Dr. Emily AronoffEngage your senses and celebrate Shavuot with food, song, and rhythm in this song titled “Shavuot Sweet Beat!” This playful activity for children and families will have you chanting mouthwatering Shavuot menu items to a catchy tune. Shavuot, a Jewish holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, is an opportunity to gather with loved ones and savor traditional dairy dishes. Encourage children to develop their rhythmic competencies while they brainstorm delicious Shavuot foods with the Shavuot Sweet Beat song!
This song allows young learners to explore different dairy foods associated with Shavuot while practicing their rhythm and coordination skills. To perform this activity, you can use tapping sticks or simply clap your hands along to the beat. When using tapping sticks, demonstrate to the participants that the sticks are for tapping the floor or each other, but never for tapping people.
Assess children’s background knowledge before you launch into the song to see what kind of explanation you need to provide to enable meaningful participation.
Shavuot Sweet Beat Lyrics
Lyrics:
PART A:
Torah Learning is so sweet
Like milk and honey, its a treat
On Shavuot, these foods we eat
Name and tap them to a beat!
Part B:
Please make up your own- these are just a few to get you started…
- Strawberry cheesecake (5 taps): STRAW-ber-ry CHEESE-cake
- Coconut cream pie (5 taps): CO-co-nut CREAM-pie
- Chocolate chip blintzes (6 taps): CHO-co-late CHIP-blintz-es
- Spinach cheese quiche (4 taps): SPIN-ach CHEESE-qui-che
- Ricotta noodle kugel (7 taps): Ri-COT-ta NOO-dle-ku-gel
- Honey fruit salad (5 taps): HO-ney FRUIT-sal-ad
Sing along to the song and clap the rhythm while chanting these Shavuot delights! Watch Dr. Emily demonstrate how to sing and clap along to the Shavuot Sweet Beat in the accompanying video.
Two variations of this activity can help tailor it to your learner’s skills and interests:
1. Let students take turns as the leader
After modeling 3-4 examples of tapping the sticks to the syllables of a Shavuot food, encourage kids to volunteer to take a turn as the leader. Remind them that the foods we enjoy on Shavuot traditionally feature dairy products. Providing several examples for younger kids can be helpful, and let them know that the more descriptive they are, the trickier it gets!
Depending on the age of the children and their familiarity with Shavuot, you may wish to level up the game by instructing participants to listen carefully and ONLY tap back if you mention a Shavuot food. If it’s NOT a Shavuot food, they should point to the floor. Make it more apparent the first few times by changing your expression and tone to help learners notice the difference.
2. Add non-Shavuot foods to the mix
With “Sweet Shavuot Beats,” you can engage children in the joy of Shavuot through interactive singing and rhythm games, fostering a deeper understanding of the holiday and its customs while developing essential skills and fostering a supportive, fun environment.
Building Identity and Community Through Music
As an experienced songleader and educational consultant serving the Jewish community, Dr. Emily Celebrates has witnessed firsthand the transformative power of music to bring people together, nurture spiritual growth, and foster a shared identity. By participating in the Shavuot Sweet Beat activity, children, families, and educators are engaging with Jewish tradition in an interactive, hands-on manner that allows them to connect meaningfully with their history and culture while sharing joy and Judaism.
Book a Consultation with Dr. Emily Celebrates
Are you seeking ways to strengthen and enrich your community through the power of music? Dr. Emily Celebrates offers music curriculum consulting services designed to engage and support children in their spiritual, emotional, and intellectual development. To learn more about how you can incorporate this joyous approach in your Jewish educational environment and foster a strong sense of identity and connection, book a Calendly call with Dr. Emily Celebrates today!
