Every year that are one or two new Hanukkah episodes of kids’ TV shows. I have created this list of all the Hanukkah TV episodes I could find with where to watch them and a description of each show. I use this list every year myself while dodging Christmas episodes of my kids’ favorite shows. There are some tv show episodes that are exclusively about Hanukkah and many that include Hanukkah along with Christmas. Below you’ll find my list and description of these episodes. Enjoy!
While you’re here check out these other great resources for celebrating Hanukkah with your family: What is Hanukkah?, How to Play Dreidel, Easy Sufganiyot Recipe
New This Year!
Firebuds – Hanukkah Hullabaloo (Season 1, Episode 13)
While admiring the town’s Christmas decorations, Bo mentions that his mother is Jewish and his dad is Catholic. He’s asked why his house isn’t decorated and he says that they don’t decorate for Hanukkah. His mother shares latkes with the team and explains the holiday. The team decides to surprise his mom by decorating the house for Hanukkah, but things get out of control. After things calm down, mom expains that she doesn’t need decorations to make Hanukkah special. She feeds them sufganiyot, explains dreidel, explains how to light the Hanukkiah, and sings the blessings in Hebrew.
Includes: Hanukkah story including the victory & miracle, latkes, sufganiyot, dreidel, Hanukkiah, blessings in Hebrew
Take Away: Hanukkah is a holiday with true meaning
Hanukkah TV Episodes – Easy to Stream
Muppet Babies – Mitzvah for Miss Nanny (Season 3, Episode 28, 1st half of the episode)
Nanny tells the Muppets that she celebrates Hanukkah. She shows them a book with Hanukkah vocabulary and goes off to the kitchen to make latkes for their snack. The muppets decide to surprise Nanny with a Hanukkah party because she’s not going to be able to be with her family this year.
Includes: Jewish holiday that lasts 8 nights, dreidel, latkes, gelt, a mitzvah is a good deed
Take Away: Hanukkah is a holiday and mitzvahs are about helping people
Elena of Avalor – Festival of Lights (Season 3, Episode 18)
Princess Rebecca, her brother Ari, and their Bubbe are shipwrecked in Avalor. After explaining that they were headed home to celebrate Hanukkah, Elena offers for them to have a Hanukkah celebration there. Rebecca sings a song all about Hanukkah traditions. They make latkes that are a little less than traditional, and build a dreidel and a hanukkiah.
There is no reference to other winter holidays.
Includes: bubbe means grandma, mitzvah, the miracle of the oil, latkes, chocolate gelt, dreidel, hanukkiah, nosh,
Take Away: Chanukah has about being together with family and being thankful for all we have.
Blue’s Clues & You! – A Blues Clues Festival of Lights
Available on Nick Jr. (seasonally, hopefully, haven’t seen it there yet as of 12/13/22)
Blue and Josh go over to Periwinkle’s house to celebrate Hanukkah. They need to solve the mystery of who is coming to the Hanukkah party. They ask everyone to spin like a dreidel. Then play dreidel including landing on hey, shin, and gimmel. They use the game as a counting lesson. They get a video message from Periwinkle’s grandpa who is wearing a kippah and baking sufganiyot. Then Mr. Salt yells from the kitchen that he’s out of oil. They jump into a latke recipe and find themselves in a potato palace where they meet Lady Latke who needs help figure out the order of the steps for making latkes. They light the candles and sing an original song about Hanukkah.
Including: menorah, 8 nights, dreidel, chocolate gelt, the dreidel song, sufganiyot, chaukah sameach
Take Away: It’s a festival of lights.
Nina’s World – Nina’s Hanukkah Adventure (Season 1, Episode 27)
Available on Peacock
Nina’s family let Mrs. Katz use their bakery to make latkes and sufganiyot. Her daughter Jennifer (voiced by Mayim Bialik) comes to visit. There is a storm coming and they realize the whole town has run out oil! They go out looking all over town for oil they need to cook latkes and light the community menorah. Jen explains why we light a menorah, play dreidel, and the Hanukkah story.
There is no reference to other winter holidays.
Includes: bubbe means grandma, latkes, sufganiyot, 8 night, menorah, dreidel, King Antiochus, Judah Maccabee, tradition, part of the blessings
Take Away: Chanukah has a history and is about community and tradition.
Rugrats – Rugrats Chanukah (Season 4, Episode 1)
Streaming on Paramount+ or for purchase on Amazon Prime Video
Scene flip between a historic telling of the Hanukah story and the babies discovering what Hanukah is all about. They go to their synagogue for a fair and to watch a play about the meaning of Hanukah.
Includes: Latkes, chocolate gelt, synagogue, Torah
Take Away: Hanukkah is about brave Jews who wanted to study Torah.
