Ramadan Mosque

Every year I do my best to make Ramadan a special month in our household. My goal is to help my kids understand the importance of the holy month. Growing up in a large family, Ramadan was always special. It was a time that my siblings and I really bonded, at least now I see it that way. We struggled together, competed on who could fast without cheating and looked forward to the feast my mother prepared for us. Looking back it brings me so much happiness.

For those that don’t know Ramadan is a month of fasting that every muslim is required to do. There are of course exceptions, pregnant women, a woman who is nursing, someone with underlining health issues, the elderly, and those traveling do not have to fast but are expected to give back to those in need. Intermittent fasting is the best way to describe it. From sun up to sundown you are not allowed to consume anything, No not even water.

Aside from the spiritual connection you develop during this month, the health benefits to fasting are impressive. Some of the health benefits to fasting include, removes waste material from cells, reduces oxidative damage and inflammation in the body, boosts metabolism for fat loss, insulin levels drops and human growth hormone increases, reduces risk of heart disease, reduces blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and the list goes on.

Ramadan is also a time to reflect and be thankful for what you have. Praying is also an essential part of Ramadan. Not saying that its the only time you should pray but it does seem to bring out the religious side of people. For kids its all about how special you can make the experience. I remember my mother leading all 8 of us, yes I have seven siblings, in prayer. It was not something we wanted to do at the time, but it was probably one of the greatest things my mother did. She gave us our foundation and that is more important then anything else.

My kids are young, too young to really participate in fasting. But until then I want to prep them for Ramadan. I have gotten cute books about it, there are some cartoons you can find online but I wanted to do more. So we made a fort that is shaped like a mosque. A place my kids can play and a place to pray when they hear the call to prayer.

I started by going to home depot for boxes they are pretty inexpensive and have several sizes. I used the 18”x18”x24” boxes. I used two stacked on top of each other for each end. One 22”x22”x21.5” box for the center, I cut out an archway entrance and then folded the arch down to stabilize the floor of the opening. And two 18”x18”x24” cut in half to connect them together with tape.

I then cut opening and arches on each side from the inside.

Save the scraps and arches for the outside of the fort. You will also need lots of squares of blue paper. I glued on the arches and the squares.

I folded some scrap card board and glued them on to create an archway. And used black duct tape to secure the inside and tops of the towers on each end.