Wooden Ratchet Noise Maker for Purim

When the Purim story ("Meglliah") is read, everyone boos and shakes their graggers whenever Haman's name is mentioned.

Wood DIY  Purim gragger

Here is a wooden ratchet noisemaker we made, also known as a "gragger" when used during the Jewish holiday of Purim. For this one, I used a few scrap pieces of 3/4 inch thick pine, a 1/2 inch wood dowel (less than 6 inches worth), a piece of 1 1/4 inch dowel for the handle (about 5 inches long), and some 3/16 inch dowel for the wooden pegs. 
With everything assembled, you can give it a spin and see how it works. 
Our noisemaker is fairly loud, and it spins freely in either direction. Have fun! 

Childen DIY gragger

A gragger, sometimes pronounced grogger, is a special Purim noise maker which is comprised of a handle and a revolving part that makes noise as it is revolved. Normally, making noise in the synagogue is forbidden during services, but on Purim even the adults join the children to make noise during certain parts in the reading of the Megilah. Each time the mention of the evil enemy of the Jews, Haman, is mentioned during the reading of the Megilah, the custom is to make noise and the gragger is the traditional Purim noise maker.

Gragger Wood Flip Drum

Purim arts and craft materials and projects for kids. Our gragger craft project is easy for children to decorate and paint.

Jewish Holidays: Books for Kids (Holidays & Celebrations)

Gragger and Meghillat case

Purim is just around the corner, and my children wanted a gragger and meghillat case project to do all by themselves... and they did it!!

While the one my kids did is a simple revisited noisemaker let's spend Jìjust few words about the "dragger".
A ratchet, also called a noisemaker (or, when used in Judaism, a gragger or grogger (etymologically from Yiddish: גראַגער‎) or ra'ashan (Hebrew: רעשן‎)), is an orchestral musical instrument played by percussionists. Operating on the principle of the ratchet device, a gearwheel and a stiff board is mounted on a handle, which rotates freely.
The player holds the handle and swings the whole mechanism around. The momentum makes the board click against the gearwheel, producing a clicking and rattling noise. A popular design consists of a thick wooden cog wheel attached to a handle and two wooden flanges that alternately hit the teeth of the cog when the handle turns. Alternatively, smaller ratchets are sometimes held still or mounted and the handle turned rapidly by the player. The mounted ratchets allow for greater control of the duration and timing of the sound. This allows the ratchet to be used like a snare drum, placing sustained rolls in precise durations of time. Dynamics are controlled by the rate at which the ratchet is rotated.

Purim gragger greeting cards

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Download the cards HERE

Since this is a story about a gragger, it is of course a Purim story.
One Purim many, many years ago, in the little town of Vardik, in far-off Russia, everyone was very sad and worried. Instead of looking forward to the gaiety of the holiday, they were afraid that their entire Jewish community would be destroyed. It almost seemed like the times of the first Purim--that's how great the danger was.

Shavuot greetings "bags"

It is customary to eat dairy foods on the first day of Shavuot. There are a number of reasons for this custom. On the holiday of Shavuot, a two-loaf bread offering was brought in the Temple. To commemorate this, we eat two meals on Shavuot, first a dairy meal, and then, after a short break, we eat the traditional holiday meat meal.
With the giving of the Torah, the Jews became obligated to observe the kosher laws. As the Torah was given on Shabbat, no cattle could be slaughtered nor could utensils be koshered, and thus on that day they ate dairy.
The Torah is likened to nourishing milk. Also, the Hebrew word for milk is chalav, and when the numerical values of each of the letters in the word chalav are added together 8 + 30 + 2—the total is forty. Forty is the number of days Moses spent on Mount Sinai when receiving the Torah.
On Shavuot we therefore eat dairy products and then take a break before eating meat in order to demonstrate our commitment to this mitzvah.

Pom pom ice cream cones greetings

Making pom poms is a favorite amusement for kids. It’s easy and you can choose your favorite colors. With pieces of an egg carton turn the pom poms into to ice creams greetings for Shavuot.
You need yarn, scissors, egg cartons, acrylic paint and a brush. You will also need glue, we have use a glue gun.

Purim graggers

Saltshakers transformed into Purim draggers

Mordechai and King Ahasuerus graggers, filled with rice and beans

Purim - graggers

Purim gragger ideas
When the Purim Meghliah is read, everyone boos and shakes their graggers whenever Haman's name is mentioned. Use one of the ideas below to make your own gragger.
SHAKER type gragger with empy water and juice bottles filled with colored rice.