1. Passover A Holiday of Freedom

2. The Story of Exodus Hebrews came to live in the land of Egypt A new ruler, Pharaoh, came to power Pharaoh ordered Hebrews to work as slaves Pharaoh put restrictions on their lives Hebrews revolted and left Egypt for an unfamiliar land called Canaan Pharaoh persisted and brought his army to failure Hebrews were free at last

3. Passover Traditions Passover lasts for 8 days The first night of Passover is called SEDER, which means ORDER 7 about the meaning of the holiday Adults read the Passover story, called Haggadah Children and adults hide from each other a piece of matza (unleavened bread), called AFIKOMEN Children receive a prize for finding the Afikomen

4. Passover Crafts Passover set Passover plate Passover cup Matza covers

5. FOOD Only unleavened bread (matza) and matza flour is permitted during the 8 days of Passover Many communities ban all grain from the premises for all days of Passover (rice, corn, peas, barley, oat, etc.)

6. SEDER Seder plate contains 6 special foods that symbolize the story of Exodus: -maror (bitter herb), reminds of the tears shed by the slaves -karpas (potato or green herb), reminds that spring has come -boiled egg, reminds that our life cycle is round -haroset (mixture of fruit, nuts and wine or juice), reminds of a mixture for brick making used by the slaves -hazeret (very bitter herb, like horseradish) - shank bone, reminds of the Passover lamb eaten in a hurry at the night of Exodus -matza, reminds of the bread baked and eaten in a hurry at the night of Exodus