Jewish Clothing

Let children try on a kippah and tallit; show (don’t require) tefillin.

Children wonder and discover; you facilitate more than you lecture.

• Why do we wear kippot, tallit, and tzitzit?
• When do different Jews wear them?
• How do you feel wearing each?

These garments help us focus on prayer and mitzvot. Practices vary widely — who wears what, and when, differs by person and community, and all are valid.

• Kippah — head covering
• Tallit — prayer shawl
• Tzitzit — fringes
• Tefillin — prayer boxes

“Can girls wear a tallit?”

Yes — at Mount Zion, anyone can wear a tallit, kippah, or tefillin.

• Children distinguish these ritual garments and their uses.
• Children understand that practices vary among Jews.

Be explicit that all genders may wear all garments here; honor families who do and don’t.

Folktale. The Search for the Lost Blue Thread (Tradition) — for centuries the special blue tekhelet thread was lost, and people searched to find the sea-creature that makes it.

Changemaker. Rabbi Sally Priesand — the first woman ordained a rabbi in America, who helped open tallit and tradition to all.

How does wearing a kippah or tallit help someone get ready to pray — and why?

“We tried on tallit and kippot. Try at home: ask if your family has a special tallit or kippah and its story.”