For each day there is a new activity to enhance students' personal celebrations of the holiday, matched with a way to enhance other people's celebrations and engage in tikkun olam.

Day 1: jID -- Jewish Identity

FOR ME - What if you had to hide your Jewishness? In Jerusalem under Greek rule, King Antiochus outlawed Judaism. Today, show your Jewish pride! Wear an Israel-themed T shirt, a Jewish star or hamsa necklace, a kippah, or a hat/button/sticker with Hebrew writing. FOR OTHERS - Bring some Hanukkah spirit and Jewish pride to the elderly or others who may need help celebrating. Visit a nursing home to sing Hanukkah songs, play dreidel, and share gelt or sufganiyot. Bring a hanukkiyah and help them light candles if you're visiting during candle lighting time. Hang decorations so they can celebrate all week long!

Day 2: Family

FOR ME - The Maccabees worked together to fight for the rights of Jews, with Judah leading them all to an amazing victory. Show your family's strengths with pictures. First, print and cut out one of the stencils. Trace the shape onto a piece of heavy paper and cut it out. Then, glue photographs of your family members all over the frame. Attach a ribbon to the back and display it with pride. FOR OTHERS - Connect with Israeli soldiers who often have to celebrate Hanukkah away from their families. Let them know you are thinking of them and fill them in on your own celebration. Tell them how much you appreciate them carrying on the Maccabee spirit to defend and support Israel. Find Hanukkah party, or celebrate your class' accomplishments. You'll need a bowl, spoon, cake mix, eggs, water, cake pan, oven, and – oil!

Day 5: It's a Miracle

the instructions. FOR OTHERS - While most of the focus is on kids during Hanukkah, parents and teachers also like to take part in the fun. Fill a plastic dreidel or cloth dreidel-shaped pouch with candy or other sweets for a parent or teacher. The most popular Hanukkah treat is gelt, which symbolizes the money that was used in pretend gambling games that the Jews played hoping Antiochus wouldn't think they were practicing their religion.

Day 6: Jerusalem

FOR ME - Can you tell the difference between scenes in Jerusalem, Israel and the United States? Test your instincts online with the game, Poh (Here) or Sham (There). In Israel, the letters on the dreidel stand for the sentence Nes Gadol Haya Poh (A Great Miracle Happened There) FOR OTHERS - Use the mizrach instructions to create your own mizrach! A mizrach (which means "east") is a sign that is hung on the eastern wall of a room to show the direction of Jerusalem.

Day 7: Festival of Lights

FOR ME - Keep the glow of Hanukkah shining even in the dark. Using glow-in-the-dark markers or paints on dark paper, draw pictures that will make you smile when you see them at night with the lights off. Two suggestions of drawings are Hanukkah candles and shiny Maccabee shields. FOR OTHERS - The Maccabees were lucky to find a small clay container of oil and they guarded it carefully. Share with others how they can save our precious resources. Make fliers and posters, and send emails and postcards with suggestions like: turn off lights and unplug appliances you are not using; reuse bags; recycle when possible; take shorter showers.

Day 8: Eight

FOR ME - Each player gets 8 cards. The other cards go in a pile face down. Turn the top card over and put it next to the pile. The first player has to cover that card with one of the same suit or same number. If not, he/she has to take one from the pile. Take turns. Eights are wild, so the player decides the suit. To win, get rid of all your cards! FOR OTHERS - Bring 8 items of non-perishable food to a local food pantry. To make your contribution even more amazing, ask your friends to bring their own cans and boxes of food to add to your collection. If you are going to a Hanukkah celebration, suggest that the guests contribute their own non-perishables, and you can offer to bring all the donations to the food pantry.