Islamic Kids Activities

For Muslim parents, finding activities that that help teach children about Islam is a challenge. You want activities that are age-appropriate and engaging but also express your values. Songs and games are effective tools for teaching children the basics of Islamic worship and values. Crafts based on traditional Islamic arts help kids learn artistic concepts. Islamic activities can also be shared with your child's class as part of a lesson on world cultures or religions.

Selections for Islamic children's music have grown in the past few decades, and tunes in English, Arabic and Malay are available on CD and for download online. The traditional "Tala'al Badru Alayna" can be taught as part of Islamic New Year celebrations. Select CDs that feature songs about Islamic etiquette and values through tunes and lyrics are simple enough to memorize quickly.

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Continue the tradition of Muslim storytellers and dramatize stories with improvised costuming, props and sets. Use your kitchenware to tell the tale of the pot that gave birth, or line up cushions for a "trench" to tell the story of the Battle of the Trench. Reading stories such as "Hilmy the Hippo Becomes a Hero" without the dramatization is a good way to wind down.

Islamic games can teach kids about Islamic history and values, and are designed to entertain adults too. Madinah Salat teaches the format of obligatory and optional prayers in a way that keeps kids from tuning out. The Great Mosque Game teaches about worship and mosque architecture. Games can also be improvised. A twist on general favorites such as "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" can offer messages from an "investigator" seeking information on Muslim majority countries.

Islamic art often features calligraphy, mosaics, geometric and floral designs. Use small squares of colored tissue paper to make a mosaic on glue-coated cardboard. If your child is learning about polygons, you can reinforce that knowledge by creating a motif found in Islamic art and analyzing the shapes in traditional Islamic architecture. Calligraphy is beyond many children, but they can copy a verse from the Qur'an and add a decorative accent or border.