Puppy Dog Pals – The Latke Kurfuffle (Season 1, Episode 20, the 2nd half of the episode)
Streaming on Disney Plus or available for purchase on Amazon Prime
The pups owner Bob is going to make latkes for his neighbor’s Hanukkah party. Bob realizes he’s out of oil and the dogs destroy the rest of the ingredients. The pups go on an adventure to find the ingredients they need.
Includes: A fun latke song, miracle of oil lasting 8 days, light candles
Take Away: Latkes are made with potatoes, eggs, and oil. It’s about spending time with friends and family.
Puppy Dog Pals – Nine Lights Tonight! (Season 4, Episode 3, the 2nd half of the episode)
Streaming on Disney+
Mrs. Clause sends an elf and a reindeer to get Bingo & Roll because her friend Miriam is having a Hanukkah emergency. All of the light bulbs for their Chanukiah are broken. The pups go on a mission to find new bulbs. They visit many different characters and collect 1 from each while singing a song.
Includes: A fun Hanukkah song, the term Chanukiah, puppy Keia is Jewish, 8 nights
Take Away: Not very educational, but fun and Santa thinks it’s important that Hanukkah happens
Hanukkah TV Episodes – Available for Purchase on Amazon
Cliffords Puppy Days – The Big, Big Present / Hanukah Plunder Blunder (Season 3, Episode 9)
Episode can be digitally purchased on Amazon Prime Video for $1.99
The Big, Big Present
After trying to take a peek at Clifford’s biggest present, he and his cat friends go to their house to take a peek at theirs. Their owner Mr. Solomon is making latkes and sufganiyot. The animals start playing with a dreidel, but it goes out of control and breaks their menorah. Without a menorah, they can’t light candles and get their big present for the last night. Working together they build a new one. In the end, they’re having so much fun they don’t even want to open their present.
Includes: Menorah, latkes, dreidel, sufganiyot, candle lighting, presents
Take Away: Being with family and friends is the greatest gift of all.
Hanukah Plunder Blunder
Clifford goes to his friends’ house for Hanukkah. His friend is supposed to only open one present per night, but can’t resist and opens all of them.
Clifford wears a Santa hat at the beginning and there are some holly leaves, but there are no other references to Christmas.
Includes: Miracle of oil lasting 8 days, latkes, dreidel, presents
Take Away: Hanukkah is about getting presents for 8 days.
Peg + Cat – The Hanukkah Problem (Season 3, Episode 9, 13:40)
Episode can be digitally purchased on Amazon Prime Video for $2.99 This is the second part of an episode, so you can skip to 13:40, but the first half is not Christmas related if you wanted to watch right through. (Might also be streaming on PBS Kids seasonally)
Peg and her friends are invited over the Albert Einstein’s house for Hanukkah. They sing a song about Hanukkah and learn the difference between two and three dimensions.
They discover that some animals are fighting and realize they can’t celebrate Hanukkah until they figure out a way for the animals to make peace.
Includes: 8 nights, menorah, dreidel, presents, light, peace
Take Away: Hanukkah is a holiday. It’s important to help find solutions to problems (peace).
Special Agent Oso – The Living Holiday Lights: Parts 1 & 2 (Season 103, Episode 11)
Available for purchase on Amazon Prime Video for $2.99 (free with current promotion)
Part 1:
Oso is headed on a train to his headquarters, the trains sing a song about Christmas. We then meet a girl who needs help setting up her Advent wreath, a boy who needs help setting up a menorah, and another boy who needs help setting up a Kwanzaa kinara. Oso is assigned to help the kids. There is a song all about different holidays from all over the world with different lights. Oso heads to France to help with the Advent wreath.
Part 2:
Oso heads to Israel to help a boy set up the menorah for Hanukkah. There’s a song about Hanukkah, lighting candles, eating latkes, and playing dreidel. They put the menorah in the window and put the candles from right to left. They play a game of dreidel. Then Oso goes to America to help a boy with the kinara for Kwanzaa. After, Oso goes home and is sad to be celebrating the holidays alone, until the kids he has helped through the year show up to thank him.
Take Away: Hanukkah has candles like other holidays this time of year. It’s unique for some reasons, but the main character is very Christmas-heavy.
Hanukkah TV Episodes – Available on the Web
Super Why! – Judith’s Happy Chanukah (Season 3, Episode 20)
Watch online at PBSLearningMedia.org or DailyMotion.com , (might also be streaming on PBS Kids seasonally)
Super Why! is an educational show for early readers.
One of the Super Readers is Jewish! She invites everyone to a Chanukah party and they go into a book about Chanukah to learn more about the holiday.
There is no reference to other winter holidays.
Includes: how to dreidel game, chocolate coins, ingredients to make latkes, story of oil lamp lasting 8 nights
Take Away: Chanukah is about traditions.
Are there any Hanukkah episodes of kids’ TV shows that I missed? Connect with me on Instagram to let me know. I’ll also be sending out emails all season with updates:
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