"We all know holiday celebrations are about to take over our lives (if they haven’t already). Everywhere I look, I feel bombarded with ways to celebrate Christmas. My Instagram feed is full of families dressed in matching holiday pajamas, swoon-worthy images of picture-perfect Christmas trees, and mantels sporting custom stockings. As a Jewish person, this can all make me feel a bit left out of the holiday spirit. While my family celebrated Hanukkah growing up, the festivities and Hanukkah traditions never lived up to the hype of my Christmas-celebrating friends. As I got older, we kind of skipped over Hanukkah. Though it’s a wintertime celebration, it didn’t seem to compare.
Now that my husband and I have our own kids, the magic of Hanukkah and winter celebrations are making a comeback in our home. My daughter attends preschool at a temple, so during class she learns and gets excited about Hanukkah and brings that excitement back to all of us. I want to make the holiday season special for our kids and create engaging Hanukkah family traditions of our own. There are plenty of fun ways to celebrate this special holiday, and lucky us, we get eight nights to cram in all the fun.
Below, I’m breaking down everything you need to know about celebrating Hanukkah and sharing 10 ways to celebrate the Festival of Lights—hopefully these inspire new family traditions to look forward to year after year!
What is Hanukkah?
Hanukkah celebrates the Jews surviving an attack by the Greek army in the second century. As the Greeks took over the Jewish temple and tried to assimilate the Jews, a small group called the Maccabees managed to defeat the Greeks and reclaim the temple. In the temple, they tried to light a candelabra—but they only had enough oil for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days, which is why we celebrate Hanukkah for eight days.
When is Hanukkah this year?
This year, Hanukkah begins on the evening of Wednesday, December 25, 2024 and lasts for eight days through Thursday, January 2, 2025. Hanukkah typically falls sometime within late November and December and starts on the 25th day of Kislev, the ninth month in the Hebrew calendar. The second day of Tevet marks the end of Hanukkah in the tenth month of the calendar. Hanukkah occurs on a different date every year on the solar Gregorian calendar (the calendar that Western Christian holidays like Christmas follow) but the date remains the same every year on the lunar Hebrew calendar.
Why are there different spellings of Hanukkah?
Technically, there isn’t one way to spell the name of this Jewish holiday. Since the Hebrew alphabet is different from the English alphabet, there’s no perfect spelling equivalent. Any arrangement of English letters that sound like the Hebrew word—Hanukah, Hanukkah, Chanukah, Hanuka—works, although Hanukkah is the most common and widely-used spelling.
Why is the menorah significant during Hanukkah?
The menorah is a candelabra with nine candles: one for each night of Hanukkah, plus one more that is used to light the others. Traditionally, one candle is lit for each night of Hanukkah, so that on the eighth night the menorah is fully lit.
I’m sure many families make a big deal out of doing this each night, but most people I know are busy during the week—after school activity drop-offs, late work meetings, just general life—and the picture-perfect tradition of lighting the menorah becomes a rushed task to check off before dinner. If I’m being honest, we maybe light the menorah four times.
What foods are traditionally served during Hanukkah?
Latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (fried jelly donuts) are typical Hanukkah dinner recipes, prepared and served as a nod to the oil that burned longer than expected. Latkes are usually paired with either sour cream or applesauce (or both!) as toppings. Honestly, the true miracle of Hanukkah is that you can make one batch of latkes from scratch and your house smells like potatoes for WEEKS (that’s why I highly recommend the Trader Joe’s frozen latkes). For Hanukkah dinner, we also like to make brisket, noodle kugel, and matzo ball soup. And don’t forget the gelt (chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil), which is often paired with a fun game of dreidel!
How do you play dreidel during Hanukkah?
What kid doesn’t love a little gambling with their fried potatoes? In the game of dreidel, each player puts money into a pot and then spins a four-sided top (the dreidel). Each side of the dreidel has a Hebrew letter on it, and those letters dictate what happens in the game. (For example, one letter means you get to take all the money in the middle, one means you have to put more of your money into the pot.) The letters represent the first word of the phrase, “Nes gadol hayah sham,” which means “A great miracle happened there.“
Are gifts given during Hanukkah?
Here’s the deal with Hanukkah: it was never supposed to be a major holiday. But because it’s so close to Christmas, it became known as the Jews’ answer to Christmas. Some people resent that gift-giving has become part of Hanukkah and just don’t do it. Others give a gift every night for eight nights. And others give one big gift and seven smaller “stocking stuffer” type gifts.
Is it traditional to put up Hanukkah decorations?
The only traditional Hanukkah decoration is a menorah, often placed in a home’s front window. Lately, companies have started selling more Hanukkah decor such as beautiful tablescape items (think Hanukkah-themed servingware like platters, tablecloths and napkins, dinnerware, etc.) and decorative home accents like cheeky doormats, cute signs, banners, and garlands, throw pillows, and more. While all of these items are fun to buy and have in my home, none of it is really traditional to the Jewish holiday.
Is there Hanukkah music?
