Chanukah is here! Jews all around the world are lighting their chanukiah and frying their latkes. In Spanish class we have been learning about Latin American Chanukah traditions such as eating sufganiot with guava jelly and latkes with dulce de leche. We also learned to sing the popular Ladino tune Ocho Kandelikas Para Mi (Eight Candles For Me). We watched Youtube clips of the chanukiah lighting ceremony in Boca Stadium in Argentina and we read the story of the Macabees in Spanish.

Chanukah isn’t the only celebration we have been learning about! The quinceañera, which is very similar to the celebration of a Bar/Bat Mitzvah is a ceremony marking a 15-year old girl’s transition from childhood to adulthood in many Hispanic countries. Students learned about some of the traditions at a quinceañer: the vals (waltz) performed by the quinceañera and her court, the last doll the quinceañera brings to her party symbolizing the end of her childhood and the padrinos (godparents or close relatives) who present the quinceañera with a present. The quinceañera celebration is a time during which a young girl begins to think about her future. Spanish students studied the future tense and created a poster which illustrated what they want to do in the future.

Feliz Januka
~Rebecca Weinstein
Spanish Instructor