Picture and Chapter Books to Celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month

Jewish American Heritage Month takes place every year in May. Similar to other themed months focused on communities of people, it is important to acknowledge and teach about Jewish people, identity and culture throughout the school year and not just isolate that learning to May. At the same time, Jewish American Heritage Month is a time to uplift and provide learning experiences for students to explore the Jewish experience. Children’s books, both picture books and chapter books, are a useful opening to introduce elementary students to the Jewish experience. This can include an exploration of holidays, traditions, culture, history, notable people, antisemitism faced by the Jewish community and more. Using books to learn about Jewish people will enhance students’ understanding of our diverse society and world. 

There are many relevant and compelling children’s books that can help young people explore and learn about Jewish people, identity and culture. Below is a sampling of picture books and chapter books that educators and families can use to open the door to these conversations. 

The Ninth Night of Hannukah (Ages 3-8) It’s Hanukkah, and Max and Rachel are excited to light the menorah in their family’s new apartment. Unfortunately, their Hanukkah box is missing. So now they have no menorah, candles, dreidel or anything! Luckily, their neighbors are happy to help, offering thoughtful and often humorous stand-in items each night. And then, just as Hanukkah is about to end, Max and Rachel, inspired by the shamash (“helper”) candle, have a brilliant idea: they’re going to celebrate the Ninth Night of Hanukkah as a way to thank everyone who’s helped them,  

Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue of Liberty (Ages 4-7) "Give me your tired, your poor. Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." In 1883, Emma Lazarus, deeply moved by an influx of immigrants from eastern Europe, wrote a sonnet that gave a voice to the Statue of Liberty. Originally a gift from France to celebrate our shared national struggles for liberty, the statue, thanks to Emma's poem, came to define us as a nation that welcomes immigrants. 

Queen of the Hanukkah Dosas (Ages 4-8) Sadie’s family has both Jewish and Indian background, so at Hanukkah instead of latkes, her family celebrates with tasty Indian dosas. To her brother's distress, little Sadie won't stop climbing on everything both at home and at the Indian grocery store, even while preparing the dosas. As the family puts the finishing touches on their holiday preparations, they accidentally get locked out of the house. Sadie and her climbing skills just may be exactly what is needed to save the day. 

Tía Fortuna’s New Home: A Jewish Cuban Journey (Ages 4-8) When Estrella's Tía Fortuna has to say goodbye to her longtime Miami apartment building to move to an assisted living community, Estrella spends the day with her. Tía explains the significance of her most important possessions from both her Cuban and Jewish culture, as they learn to say goodbye together and explore a new beginning for Tía. A lyrical book about tradition, culture, and togetherness, the book explores Tía and Estrella's Sephardic Jewish and Cuban heritage. 

Jeremy's Dreidel (Ages 4-8) At the dreidel-making workshop, Jeremy’s friends think he is molding a secret code on his clay dreidel. But he’s really making a special gift for his father, who is blind. How will he get his friends to appreciate his special dreidel? In addition to providing a positive perception of life with a disability, this story also explains the story and concepts behind Hanukkah.  

Rose Spoke Out: The Story of Rose Schneiderman (Ages 5-8) Rose Schneiderman, a young Jewish immigrant from Poland, went to work in a cap factory in New York City when she was just thirteen years old. She saw that women workers earned much less than men, that the factory was cold and dirty, without even clean water for the workers to drink. Rose spoke up for better conditions and organized 20,000 women to walk out, leaving factories all over the city empty and still. Following the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911, Rose's speech at the Metropolitan Opera House galvanized support for better working conditions.  

An Invitation to Passover (Ages 5-8) When Hannah's extended family isn't able to join her for their traditional Passover seder, she invites her diverse group of friends to experience the holiday with her. From Ha-Joon's Korean kimchi, to Monique's hymn lyrics, each friend brings a bit of their own culture to the celebration. And with each guest the themes of freedom, hope and thanks become more meaningful. A note tells the Passover story and a glossary defines vocabulary. 

Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers' Strike of 1909 (Ages 5-8) This book tells the story of Clara Lemlich, a young Jewish, Ukrainian immigrant who led the largest strike of women workers in U.S. history. When Clara arrived in the U.S., she couldn't speak English. She didn't know that young women had to go to work and that they traded an education for long hours of labor. Fed up with the mistreatment of her fellow laborers, Clara led the largest walkout of women workers the country had seen. From her short time in the U.S., Clara learned that everyone deserved a fair chance and that you had to stand together and fight for what you wanted. 

I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes her Mark (Ages 6-10) Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has spent a lifetime disagreeing: disagreeing with inequality, arguing against unfair treatment and standing up for what’s right for people everywhere. This biographical picture book about the Notorious RBG, tells the justice’s story through the lens of her many famous dissents or disagreements. 

Linked (Ages 8-12) Link, Michael, and Dana live in a quiet town. But it's woken up very quickly when someone sneaks into school and vandalizes it with a swastika. Because Michael was the first person to see it, he's the first suspect. Because Link is one of the most popular guys in school, everyone's looking to him to figure it out. And because Dana's the only Jewish girl in the whole town, everyone's treating her more like an outsider than ever. The mystery deepens as more swastikas begin to appear. Some students decide to fight back and start a project to bring people together instead of dividing them further.   

Refugee (Ages 9-12) Josef is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world. Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in the United States. Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by war, violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe. All three kids go on harrowing journeys in search of refuge. All will face unimaginable dangers—but there is always the hope of tomorrow. And although Josef, Isabel and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections tie their stories together. 

The Do More Club (Ages 10-14) Ever since Josh found an antisemitic note in his family’s mailbox in third grade, he has felt uncomfortable about his Jewish identity. At a new school where he’s pretty sure he’s the only Jewish student, Josh hopes to keep religion out of everything—until the morning someone sprays swastikas all over the building. In one of the school counseling groups set up in response to the attack, Josh reveals that he is Jewish, and quickly finds out there’s more to the other kids in his grade too: All of them have their own struggles. Maybe Josh can do something to help by starting a Do More club.