In my humble opinion, the Hanukkah music situation is bleak. There are a few traditional songs, an Adam Sandler song that was exciting in 1996, and that’s about it. Recently, various a cappella groups have started making Hanukkah parodies of popular songs, but I’m still waiting for our Mariah Carey Christmas hit moment. Perhaps the most popular Hanukkah song is the children’s tune “I Have a Little Dreidel,” also known as “The Dreidel Song.” You’ve probably heard its cute lyrics including, “Oh, dreidel, dreidel, dreidel, I made it out of clay, and when it’s dry and ready, then dreidel I will play.”
Celebrating Hanukkah: 10 Family Tradition Ideas
1. Have a Latke-Making Competition
Growing up, we always had a night of latkes (otherwise known as fried potato pancakes). They were pretty standard, made with your typical russet potato. Now I’ve learned you can get creative with your latkes. Spend a few minutes on Pinterest and you’ll find endless latke recipes, like ones made with sweet potatoes, ones that are baked versus fried, ones that include a unique blend of spices, cheesy latkes, latkes including other veggies (like celery root, butternut squash, or zucchini), and the list goes on.
Turn these fun recipes into a new tradition, either making a variety and doing a mini latke tasting or turning it into a family competition. Each family member selects (or makes up!) his or her own recipe and submits them for a tasting competition.
2. Decorate Hanukkah Donuts
The theme of fried food is strong during Hanukkah, and in addition to fried potato pancakes, donuts are another traditional holiday treat. Much like you might decorate holiday cookies, spend some time decorating Hanukkah donuts with frosting and special sprinkles. Either grab some plain donuts from a nearby shop or get extra fancy and make them yourself. Enjoy the donuts while lighting the candles and opening gifts.
With blue and white colors and fun shapes and sizes, these sprinkles will make your Hanukkah donuts delicious and Insta-worthy.
For about $20, this donut maker will surely have a big return on investment year after year.
3. Light the Menorah Together
Lighting the menorah is a central part of celebrating Hanukkah, and it doesn’t have to stop at just one. In our home we have a couple menorahs to light, plus other fun ways to mark each night of the holiday.
Set up this fun toy menorah in your home and each night add a candle to “light the menorah.” This is the perfect way for little kids to add flames in a fire-safe way.
Another kid-safe way to light the menorah, this project kit using LED light is a Hanukkah gift, kid activity, and decor item all in one.
4. Make and Decorate Gelt
Sure, you can buy Hanukkah gelt, but you can make your own if you want to get really creative. Buy coin-shaped molds and melt chocolate to create your own chocolate coins. Include toppings like dried fruit, nuts, sprinkles, and whatever else appeals to your little ones.
5. Play Dreidel as a Family
Now you can use your homemade gelt for a family-friendly competition. Each participant spins the dreidel and, depending on which side faces up when it stops spinning, the player either gives or takes a piece of gelt from the pot, does nothing, or gets all the gelt from the pot. It’s a quick and fun game that involves lots of chocolate—what’s not to like?
6. Have a Matching Pajamas Movie Night
I’m happy to report that each year, I see more and more Hanukkah-themed pajamas. Grab a set for your entire family (dog included!) and cozy up together with your matching pajamas and a movie. Either go with a Hanukkah print or opt for a seasonal plaid or snowflake design. Admittedly, I wish there were more Hanukkah-themed movies to choose from, but any cozy, snowy movie will do.
These organic cotton holiday pajamas come in the cutest ‘playful dreidels’ pattern to wear during Hanukkah nights. Baby, toddler, and adult sizes available!
7. Give Eight Nights of Mini Gifts
The most brag-worthy part of Hanukkah as a child is explaining that our holiday lasts for eight nights and includes gifts each night. Not every family goes for gifts on all eight nights, but if you can swing it, it’s pretty fun. These gifts don’t need to be huge. Each night can be the equivalent of a stocking stuffer-type gift: little items that are fun to receive but don’t break the bank. Consider gifts your kids already need (new socks, anyone?), and it’s still fun for everyone!
8. Read Hanukkah Books
There are so many fun kids Hanukkah books to learn about the holiday. Set aside eight books (one for each night) and read them with your kids before bedtime. If you haven’t yet purchased eight books about Hanukkah, this is the perfect item to give as one of your nightly gifts.
There are so many fun books you can read with toddlers, including the adorable Hanukkah Bear that’s also available as a board book.
9. Do Hanukkah Crafts
Toddlers love to get messy and creative with their crafts, and now’s a great time to make the mess a little festive. For ideas, I’ll be referencing this list of 30 Hanukkah crafts and activities to do with kids each night. From crafting paper plate menorahs and DIY’ing felt Hanukkah garland to creating Hanukkah-themed sensory bins and making dreidel suncatchers, our Hanukkah traditions will be so creative and budget-friendly this year!
10. Snack on Hanukkah Treats
Halloween wasn’t very long ago, but we’ve now moved on to blue and white candy. Though I’m trying not to give my toddler too much of a sugar high (and an inevitable sugar crash), I do allow candy for us to enjoy, especially during this special time of year. I love the idea of a candy-version charcuterie board, and this activity combines crafting and candy. What’s better than that?
Amanda Shapin Michelson, Former Editor
Amanda is a writer specializing in health, wellness, and motherhood. She recently wrote the book Pregnancy Hacks, sharing tips to comfortably get through the major ups and downs of pregnancy. She currently works for Babylist and lives in Maryland with her husband, kids Millie, Ezra, and Sloane, and pup Ollie.