AppleTree

Family Fun

page. Not only will this
be a learning experience,
it can provide for very
interesting discussion.)

center of your
flower). Next, cut
out petals from con-
struction paper and
paste to the back of
the picture. On each
petal, write a mitzvah
you would like to
observe or work on
in the coming year.

2) I Scream, You
Scream: For many rea-

Celebrating the giving of the Torah.

sons (there is no one
true answer) it's tradi-
tional to eat dairy foods on Shavuot. For
dessert, consider sponsoring a "Make a
Jewish Sundae" contest. Offer guests
various ice creams and toppings (you
will need to be creative here; include the
traditional chopped fruits and nuts and
whipped cream, but the more stuff you
have, the more fun the contest will be).
Ask each to make a "Jewish Sundae."
What makes it "Jewish" is up to each
participant. Some might make various
Star of David designs, while another
might use candy pieces to shape the pro-
file of baseball legend Hank Greenberg
into the ice cream.

3) Man In the Mirror: Shavuot is a

time to reflect on our Jewish lives,
both what we need to improve and
what we do right. You can help
young children learn to appreciate
their good efforts with a happy mir-
ror. Take any hand-held mirror (an
inexpensive one works great). Cover
the back (without the mirror) with a
piece of felt, then cut out other felt
shapes to form eyes, nose, mouth
and hair. Glue to affix. Design it to
look like your child and, of course,
it should appear happy and wonder-
ful. At the bottom write: Mitzvah
Girl! or Mitzvah Boy!

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11) A Night To
Remember: Some believe

Junior cooks can help
with dairy meals.

Cheesecake is a
favorite dessert.

filled with joy? Ask them to write
what they imagine it would have
been like, or present a short play or
monologue, or create a picture.

6) How Do You Spell Shavuot: Give

appetizer or mid-afternoon snack, serve
a variety of unmarked yummy cheeses
and see if guests or family members can
correctly identify each kind.

each family member a piece of paper
on which is written one letter of
"Shavuot." Ask everyone to bring a
relevant object and, without anyone
else seeing, place on a table. (For
example: a tzedakah box [for the
"T"], since giving tzedakah is a
mitzvah. Another idea: a "mountain"
made of cotton balls, or clay, or
papier mache, for Mount Sinai [the
letter "S"].) When everyone has his
or her object on the table, have all
try to guess what letters the objects
represent. (Note: If you have more
guests than letters in "Shavuot," you
may want to add another word, like
"Torah." If you have fewer family
members than are in "Shavuot,"
consider asking someone to take on
two letters.)

5) Imagine That: On Pesach, we

7) You're Great!: A wise rabbi once

4) Something Really Cheesy. As an

j

10) My Word!: For a
quick bit of fun, write
down a few holiday
words (Shavuot, Mount
Sinai, Sefer Torah,
Cheesecake) at the top of
a blank page. Have chil-
dren seen how many
words they can make
using these letters in var-
ious combinations.

must use our imaginations to try
and see ourselves as though we really
were among the slaves coming out of
Egypt. For Shavuot, encourage chil-
dren to use their imaginations to see
themselves as learning that God had
just given the Torah to the Jews.
How would they feel about receiving
it — excited, overwhelmed, anxious,.

commented that few Jews really have
an understanding of what consti-
tutes a difficult mitzvah. Keeping
Shabbat and observing the laws of
kashrut (kosher), he said, are actually
easy. What's challenging is loving
your fellow Jew. Here's one way to
help. Before the holiday, present
each family member with a blank

book and a pen. Everyone
should then be encouraged
to use this book to write
down only good things
about others. These can be
small ("My brother gave me his
candy bar today") or great ("My sis-
ter volunteered to take my children
for the day, so I could have some
time off. I felt like I regained my
sanity"). It will leave you invigorated
and grateful as you read over the
entries.

8) How Does Your Garden Grow:

In honor of Shavuot, plant flowers
— either in your back yard or in a
small pot in your home. When they
bloom, take them to a home for sen-
ior citizens.

9) Thought For The Day: If you've

never studied Torah or Talmud, or
you don't know much about Jewish
history, the idea of suddenly starting
might seem a bit daunting. Instead,
why not challenge yourself to learn a
bit at a time? Each day, browse your
own copy of the Torah, or look
through the Encyclopedia Judaica,
until you find something that catch-
es your eye. Next, write it down in a
blank book. When you have time,
try to find out more about the sub-
ject, or discuss it with a friend or
rabbi, or write down your own
observations on the matter. (Note:
To make this into a great family
project, create a family journal and
designate days on which each person
will bring something to write on the

that on Shavuot the skies
open for a split second
and you can see all the
heavens. This is a won-
derful image for children to consider.
As they go to bed, ask them what
they think it would look like if they
saw such a sight. Get details: colors,
sounds, visions, smells.

12) Food For Thought: With today's
busy schedules, some families find it
difficult to sit down to dinner every
evening. If you haven't sat down with
your children (no matter what their
age) in some time, Shavuot is a great
time for a long family meal. Insist
that everyone stay for at least four
hours. Also, ask everyone to bring to
the table at least three Jewish family
questions or ideas (and don't be any
more specific than this). Some may
unearth interesting trivia ("Did you
know such-and-such is related to so-
and-so?"). Others may bring a mem-
ory from their youth. Others may
come up with excellent material for a
family discussion.

13) Why Rose Is Like Rose:

Imagine that each person in your
family is like a flower. Perhaps your
sister is as delicate as rose, your
father as tall and strong as a sun-
flower, your younger sister as gentle
as a lily-of-the-valley. You can then
bring each the relevant flower, or
simply write a card.

14) This Tops It All: The traditional
food of Shavuot is, of course,
cheesecake. There's no tradition
when it comes to what's atop this
delicious concoction, however. Have
family members make up a yummy