Passover Finger Puppets – Ten Plagues Craft for Kids | Tori Avey

Brenda Ponnay, author of the Secret Agent Josephine blog, is a regular contributor to ToriAvey.com. Her craft blogs are kid and family friendly; each project will help children learn the deeper meaning of the Jewish holidays. Today’s craft: Passover Finger Puppets – The Ten Plagues

So, you’re gearing up to cook the Seder and you have a house full of kidlets yearning to be entertained. What’s a busy Seder cook to do?

Print out these Ten Plagues Finger Puppets, that’s what! The Ten Plagues is one of the most exciting parts of the Passover Seder for children. Kids love acting out the plagues, and these finger puppets are just the thing to get them involved and learning more about the Passover story. Print them out, cut them out, tape the small tabs together to fit snugly on little fingers, and voila! You’ve got ten little plagues of wiggly fun.

Here is what you’ll need:

1. Printable Finger Puppets – files below

Full Color Puppets:
(click file name to print – they may take a minute to load)

Ten Plagues Finger Puppets Printable 1

Ten Plagues Finger Puppets Printable 2

Coloring Sheet Puppets:
(click file name to print –  they may take a minute to load)

Ten Plagues Finger Puppets Printable Coloring Sheet 1

Ten Plagues Finger Puppets Printable Coloring Sheet 2

2. Scissors

3. Double-stick tape or glue

While you’re cutting these out or letting your children cut them out, teach them about the plagues finger by finger. Here is a description of the plagues if you need a refresher…

The Ten Plagues

The Jewish Ancient Israelites are enslaved in Egypt. Moses and Aaron come before the Pharaoh multiple times. They demand in the name of God, “Let My people go, so that they may serve Me in the wilderness.”

Pharaoh repeatedly refuses their demands. Aaron’s staff turns into a snake and swallows the magic sticks of the Egyptian sorcerers. Even when faced with this example of God’s power, Pharaoh refuses to let the Jewish slaves go. Moses warns the Pharoah that God will smite Egypt. Pharaoh is stubborn. As a result, God casts ten plagues upon the Egyptians. When faced with the horror of each plague, Pharaoh promises to let the Ancient Israelites go. Each time the plague stops, he takes back his promise and holds the Jews captive. As a result, another plague befalls the Egyptians… then another, then another.

1.  Water to Blood. In this plague, Aaron strikes the Nile river with his staff, and the river turns to blood.

2. Frogs. Egypt is overrun by frogs. The Nile teems with them. Frogs swarm the land.

3. Lice. Terrible lice infest both Egyptians and their animals. Itchy!

4. Wild Animals. Hordes of vicious wild animals invade Egypt. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

5. Death of Livestock. Cattle and other domestic animals are struck down.

6. Boils. Painful bumps, known as boils, grow on the skin of the Egyptians.

7. Hail and thunder. Devastating storms of fire and ice rain down on the Egyptians.

After the seventh plague, the Egyptians beg their Pharoah to let the Jews go. When Moses warns Pharaoh of another plague to come, Pharaoh offers to let the Israelite men go, as long as the women and children stay behind. Moses refuses. He says: “We must all go, men women and children, cattle and herds.” Pharaoh once again refuses. The eighth plague descends.

8. Locusts. A swarm of locusts devour the crops of the countryside.

9. Darkness. A terrible, thick darkness descends on the land of Egypt.

The Ancient Israelites are told to bring an offering to God. For every Israelite home, a lamb or goat kid is slaughtered, and its blood sprinkled on the doorposts of every Israelite home. This indicates that God should pass over these homes when the last, terrible final plague comes. The roasted meat of the paschal offering is eaten that night together with matzo (bread that has not yet risen) and bitter herbs. Then the final plague arrives.

10. Death of the firstborn. The firstborn of every Egyptian family is killed.

Your kids will learn about the plagues as they play with their finger puppets. They can even act out the plagues using the puppets during the Seder!

If you’d like to prolong the fun, print out the coloring sheet versions of the puppets (linked at the beginning of this blog) and have children color their own!

This is a great way to get kids engaged in the story of Passover and the Ten Plagues.

To learn more about the Jewish holiday of Passover, click here.