MENNORAHS COME IN ALL SIZES 8j SHAPES Mom with a Mission Tips for presenting Chanukah at school BY NANCY MADES TRADITION ! TRADITION! allthingsj ewis h.com Call Alicia R. Nelson .4 4" (248) 557- 0109 01L. .4F for an appointment . ,Ar sir 4 .111 LEVIN'S BEAUTY SUPPLY Discount • Holiday Specials, Shalimar Gift Set 1.7 spray, shower gel, lotion $125 value 4 4. $56.99 L'Air au Temp Gift Set ., $39.99 1.7 spray and soap 4 4 Red Door Gift Set 4 1.7 spray, .33 parfum spray, lotion, cleanser bath beads $42.49 $171 value 4 <4).. ,4 + 1 Cartier Gift Set parfum spray & lotion $95.99 Opium Gift Set 1.6 spray, lotion, shaker talc .,....$44.99 Gucci Rush 12/15 2000 028 e I- "... entrf 31 A7-Z U ra Davidoff Good I fe Lolita Lempicka Aqua Gio Adrienne Vittadini NOA by Cacharel Armani Mania WEST BLOOMFIELD OAK PARK 851-7323 547-9669 Orchard Lake Rd. in the West Bloomfield Plaza 24695 Coolidge at 10 Mile Rd. OPEN NI-SAL 9-6 ;THINiS. TIL 7 P.M. • OPEN SUNDAY 12-5 -nr lir # 4 111 y son is one of only two Jewish children in his first-grade class at our neighborhood school, a place where most of the children and even some of the parents still define Chanukah as "Jewish Christmas." To help the other children understand our holiday, and to help my son feel proud of it, I decided to make a class presen- tation about Chanukah. Along the way, I learned some pointers that may help you if you decide to introduce Chanukah to your child's class. These ideas would be appropriate for children in preschool through first grade. 1. Contact the teacher with your offer well in advance so that the two of you can pick a date that won't interfere with any other special events at school. 2. Provide the teacher with an agenda of what you're going to be doing, for how long, and whether you'll need any special equipment or supplies from the school. 3. Keep the presentation simple. I tell the story of the Maccabees and the miracle of the oil, serve some potato latkes, and make a craft. Children love the story of Chanukah because it combines action-figure type heroes with a magi- cal ending. Chanukah is the story of how a tiny band of Jewish farmers were able to defeat the entire Syrian army. The story of Chanukah takes place in Israel about 2,400 years ago when the Syrian king Antiochus took over the country and declared that the Jews would no longer be allowed to practice Judaism. He banned their holy books, dismantled their beautiful temple and made worshipping his Greek religion the law. Many of the Jews went along with Antiochus' orders, but one group, led by an elder Jewish leader named Mattathias, refused. He and his sons fled up into the mountains and fash- ioned themselves into a tiny army called the Maccabees, a word that means hammers. Even though the Syrian army had swords, javelins and elephants to fight with, while the Maccabees had only sticks, stones and farm tools, the small band was able to defeat the enormous Syrian army. When the Maccabees returned to their holy temple after the war, they discovered all of the damage that Antiochus had done. The temple was in ruins, with dirt and blood every- where, and the Syrians had thrown out or destroyed all of the Jewish books and candlesticks. The temple's menorah, a lamp with seven branches — one for every day of the week, lay on the floor. It was supposed to be kept burning all the time, but when the Maccabees searched the temple, all they could find was a tiny bottle of oil that could only last for one day. It would take at least a week for them to make more new oil. The Maccabees poured the little bottle of oil in the menorah and lit it. A miracle happened, and those little drops of oil somehow kept the meno- rah burning for eight days. So, every year, Jews all around the world remember the Maccabees' victory and the miracle of the oil by lighting their special Chanukah menorahs. These menorahs have nine branches — with one branch allotted to a special candle that is used to light the others — and are lit at home for eight nights. Special foods like potato latkes or pancakes and jelly doughnuts are also eaten because they are cooked in oil. If you don't know the story of Chanukah by heart, or if storytelling isn't your strong point, children's books such as Beni's First Chanukah by Jane Breskin Zalben (Henry Holt, 1988), Chanukah Lights, Chanukah Nights by Leslie Kimmelman (HarperCollins 1995), and The Eight Nights of Chanukah by Judy Nayer (Troll Associates, 1998) are helpful. Nancy Mades is a freelance writer in Boston. She wrote this article for Jewish Family Lifi at www.jewishfamily.com