here is a resource for free greeting cards, recipes, Hagaddahs, crafts for children, who play such an important role in the celebration of Passover, online Seder services, and more.
Passover 2022 – or Pesach 5782 – is eight days, starting at Sundown on Friday, April 15 through Sundown on Saturday, April 23
As with most Jewish celebrations, the general theme is this – they tried to kill us, they failed, let’s eat.
FREE Passover Greeting Cards
Chabad.org has free greeting cards for just about any Jewish occasion, including Passover. Some are meant to be sent by children, others to be received by children, and there are also free Seder invitations.
Chabad.org also has full list of singalong Passover holiday songs, including Dayenu (It Would Have Been Enough) with lyrics in both English and Hebrew, and a step-by-step guide for creating your own Seder.
FREE Passover Recipes
It’s not just gefilte fish and brisket. There are some non-traditional options, too.
Watch actress/comedian Mayim Bialikmake Matzoh Lasagna in this short video.
My Jewish Learning is a great resource for free recipes year-round, including for Passover. Everything from how to make chopped liver to whether or not quinoa is kosher for Passover.
And here are more than a dozen Passover Table recipes from the New York Times, including classic Matzoh Brei and African-inspired brisket.
FREE Passover Hagaddah
The Hagaddah tells the story of the Exodus, with prayers and songs to follow.
Kveller (Yiddish for being proud) is another great Jewish information site, with a kid-friendly Hagaddah to download.
The Kveller Haggadah goes deep into Jewish traditions in a kid-friendly way, but its design and message will be appealing to anyone at a seder, whether you have kids at the table or not.
There’s also matzoh themed pajamas in case the family Seder runs late.
ReformJudaism.org offers eight different family Haggadot (plural of Haggadah) recommended by the Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism and the staff of the Union for Reform Judaism.
A full Seder can take a couple of hours. For those who want something shorter, here is a ten-minute seder
that includes all the high points, including the Ma nishtanah – the Four Questions – and the four glasses of wine.
FREE Passover Books, Games, Activities,Podcasts
PJ Library is a trusted resource for Jewish families in more than 35 countries who receive their free books each month, along with games, activities and audio stories of Jewish life.
There’s also a specific PJ Passover page online, which includes:
- Kid-friendly, printable recipe cards for homemade matzo, matzo trail mix and matzo pizza
- Downloadable games and activities like a DIY Seder plate and a Passover card game
Also for kids, aish.com offers Passover coloring books and games like “Family Fun With the Ten Plagues”.
Free Passover Services Online
NYC’s Temple Emanu-el, the largest synagogue in New York City and perhaps the entire USA, hosts free online Sabbath services every Friday evening – including on the first night of Passover.
Services are broadcast on the temple’s website and Facebook page. Download a free prayer book first.
Tune in at 5:15 for the Sabbath service, followed immediately by a Seder service at 6pm.
How to Host an Online Seder
If you can’t gather in person with family and friends,
These tips are from Chabad, which has an entire website page of instructions for online gatherings.
- Set the Shabbat table early, so that you can show Oma and Pop-Pop what it’s going to look like.
- Bathe and dress the kids before you start streaming so that they can be fully present (and super cute) when they are on camera.
- If you are in different time zones, make sure to start early enough so that whoever lives furthest to the east will be able to sign off before candle-lighting arrives in their time zone.
- While the Passover mitzvahs (eating matzah and marror, drinking four cups, telling the story of Exodus) must be done on Passover, dipping the karpas in salt-water may be symbolically done earlier, so you can do that together over Zoom.
An added bonus: Since the Seder begins after nightfall, which is way past the usual bed-time for most small children, having a pre-Seder Zoom conference on a different day will mean that the kids will be seen by their grandparents when they are not yet over-tired and kooky.
NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!
SHANA HABA B’ YERUSHALAYIM
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