By Jessica and Sloane, sixth-graders at a Jewish school in the Midwest

PASSOVER Interactive: Virtual Seder Plate Quiz: Do You Know Passover?

Passover, called Pesach in Hebrew, is a time for celebration, but also to remember the hardships that the Israelites went through. During the Seder we eat many foods to help remind us of how the Israelites felt in Egypt. We also eat these selected foods to help remind us of our exodus and that now we are free.

Each food we have for Passover is selected for a special reason. We will tell you what and why we eat some of the Passover foods.

The Seder plate contains six food items, which are explained here. Two other foods that are part of the Passover feast are matzoh and yayin.

Matzoh is unleavened bread. We have Matzoh because when the Israelites left Egypt there was no time for their bread to leaven.

We have three matzoth on the Seder table. Three Matzoth remind us that there are three kinds of people: those who are not yet free, those who don't care about the freedom of others, and those who are free and who work to help others become free.

Yayin means wine. During the Seder meal, we drink four cups of wine. They remind us of four of God's promises of freedom for the Jewish people.

Passover is a time to rejoice. These foods all have a different meaning and a purpose on the Seder plate and table. Most people in modern times still do these customs and eat these foods. We are to feel as if we are still slaves in Egypt. These foods help us remember and relive the Exodus.

Seder Plate Food

By Hannah, a sixth-grader at a Jewish school in the Midwest

The holiday Passover is filled with traditions. One of the traditions that is kept throughout the world is the use of a seder plate.

On the seder plate there are six foods, karpas, maror, charoset, zero'ah, beitza and the three matzot. The six foods aren't just food; they are symbols of our past and future.

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Test Your Knowledge: Virtual Seder Plate

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The karpas is one of the vegetables on the seder plate. Passover is a spring festival and we celebrate the birth of our nation. This green vegetable is the symbol of rebirth and rejuvenation.

Maror is the bitter herb that reminds us of the embittered lives of the slaves. In one part of the seder, we make a Hillel sandwich made with two pieces of matza, maror and charoset.

The charoset is a pasty mixture of nuts, dates, apples, wine and cinnamon. This mixture reminds us of the mortar the Israelites used to make the pyramids for the Pharoahs.

On the eve of Passover, the Jews were instructed by God to sacrifice a lamb, have it for the meal, and paint the blood on the doorpost of their house. Now on our seder plate we use a shankbone to remind us of the lamb they sacrificed.

The beitzah, or egg, is another symbol of spring, or new beginning. Some animals are born from eggs, and the beitzah also reminds us that the Israelites were reborn when they left. The beitzah is also a symbol of the hagigah, or second offering that was made on the eve of Passover. Now instead of using another piece of meat or bone, we use an egg.

These symbols have been passed down from generation to generation for as long as any body can remember. When I am a Grandmother, I hope that these traditions are still being passed on.