Parshas Vayikra for Kids

פרשת ויקרא

Sefer Vayikra opens with a call to Moshe and the laws of the korbanos - the olah, the minchah, the shelamim. A book about coming close, and about what a person brings when they want to.

In a Torah Tale book, your own child is the hero of this story - drawn from their photo, on every page, in their own name. Written under rabbinical guidance with strict tznius, printed and shipped to your door in English, Hebrew or Yiddish.

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What happens in Parshas Vayikra

Sefer Vayikra opens with Hashem calling lovingly to Moshe Rabbeinu from the Ohel Moed. In the Sefer Torah, the aleph at the end of the word Vayikra is written small. The commentators explain that Moshe, in his great humility, would have written the word without an aleph at all, as if Hashem had only happened upon him; when told to write it, he made the letter small.

Then Hashem teaches the korbanos a person could bring to the Mishkan: the olah, the minchah of fine flour and oil, the shelamim that brings peace, and the chatas and asham brought by someone who made a mistake and wants to fix it. The word korban comes from karov, close; every korban is a way of coming closer to Hashem. Rashi notes that the Torah calls the giver adam, like Adam HaRishon, who owned the whole world and so never brought anything that was not his own. And Chazal say that when a poor person brings a simple minchah of flour, Hashem treats it as if he offered his very soul. What Hashem looks at is the heart.

Lessons and middos for children

  • Humility

    Moshe Rabbeinu was the greatest of all, yet he wrote his own aleph small. We can do great things without needing everyone to notice.

  • Giving from the heart

    A small gift given with love is precious to Hashem. A child can give a little of their time, a toy or a kind word, and it counts.

  • Fixing mistakes

    The Torah gives a way to make things right after a mistake. When we slip up, we can say sorry, fix what we can and try again.

Questions for the Shabbos table

  1. Why do you think Moshe Rabbeinu wanted the aleph in Vayikra to be small?
  2. The word korban means coming close. What are some things you can do this week to feel closer to Hashem?
  3. A poor person's handful of flour was just as dear to Hashem as a big gift. What small thing could you give that would mean a lot?
  4. If you made a mistake and hurt a friend, what would you do to make it right?

How your child steps into the story

Your child stands near the Ohel Moed as Hashem's call reaches Moshe Rabbeinu, and later walks beside a family bringing a small minchah with joy, helping carry the basket of flour to the entrance. The story ends as the kohanim get ready to hear the instructions of Parshas Tzav.