Passover Art Project: Moses in the Bulrushes Jewish Education
Learning About the Baby in the Bulrushes
The Book of Exodus contains the story of Passover, one of the most important holidays for the Jewish people. At one point in Jewish history, Jews were held as slaves in ancient Egypt. Passover is a story of redemption; God redeemed the Jewish people from slavery and Moses led them out of Egypt.
Before Moses could lead the Jewish people out of Egypt, he had to survive. When Pharaoh called for the slaughter of all Jewish baby boys, Moses’ mother hid Moses in the bulrushes. His sister, Miriam, hid and watched what would happen to her baby brother.
An Egyptian princess found Moses and fell in love with the baby. She brought him home and raised him herself. Miriam told the princess that she knew a Jew who could nurse the baby; the princess hired Moses’ mother to be the baby’s nursemaid.
This craft project remembers Moses’ humble and precarious beginnings.
Supplies Needed
To make baby Moses in the bulrushes, you will need:
- Clear baby food jars, or other clear jars with wide mouths;
- Walnut shells;
- Large wooden beads;
- Felt and fabric scraps;
- Black and red permanent markers;
- Blue tissue paper;
- Green pipe cleaners;
- Ribbon;
- Scissors and glue.
Make Baby Moses
- Use a hollowed out walnut shell for baby Moses’ basket. A wooden bead is the baby’s head. Draw his face with permanent markers, and glue a little yarn on his head to represent hair. Glue this circle into one end of the walnut’s shell.
- Glue a piece of felt or a fabric scrap over the rest of the shell. This is Moses’ blanket.
- Take a couple of green pipe cleaners, and bend them into a “U” shape. Trim the edges so that they are not any higher than the top of the jar – they have to fit into the jar.
- Now deposit drops of glue onto the bottom of the clear glass jar. Gently insert the green pipe cleaners into the jar, so that the bottom of the “U” rests in the glue. With a craft stick, press the pipe cleaner into the glue, and make sure the sides of the “U” are against the sides of the jar.
- Crumple up small pieces of blue tissue paper. Drop a little more glue into the jar if necessary, and drop enough pieces of crumpled blue tissue paper to cover the bottom of the jar. Use the craft stick to spread them out and press them down into the glue.
- Dab a small amount of glue onto the bottom of the walnut shell, and place baby Moses into the jar.
- Leave the jar open for a couple of hours to allow the glue to completely dry before you attach the lid.
Finishing Off - Use The Lid Too
While waiting for the glue to dry, decorate the lid of the jar with fabric that matches (or complements) Moses’ blanket. Place the lid on the jar only after the glue is completely dry. Tie a ribbon around the edge of the lid.
The finished product can be placed on the table or used as decoration in the house.
