Rosh Hashanah (literally 'Head of the Year') marks the first and second days of the Jewish New Year. The festival is also known as the Day of the Sounding of the Shofar, the Day of Judgement and the Day of Remembrance. According to rabbinic tradition, the world was created on the first day of the Hebrew month of Tishri, and in a number of the prayers God is proclaimed as the creator and king of the universe. The New Year provides a unique opportunity for people to put aside time for personal growth and reflection. It's a time for people to clarify what

their priorities in life are, and a time for reflection on what has been achieved in the past year.

The New Year provides a unique opportunity for people to put aside time for personal growth and reflection. It's a time for people to clarify what their priorities in life are, and a time for reflection on what has been achieved in the past year.

It's a time for some serious thought about life and a chance to ask questions about your actions throughout the year. Questions considered during Rosh Hashanah include:

• What's the most meaningful thing in my life?
• Who in my life means the most to me? How often do I let them know this?
• What are the most significant things I've achieved in the past year?
• What do I hope to achieve next year and in my life generally?

A great deal of time is spent in the synagogue during Rosh Hashanah. Services focus on God's kingship. People will reflect on their actions over the past year and ask for forgiveness for their sins. The central feature of the Rosh Hashanah services is the blowing of the shofar, a ram's horn. The sound was heard on many important occasions in Biblical times.

The shofar at New Year warns the Jewish people to reflect on their deeds and ask forgiveness from God. The sound of the shofar starts a ten-day period known as Yamin Noraim (literally 'Days of Awe'), which ends with the solemn festival of Yom Kippur. A hundred notes in all are blown on the shofar at three periods during the service.

Listen to a demonstration of the shofar

After the service on the first evening of the festival a special meal is eaten, including apples or bread dipped in honey. A sweet carrot dish called tzimmes is also sometimes eaten.

Why isn't Rosh Hashanah celebrated in January?
The Hebrew months do not correspond with the Gregorian calendar generally used in the West. Rosh Hashanah is celebrated in accordance with the Book of Leviticus in the Hebrew Bible: 'In the seventh month on the first day of the month shall be a solemn rest to you, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of horns.' (Lev. XXIII, 24)

What's the significance of the special Rosh Hashanah foods?
The apples or bread eaten dipped in honey and the sweet carrot stew are a symbol of the sweet New Year that people hope lies ahead. The Shabbat Hallah (or Challah) bread will be made in a circle instead of its usual plait, symbolising the circle of life and the year, as well as the hope that the New Year will roll round smoothly.

Suggested Activities (based on the QCA Schemes of Work)
RE at Key Stages 1 and 2 (Year 2)
Unit 2C: 'Celebrations' (Generic) Section 2: What is a religious festival?

Discuss the difference between ordinary holidays and religious festivals. Ask students how they celebrate New Year. Explain the significance of New Year to Jewish people and the questions considered at Rosh Hashanah. Draw parallels with the start of the new school year and ask students about their own hopes for the year ahead. Explain the significance of apples dipped in honey and share pieces with the class. Students could draw or describe important things, people or events (of the past and coming year) in their lives, perhaps for a class display.

Unit 2C: 'Celebrations' (Generic) Section 4: How do religious believers celebrate the meaning of a festival?
Describe the religious observance of Rosh Hashanah, eg using videos, a recording of the sounding of the shofar, poster packs and postcards to illustrate the events. Have students ever attended a place of worship to celebrate a festival?

Discuss attending a religious service to celebrate Rosh Hashanah. Ask children to talk about why believers attend a place of worship during a festival, eg thanksgiving, remembrance, contemplation. Emphasise that this is the main part of New Year for Jewish people. How do students think a believer feels during the festival?

RE at Key Stage 3 (Year 8)
Unit 8C: Beliefs and practice (generic) Section 5: How are beliefs shown in festivals?
Ask students to make a record of the key events and beliefs in Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The Yom Kippur timeline could be used for reference. Students could then imagine they are reporters for a local newspaper writing a piece on Jewish New Year covering what happens and why. The Jewish New Year newspaper writing frame could be used to support this activity.

Full details of all QCA schemes of work for RE can be found online at:
http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/schemes3/subjects/
Please note that the BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.

BBC Religion and Ethics: Judaism
Find out more about the core beliefs of Judaism, as well as Rosh Hashanah celebrations in the synagogue and at home.

Rosh Hashanah - CBBC Newsround
KS2 students can learn about Yom Kippur using this introduction from CBBC Newsround.

Take the Jewish Quiz
Do you know who founded Judaism and to whom the Ten Commandments were given by God? Test your knowledge in the Jewish Quiz.

Parenting - Multi Faith Celebrations
This handy guide gives tips on preparing yourself for children's curiosity about religions.

BBC Cornwall: Rosh Hashanah
Listen to some views of Rosh Hashanah given by members of the Jewish community.

Radio 1's One Life Guide to Judaism
History, holidays, festivals and real life interviews about life and faith.

the RE site
A comprehensive collection of RE news, links and resources for students of all ages. Includes an interactive festivals calendar, links to virtual tours of places of worship and AV/IT resources catalogue.

The Culham Institute
RE curriculum and training resources with a strong emphasis on the use of multimedia and ICT. The site contains a wide range of assemblies for primary and secondary groups focusing on people, festivals and other important themes and days.

the RE directory
A directory of RE contacts, including LEAs, faith communities and suppliers of resources.

SPCK - The Assemblies Website
Constantly updated, this site provides instant-access assemblies for primary and secondary schools on a wide range of secular and religious topics, including festivals of world religions.

The Parrotfish Company
A catalogue of multicultural educational resources and religious artefacts from around the world.

Turning the Pages
The British Library's award-winning online collection of ancient texts. Students can 'turn the pages' of a range of texts from different cultures, including the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Diamond Sutra, Sultan Baybars' Qur'an and the Hebrew Golden Haggadah.

Words Alive! - Special Books
An interactive guide to the six world religions from the British Library with video, images and information. Explore each 'display case' to discover more about each religion.

Britkid
A site about race, racism and life - as seen through the eyes of the Britkids. You can hang out with a Britkid or go into town to learn about religion, food, culture and the triumphs, trials and tribulations of life as a teenager in multicultural Britain.

Portsmouth EMAS
The Portsmouth Ethnic Minority Achievement Service offer a range of excellent multicultural online resources, including religious festival activities, literacy resources and interactive number lines in a wide range of languages.

Please note that the BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.