Shofar so good!

Here's a link to a craft site with instructions for making a shofar (which is the ram's horn blown to signal the new year) using a real noisemaker. I'm not a fan of the ones that simply say "use a toilet paper roll" -when it's much more fun to use the noisemaker from a party horn in your project.

In short: You purchase a bag of those inexpensive New Year's party horns, the kind that make a razzing horn sound when you blow into them, then tape or glue butcher paper over the party decor to make a "Shofar." Decorate and give it a coat of Modge Podge (glue) to harden and give it a shine.

http://www.freekidscrafts.com/make-a-shofar/

Ram's Horn blasts are commanded in the Torah (Leviticus 23:24).
The word "blast" is "teruah" in Hebrew. ("Ruah" for breath or wind, and "Ter" for "loud" or "alarm.")  They were blown at festivals, to sound the alarm, to call people to worship, and were expected to be heard at the coming of the Messiah and end of the world.

"The sound of the teruah is both earthly and Divine. It comes from an animal, but makes the same sound that was heard on the top of Mount Sinai when God addressed the people. Music can be celebratory, but the sound of the shofar is more than just a sound of jubilation. It is the sound of the presence of God, and the sound we use to cry out to God when we need God’s intervention." Excerpted from MyJewishLearning.com

Why welcome the New Year?  Because no matter when you celebrate it, time is considered a blessing and gift from God.