Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid

Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid from the

Children at An-Nur Child-Care Centre
What is Ramadan? Written by T. Ahlam, June, 2018

Ramadan is the time of spiritual reflection, improvement and increased devotion and
worship. Muslims are expected to put more effort into following the teachings of
Islam. It is the month when Muslims fast and try to perform good deeds. The fast
begins at dawn and ends at sunset. Muslims do not eat between the rising and setting
of the sun. During Ramadan, Muslims celebrate the fact that it was in this month that
Allah first revealed the words of the Quran to Mohammed.

Fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam, which all Muslims expected to follow. The
other four pillars of Islam are Faith (Shahadah); Prayer (Salah), Charitable Giving
(Zakah), and the holy Pilgrimage to Makkah (Hajj).

Ramadan takes place

during the 9th month in
the Islamic calendar
and will therefore;
differ from year to year
when using the more
common 12-months
calendar than the
Islamic lunar calendar.
 Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid
Ramadan lasts for 29 or 30 days depending on the sighting of the new moon. The
excitement as Ramadan approaches this year has felt throughout the classrooms at
An-Nur as children anticipate the time for celebrations, family and gaining a deeper
understanding of their faith. We started by introducing the children to the phases of
the moon, as an Islamic and astronomy lesson. The children developed a feeling of
our universe, past the clouds and blue sky which can be seen, and felt a sense of
wonder at Allah’s mighty creations. Their understanding of the moon phases was
strengthened by gaining knowledge of where the moon is in relation to our planet
Earth supported by a short clip offering a visual explanation. With an understanding
of the significance and phases of the moon, the children were able to use their
telescopes in an attempt to sight the newborn moon. Once the children sighted the
new moon, signaling the commencement of Ramadan, they expressed their new
knowledge by creating beautiful artworks depicting the night sky with a small moon.
With the arrival of Ramadan, our teachers started implementing special activities to
capture the spirit of Ramadan, the importance of good morals, habits, and conducting
oneself as a good Muslim even at their young age. The children learnt about the
physical and mental discipline that accompanies the celebrations of Ramadan,
starting with an understanding of fasting. The children understand that although they
are still too young to begin fasting, they can practice and pretend as they introduced
to the idea. We discussed how fasting is prescribed, also as a pillar of Islam is our
duty when we are mature enough. For the over 2 classroom the children would
practice fasting while learning the idea through pretending they were fasting
between morning tea and lunch although the water was still available. They would
pretend at morning tea they were eating Suhoor and the sun was setting at lunchtime
so they could eat Iftar. They have introduced to the special Iftar supplication and
have been practicing it daily.
 Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid
Here are some activities for children during Ramadan:

Making cookies for Eid Making bread for Suhoor

 Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid

Learning about the phases of the Moon

Making lanterns

Making some Arts

 Ramadan Mubarak and happy Eid
Memorizing Quran
As most of our children entered the Quran competition, the focus for our children
were Surat Al-Faatiha, Al-Ikhlaas, An-Naas and Surat Al-Falaq, mashallah AN-Nur
children worked very hard on memorizing the four Surahs and alhamdullah three of
our children have won, Ayaan, Jumanah and Samira. Mashallah well done to all.
Finally, when Ramadan has finished and the fasting has ceased, Eid ul Fitr is
celebrated. It anticipated all month and celebrated differently all over the world but
the general feelings are on family and the local religious community. Usually,
families will gather at the house of the senior member of the family and gifts of cash
or clothes have given to the children. As the festivities carry on throughout the day
and night, this will mark the end of a very special time of the year in the Muslim
calendar. We celebrate Eid AL-Ftir at Chipmunks on Friday 22nd of June; every one
enjoyed it, alhamdullah. Congratulations to all Ladies, young girls and children who
participated in the NISA annual Quran Competition and won medals, badges, and
certificates especially for AN-Nur children.