Your First Seder: 10 Savvy Survival Tips to survive – and enjoy! – your first seder experience.

Invited to your first seder?

Maybe you’re still sort of wondering what a seder is?  Or how modern Jews today go about celebrating it?  You may be curious… or you may be terrified.

Relax!  If this is your first time attending a seder, just follow these 10 quick tips from my new book, Now You Know:  Passover for Kids, to make sure you’ll be prepared and enjoy yourself as much as possible. (And that's a LOT!)

1. Find out what time the Seder starts and come on time.
2. Ask what time the Seder will probably end.
3. Eat something ahead of time. This is the one time it’s not considered rude to make guests sit without feeding them right away.
4. Ask how much of the Seder will be in English.
5. Ask before you bring any food or drink with you. Even a small snack could be a problem (see the section on cleaning for Passover). Ask ahead of time so you’ll be in the clear!
6. Try to borrow a copy of the Haggadah they’ll be using so you’re prepared.
7. Listen to Seder tunes on YouTube or elsewhere online.
8. Offer to read or say part of the Haggadah out loud. Many people really enjoy having guests participate; others prefer not to.
9. Don’t be afraid to ask questions if there’s something you don’t know. That’s the whole point of the Seder! There are no dumb questions.
10. Don’t leave right after dinner unless it’s clear that the Seder is over. The Haggadah continues long past the point where the actual meal is over. If your hosts keep going, they may feel it’s rude that you’re cutting out “early.”

Above all else… have fun! Having “newcomers” at the table helps many Jews appreciate how special our rituals and festivals really are.

p.s. Don’t worry! Matzah balls (seen here in the soup) are tasty soft soup dumplings made out of ground up matzah.

 

Now You Know:  Passover for Kids is available exclusively as an ebook through Amazon.  If you don’t have a lot of Jewish background – or any at all! – this is the guide for you.  It contains a full glossary, a guide to any unfamiliar words, links so you can hear the songs, and lots and lots of pictures.  Aimed at kids 10 and up, it’s also great for adults who’d like an introduction to the holiday, its history and customs.

As a “pre-season special,” Now You Know:  Passover for Kids is 99 cents until the end of January.  Then, it will go up to $3.99, like the others in the series, Chanukah for Kids and Israel for Kids.  By the way, I wrote this book as a teaching guide for the Passover Lapbook I created.  The book and lapbook work great together!  (and the other 2 books each have a lapbook as well)

Click the cover images to check them all out…

Tzivia / צִיבְיָה I write books! Jewish kids & families love them! Sign up here to join my little tribe.

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