Other Festivals

A Calendar of Festivals
by Cherry Gilchrist and Helen Cann
(Barefoot Books)
For each of the eight festivals in this book, there's a page about the festival itself and a story, which often tells the origin of the celebration. The colour illustrations on nearly every page fit well with the origins of each story and help to break up the text, which is aimed at confident readers of 8+. The stories are long, but read aloud well so could also be used with younger children.
   The festivals covered are Purim, Holi, Vesak, Tanabata, Hallowe'en, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year.
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Let's Celebrate: Festival Poems
Selected by John Foster
(Oxford University Press)
Each of the poems in this anthology relates to a specific festival. Starting with First Footing on New Year's Eve, it works its way through the year to Christmas covering many other festivals in the process, some well known, others less so. The festivals come from all over the world and there's a short explanation of each one on the appropriate page. This well chosen and well presented selection is fun for children to read on their own and a useful resource for teachers.
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Four Special Questions
A Passover Story
Eight Candles to Light
A Chanukah Story
It's Party Time!
A Purim Story
Apples and Honey
A Rosh Hashanah Story
by Johnny Zucker, illustrated by Jan Barger Cohen
(Frances Lincoln)
Each of these picture books has the same format where a child relates how his or her family celebrate that particular festival. The simple stories emphasise the activities most likely to appeal to young readers and non-Jewish children are likely to spot similarities with their own festivals. (giving presents, giving to charity, special food). At the end, a double page spread provides extra information about the festival and its origins for teachers and parents.
Ages 3-6
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