Young Enlightened Submitters

Fasting Ramadan

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic Calendar. The Islamic calendar , like the solar calendar, has twelve months. The islamic calendar is based on the moon (Lunar) , while the solar calendar is based on the sun (Solar).

The solar calendar months are made of 30 or 31 days except for February. The Lunar calendar months are made of 29 or 30 days. Ramadan is therefore either 29 days or 30 days.

A RAMADAN POEM

THE HOLY MONTH OF RAMADAN
FOR THE MUSLIMS (SUBMITTERS) HAS BEGUN
PRAISING GOD THROUGH THE DAY,
FROM DAWN TO DUSK WE FAST AND PRAY.
WE PAY ZAKAT (CHARITY) FOR THOSE IN NEED,
TRYING OUR BEST TO DO GOOD DEEDS.
WHEN THE SUN HAS SET, AND DAY IS DONE-
I'LL BREAK THIS CHAIN, BUT ONLY ONE.
BY THE END OF RAMADAN, THIS WHOLE CHAIN WILL
BE ALL GONE!
IT'S TIME TO CELEBRATE AND SHARE IN THE FUN!!!

Project 1

Mosque Craft Mobile

· Make a copy of an Islamic Design, for example a drawing of a simple Mosque with a Minaret, like the one above. You can simplify it to the best you can, depending on the ability and age of the children.

· Copy the above (Ramadan) poem in an attractive font to the size you need to place it inside the Mosque picture. The poem can be split into two halves, with each half glued to the right or left side of the door of the mosque in the diagram, i.e. on top of the area of the windows in the diagram.

· Make additional copies after you have glued the poem inside for the amount of children participating.

· Glue pictures to thin cardboard, and then cut out around the outline of the Mosque.

· Have children color and/or decorate with colored glitter.

· Punch a hole in the top of the Mosque and tie a long string or ribbon through it to hang from the ceiling.

Project 2

Ramadan Calendar Chain

-Cut colored strips of construction paper into approx. 8" lengths. (30 strips for each child) · Glue or staple strips of construction paper into a chain.

-You will need 30 links (rings) in your chain. One for each day until the end of Ramadan.

-Make a pretty pattern, alternate the colors of the rings.

-You may attach the completed chain to the bottom of your designed mosque in project one or to other designs, e.g. a large crescent, or a star..

-Hang it on a wall or in a doorway.

-Everyday neatly tear off one of the rings all the way to the end of Ramadan. Remind the children that Ramadan can be either 29 or 30 days

Project 3

Charity Decorated Jar

Ramadan is that time of the year to rememer most the poor and the needy. Charity is a big part of the celebration of the month of Ramadan. Ask the children to bring a jar. Explain to them that in the jar they will collect coins for the whole month of Ramadan. Help the children decorate the jar, using colorful stickers of their choice. Let them collect coins in it , either from their allowance or make an arrangement with their parents to give them some of the change they have in their pockets, every day.for the remainder of the month. At the end of the month, let the children count the change and give it to the mosque or any other charity organization that helps those in need.

Project 4

Ramadan Lantern (Fanoos)

Use white construction paper or use different color construction papers. Use a stencil or trace for them the shape of the lantern.

They can then color it with red, yellow, blue, green, purple,gold, or silver crayons, pencils, or markers. Every section of the fanoos should have a different bright color. Otherwise, make all the sections of the fanoos from different color construction paper and glue them together on a cardboard backing so they could hang them on a string.

If you prefer you can trace for them the three D model and let them color it. Fold one half on the other to complete the circle and transform it into a stand alone fanoos. You may glue the fanoos on a base of cardboard to make it easy to stand.

(read about Fanoos Ramadan at the end of this page.)

Project 5

Simple Night sky and moon Project
For Younger Children,

Use black or blue construction paper for a night sky background. Use a stencil or trace for them the shape of the crescent moon. They can color it with white, yellow, gold, or silver crayons, pencils, or markers. If they can draw stars by themselves, let them add stars, or let them stick on stars (the self-sticking kind). You may also cut circles out of black paper, glue them on a cardboard backing so the children could hang them on a string, and have the children draw in with glitter pens near one edge to make the crescent shape. That way they get the idea that the crescent is only a small part of the whole circle of the moon.

The teacher could also let some children color in quarter, half, and three-quarter moons to show the waxing and waning during the lunar month.

