It was a latke fun!
Youngsters learned the history of Hanukkah during the Shorefront Y’s Dec. 18 festival celebrating the eight-day holiday. Kids joined in on a rhythmic drum circle during which they were taken on a journey through ancient Jerusalem and the story of the Maccabees’s triumph in a relatable and kid-friendly way. The drumming was fun, but the tale still may have gone over one little boy’s head, said one Bay Ridgite, whose 2-year-old son participated in the circle.
“He loved learning the drums, he’s a very musical-type kid,” said Demian Cacciolo. “I don’t know how much really soaked in but I like to think it did.”
The holiday celebrates when Jewish rebels regained control of Jerusalem and the Temple there from an occupying force — as well as a miracle in which they kept an oil-burning menorah lit for eight days on one day’s fuel. Celebrants eat foods fried in oil — such as laktes — as a result.
Kids at he Shorefront Y even got to craft menorahs and candles of their own. And the organization’s b-boys even wowed the crowd with some non-traditional dance moves, said dad Alex Kleyman, who attended with his 8-year-old son.
“He was really interested in the break dance. He looked at it with excitement,” he said. “My son loved it.”