How to Make an Afikomen Bag for Passover – Pesach

By
Rizwan Ahmed
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Passover. . . also known as Pesach. . . is a Jewish holiday that
commemorates the Hebrews’ escape from Egypt. Passover lasts for seven days.
During this time families have a special meal called a seder and read
from the Haggadah that tells the story of how Moses led the Hebrews out
of Egypt and into freedom. A fun Passover tradition for families is to have a
scavenger hunt for afikomen. What is afikomen? What is its
symbolism? Read on to learn the answers to these questions and how to make a
simple afikomen craft.

What is Afikomen?

During the seder three matzahs are stacked on the table. Matzah is
kind of, sort of like a cracker. It’s a type of flatbread that is made
without yeast. The matzah in the middle of the stack gets broken into two
pieces. The larger of these two pieces is called the afikomen. The
parents… or grandparents… take this afikomen, wrap it in a napkin, and
hide it. Some families will put the afikomen in an afikomen bag instead of
wrapping it in a napkin. Then the children have to search around the house
to find it. Sometimes the first child to find the afikomen gets a prize!

Three slices of matzah. Square.
Searching for the afikomen is steeped in symbolism. For children, it’s a
fun game to look forward to when the seder is over. However, for many
adults, it is symbolic of the ultimate redemption from suffering. It can
also be symbolic of the Passover sacrifice that used to be offered at the
ancient temple in Jerusalem or as a reminder that the poor must always set
something aside for the next meal.

Choose two squares of fabric to sew together.

How to Make a Simple Afikomen Bag

Making an afikomen bag can be as simple or as complicated as you’d
like it to be. Some afikomen bags are made from plain linen fabric,
whereas others can be made from embroidered silk. I’ve even seen
afikomen bags made with gold woven into their fabrics! How you and
your students make your afikomen bags is completely up to you.

You will need:

Directions:

1. Take two squares of fabric and stack them together with the right
sides… the pretty sides… facing each other.

2. Sew three sides of the square together. Leave one side open.

3. Optional: Hem the open edge to prevent fraying.

4. Turn the squares right side out.

5. Optional: Decorate your new afikomen bag.

Sew three edges of the square. Leave the fourth edge open.

There is no one specific way to decorate your afikomen bag and it’s OK if
your students’ afikomen bags aren’t ‘perfect.’ What’s important is that
your students enjoy the process of making these bags and that they have an
enjoyable seder meal with their families.

Completed afikomen bag.

What decorations can you add to this afikomen bag to personalize it?

Children of all ages love searching for the afikomen. Rabbi Joe
Black wrote a funny song about how excited children can be. The song is
called Afikoman Mambo. You can watch the video for this song below.
. . I bet you won’t be able to watch it without dancing in your seat!

Did you enjoy this simple Passover craft? If so, check these other blog
posts for more Judaica related books and activities:

search words: Passover, Pesach, Jewish, Jewish holidays, Judaic, Judaica, Israel, Egypt

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