Students will investigate how real people experience and interpret Hanukkah traditions by conducting and documenting user interviews, creating empathy maps grounded in direct quotes, and surfacing assumptions about cultural symbols before defining a design challenge in the next phase.

Students will synthesize their Hanukkah user interviews and empathy maps into a clear, evidence-based problem definition that guides the design of their modern dreidel or menorah prototype.

Students will generate a wide range of solution ideas for their Hanukkah dreidel artworks and abstract menorah sculptures, using their documented user research and How Might We statements to guide divergent and convergent thinking. They will explore multiple distinct concepts, evaluate them against real user needs, and produce annotated concept sketches that serve as blueprints for prototyping.

Students will build and refine low- and medium-fidelity prototypes of their Hanukkah-inspired dreidels or abstract menorah sculptures, test them with peers acting as representative users, and document how feedback leads to concrete design improvements before moving to higher-fidelity versions.

Students will conduct a final validation of their Hanukkah art installations with a new user, analyze feedback, and present their refined solutions to an authentic audience at a culminating exhibition, clearly tracing how user research shaped their design decisions and iterations.