Ramadan Series: Getting Kids Excited for Ramadan

As Safa gets older, I get more excited every year to celebrate Ramadan with her. As a child I have fond memories with my family as we fasted and waited for an amazing iftar, went to the masjid and bought new clothes for Eid. I want to pass on these traditions and I want to start my own. When we were younger we never were really taught much about Ramadan and the purpose of it. We just had to do it. Here are some ways I have and plan to get The kids excited for Ramadan.

Reading Books

This is the easiest investment to make for Ramadan. There are so many books out there about Ramadan and Eid. They teach in a simplistic way about this month and get the kids excited! I have been reading these for a Safa all year long and try to read them more often in the upcoming days. I put them l display in our Ramadan decor so she’s more likely to grab them! These are my favorite: The Shapes of Eid According to Me, Under the Ramadan Moon, Hasan and Aneesa Love Ramadan, and Ilyas and Duck Fantastic Festival Eid ul Fitr.

Ramadan Decor

My favorite!! I love decorating and am so excited every year for our holidays to come so we can decorate. What I need to first remind myself and others is to keep it simple. I love that there are so many companies selling Ramadan and Eid decor. However we still have to remind ourselves the essence of Ramadan and not to be too excessive. All of my Ramadan decor came out to under 50 dollars: Big lantern (15, home goods), small lanterns (10, amazon), moon garlands (5, let’s celebrate), calendar (party favor) boxes (5, Walmart) and happy Ramadan sign (15, Etsy). Everything else was old and repurposed! You don’t have to have anything fancy. The idea is to get the kods excited and add something special for the Ramadan spirit!

Ramadan Good Deeds Calendar

My newest addition to our Ramadan’s decor as Safa gets older and is able to understand Ramadan and it’s concepts. I’ve been seeing this calendar everywhere and I love it!! It’s a perfect way to get younger kids involved who aren’t fasting yet and teach them the concept of doing more good deeds this month. Many places are selling pre-made ones that can be reused everywhere. Right now, they’re a little out of my budget so I decided to DIY it. I bought these party favor boxes from Walmart and the adhesive stickers from Michaels. It all came under 20 bucks! The idea is everyday they complete a good deed or a task and when completed they get a treat. I didn’t have a printer so I had to handwrite mine but they were all from Zair Zabr Play and Kanzi Store . The small treats I got were Stickers, Tattos, New Art Supplies such as crayons and glitter pens, some candy, jewelry, nail polish, chapstick, small toys and so on. I chose items that I knew Safa would love and that would fit in the box. There were a few items that didn’t fit so I put a clue in it instead! Some great places to get items are 5 below, dollar tree, Tj maxx and Target! Lastly, when she completes all 30 days, she’ll get a big surprise gift on Eid. She’s been asking for a scooter so I may get her that. The purpose of this calendar is to show her that’s Ramadan is about helping and giving to others, not just about food and getting Eid gifts. Inshallah I hope she learns from it.

Make your own Tradition

Lastly, do something that is your own family tradition that was passed on to you or maybe something new you want to start. I want to pass on the tradition of having samosas at Iftar and the new tradition of Good Deeds Calendar.