Haman on a Tree - Kids projects

amother

Strawberry

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 8:07 am

amother DarkPurple wrote:

Haman isn't the only villain. All those people who were ready and willing to kill Jews as soon as they were given legal permission are almost as bad.

Haman is still The villain in the story though. And on just a practical level, for a&c, Haman on the tree works better than a battle field. I don't have a problem with images of age appropriate battle scenes in, let's say, coloring pages. We already have that for Chanukah and we have depictions of what happened to the Mitzrim at Krias Yam Suf.

amother

DarkPurple

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 8:38 am

Now that I think about it, the hypothetical Pharaoh craft I suggested earlier would also serve a very important purpose. Because it's a very central point to the story of Yetzias Mitzrayim that the Egyptians were ovdei avoda zara and that Pharaoh himself presented himself as a god. And his being caught having a human body with human needs has a much deeper meaning. We still don't do the craft though.

amother

Strawberry

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 9:11 am

amother DarkPurple wrote:

What would that craft be? Haman on a tree is more popular, because it's ironic and iconic. I'm not sure what a pharoa one would be. Do we even know how and when he died? I think there are different opinions on that. (Pharoa in pajamas is the way we mock his downfall, I guess)

amother

Aquamarine

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 9:16 am

amother DarkPurple wrote:

You're talking about him relieving himself in the nile?
Come on. You can't compare that to Haman on the tree. How would you depict it? His pants down with his genitals showing? This is getting silly.

honey36

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 9:40 am

I actually have a funny story about this.

I too grew up learning the Purim story from a very young age, and it never phased me as traumatic, scary or weird. I always thought Halloween was scary though. Like how could they dress up little kids like zombies and have pictures of blood, dead people and skeletons everywhere?

It wasn't until I was an adult in college that the irony hit me. I was working with young children in a frum environment, but my supervisor was not Jewish. It was around Purim time, so the child was showing us her megillah and saying over the story. Afterwards, my supervisor was like "what's with all the death and hanging for preschoolers". And I was like, taka, that's a good question LOL

I still don't think it's harmful for kids since no one I know is traumatized from it.

Also I have worked in public schools as well and the stuff (posters, decorations) they have for Halloween is way way worse and all those kids seem fine too. I'm taking preschoolers and elementary, not just high school.

amother

Mintgreen

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 9:57 am

Paroah relieving himself in the Nile was only a detail or a small part in the story of Yetzias Mitzrayim. Haman hanging on the tree is the punchline of the Purim story. There is no Purim story without it. That was what everything led up to. If you leave that part out, maybe ban the whole Megilla as being too graphic for children. It’s equivalent to Yetzias Mitzrayim without the splitting of the Sea. The events would mean nothing without including that part. Haman represents all the people that were out to kill the Jews.

giftedmom

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 10:16 am

amother Mintgreen wrote:

When you go to the haulacaust museum and learn about the grotesque ways the Jews were murdered , is that better? Any holocaust book is scary. Tanach includes a lot about people being hung , stoned, killed. The Navi is full of war. This is our history. It’s important to be aware of it.

How about the cross symbol that Christians walk around wearing? Isn’t that the same idea?

What are you trying to say lol
That I shouldn’t have been traumatized as a 12 year old seeing a closeup of a dead body? I’ll be sure to go back in time and tell myself that.

amother

Mintgreen

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 11:33 am

giftedmom wrote:

What are you trying to say lol
That I shouldn’t have been traumatized as a 12 year old seeing a closeup of a dead body? I’ll be sure to go back in time and tell myself that.

Did you go to therapy for it?

giftedmom

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 11:34 am

amother Mintgreen wrote:

Did you go to therapy for it?

Specifically for this? Na. Lots of other trauma to go around. I do have a fear of dead bodies though.

amother

DarkPurple

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 12:21 pm

Maybe I'm weird, but I am a little scared of centipedes (they can sting) but I am much more grossed out by dead centipedes. To the point where if I see a centipede, I'll go after it with a cup, but if it's dead, I'll only clean it up with a long handled broom and shovel.

amother

Camellia

Fri, Mar 22 2024, 12:30 pm

If my child were in the concentration camps then I would definitely take them to watch the hanging of Eichman. Maybe we need to feel like we personally connected to the threat of Haman.

That said, my kids have never done crafts on the hanging of Haman. My preschooler brought home a 3-D hamantash with a mitzva of Purim on each side, plus one in the center. A rattle made out of a jumbo popsicle stick, a little bowl plate and beads, and a mishloach munes basket made out entirely of paper.

FYI several Jewish organizations including the Agudah, OU, ADL and UJO gave out a notice to urge people not to use blackface on Purim, and not to hang any forms or dummies. It goes on to explain the connotation it has to racism, and urges parents to educate the kids as well. Don5 know how to post a picture.