Project 6

Moon Project
For Younger Children

As we know Ramadan begins and ends with the birth of the new moon. This project will be a good one for preschoolers.

1. Let each group of children (4-6 children in a group), work together to create a night sky on a black or dark blue construction paper. If they can draw stars by themselves, let them add stars, or let them stick on stars (the self-sticking kind) or a combination of both. They can use white, yellow, gold, or silver crayons, pencils, or markers.
2. Create a moon for every group or let them do it, if they can cut a circle in a white construction paper. You may also use a black construction paper then color it white or silver to represent a full moon.
3. Slice each moon into 6 pieces, they will be crescent shapes. You may cut the moon into two halves first, then each half into three pieces. Number these pieces on the back to remember which piece comes next. Remember that each half moon takes seven days to develop. It takes two weeks to develop into a full moon. Each piece will represent a stage of the moon.
4. As you go through the month, ask the children to observe the moon every night from the first day. When they come to the class ask them to use glue or better to use velcro to stick the first piece (crescent) on the night sky background. Every 2-3 days as they see the moon getting bigger, you can let them add the next piece. Keep doing this to the end of the month. Remember the second half of the month you will have to remove pieces, one by one every 2-3 days, until there is no moon at the end of the month.

Project 7

Sunset View of the sky and Horizon
For Older ChildrenM

A two day project. Before the project, ask them to look and observe the colors of the sunset and an outline of buildings/houses in their neighborhood.

Let each child wet a piece of white paper, then paint stripes of colors (red, orange, pink, purple, like the sunset) horizontally across the paper with water color paints. The colors should blur together because of the wetting. This is the background.

The next day, on a piece of black construction paper, trace the outline of some buildings, houses, mosque, or local landmark in the middle of the paper (try to keep it simple). The lower half of the paper will be the lower floor(s) of the houses/buildings. Then cut along the outline so that the top half of the paper (where the sky would be) falls away. You should be left with the shape of the buildings in profile. Glue the black paper to the sunset background. The colors will appear above and between the buildings. You can add an appropriate phrase about breaking fast or sunset prayer above or below.

Project 8

Night sky, the moon, the stars and the children
For Older Children

Since Ramadan gets the attention of the children to the night sky, the moon and the starsit can be used for a good educational experience.

Encourage the children to make a "night sky" using three-dimensional material such as pipe cleaners, cotton balls, ping pong balls, clay, and pasted paper. See if these three-dimensional materials cause the children to talk about the location and distance of objects in the sky and space. You might have to help them with some of the technical problems so that they can hang clouds, stars, and moon. You might give them a big paste board box painted black on the inside. Make it easy for them to hang items at different places from the "ceiling" of the "night sky."

And remember, the objective is not to make a good looking night sky out of art material. The objective is to get the children talking about their theories of what things are in the earth's sky and what things are in outer space, and where does the change happen from sky to space and so on. The product does not have to look like a sky, it only needs to stimulate a high quality conversation among the children. Take the chance and teach them about the sky, the space, the stars and the moon.

Fanoos/Lantern

Fanoos (Lantern) is just pure fun for the kids , nothing more. Of all the Islamic countries, Fanoos is most common in Egypt, as part of the culture, a tradition that goes back all the way to the reign of the Fatimid Caliphate. The night before Ramadan, the Caliph would go outside to look for the moon signaling the beginning of the month of Ramadan. The children of the town would go out with the Caliph and light the way for him. Each child would carry a fanoos and sing songs to welcome in the new month of Ramadan.

Fanoos is traditionally made of tin and colored glass, with a candle inside. Some modern ones are battery operated, but do not have the same charm.

Kids who grew up in the past century, before electricity were available, loved Fanoos as it was a way to have their own light and not just any light a colorful light . It was perfect light in the dark of the night. It is lighted with candles. Going out of their homes after they break their fast (if they fast) at sunset, the streets would be dark (no electricity) and the only light is coming from their fanoos. They get together and sing songs (singing "wahawy ya wahawy") and play kid games, or may visit an elder who tell them a story. Fanoos comes in different sizes and colors and even different shapes. Some manufacturers even made it in modern shapes, e.g. car, rocket, aeroplane ...etc. in addition to some old fashioned shapes of minarate, tree, crescent...etc. The painting by the Egyptian artist Ali Dessouqi's , bright and deceptively simple pantheon, shows kids playing with the fanoos.