How to Modify a Passover Seder for Your Guests

As the host of a Passover seder, it is important for you to create an experience that meets the needs of your guests. The following are some suggestions as to how to modify a seder, keeping their needs in mind.

Things You'll Need

• Appropriate Haggadot
• Props and toys for children

Instructions

1. Know your guest list. Before even beginning to prepare for the seder, think about the people you are inviting. Will many children be in attendance? Do you have many guests who cannot read Hebrew?

2. Choose a Haggadah that meets at least some of the needs of your guests. For example, if many of your guests do not read Hebrew, it may be important to use a Haggadah that contains numerous English readings and/or transliterations. You might also consider using more than one Haggadah during the course of the seder.

3. Treat the Haggadah as a guide, not as a series of obligations. While there are certain elements of the seder are required by Jewish law (the explanation of the shank bone, matzah and maror, for example), you certainly do not need to read every word of the Haggadah, particularly if it contains several long English passages. Get a feel for your audience and modify your reading accordingly.

4. Encourage discussion. The Passover seder is supposed to be a dynamic experience, not a static one. Pose open-ended questions to your guests, allowing them to discuss the themes of the seder. This is particularly important because it allows every guest, regardless of his background and Jewish knowledge, to literally bring something to the table. For example, you might mention the idea that, during Passover, Jews are supposed to feel as though they were personally liberated from Egypt. Guests may then discuss ways in which they have overcome certain obstacles in their own lives (an addiction, for example) from which they are now "liberated."

5. Get the kids involved. If you have many children present, you need to engage them (otherwise, they will be running around the house and distracting from the proceedings). Some ways to involve children include using props (there are some great finger-puppet plays out there), having the children lead the songs and so on.