A dear friend organized a beautiful get together to celebrate Eid ul-Adha. Every participating family contributed to the success of the party. Our responsibility was…kids activities. My favorite!
All three of my older kids helped in putting together all the activities. We chose to arrange a couple games for kids and one game for the adults (so they can get in on the fun). Here’s what we decided …
Game 1
A twist on the traditional game, ‘ pin the tail on the donkey’. This game is easily available on Amazon as well as other vendors.
Click on the link below to purchase
Pin the tail on the Cow
Due to time restraints, however, we were not able to purchase the game. So, we did the next best thing, we made it. Using a projector we were able to project a cow clip art image onto a white poster board which had previously been hung on the wall with painter’s tape.
My son drew the image onto the poster board using a pencil and later my youngest daughter and I traced it with a black sharpie. Then, we used a photo editor to crop the image of everything except the tail.
we resize this to match up with the size needed on the poster board. Lastly, we copied and pasted enough images to fill the page and print multiple copies (keeping in mind we will need 1 per child).
Rules of the game:
Children were asked to write their names on the tail, wear a blindfold, were spun around a couple times and then using a piece painters tape were asked to attached it to the cow. Once the child completes their turn, write their name on the poster board where they placed the tail and remove the tail*. Once all the kids have had a turn, determine which child placed the tail closest to its appropriate placement and declare a winner. Gift the winner a small prize.
*We learned quickly that the kids, using their hands, were checking the placement of other tails and then placing their tail accordingly.
Game 2- Pass the lamb
In honor of Eid ul-Adha, we played a game inspired by “hot potato”. A lamb, which can be purchase through most toy retailers (or purchased on amazon by clicking here).
Rules of the game:
Ask the children to sit in a circle (or oval), leaving no space in between. Play child appropriate music. You may choose to use an Eid song such as these: Eid song – Sami Yusuf or Eid song- Zain Bhikha (although this song is about Eid ul-Fitr). Periodically and randomly, turn off the music. When the music turns off, the child holding the lamb is “out”. He/she must move out of circle and the children move in closer together. As more kids are taken out, the circle gets smaller and smaller until only child is left. The winner receives a small prize.
Game 3
Prior to the start of the party, hide plastic gold coins all over a designated area. Save a handful of coins to spread in the open area where it’s visible for everyone just prior to the start of this game.
Gold coins can be purchased on amazon (Click here to see the amazon listing) or through a local party supply store such as party city. I spent $6 for a pack of 144 (and for 30 kids, this was more than enough).
Rules of the game:
Ask the kids, “would you like to purchase this lamb for your qurbani?”**
After giving them a moment to respond, explain to them that in the olden days, they didn’t have money like we do today, they used gold coins to make their purchases. The child who has the most gold coins may buy the lamb (or gift)***. Let them know that they must look high and low, near and far to find the gold coins that have been hidden around this room. Allow them 5 minutes to look for the coins (if the area is small or things start to get chaotic, cut the time down). Call an end to the game and start the bidding. Once bidding starts, no other coins can be added in to their collection (since this is an Eid gathering, we expect that the children will be honest).
**Thankfully, all the children at our party responded “YES!”. You can always keep a separate prize or gift if you fear the kids are too old to be interested in a stuffed toy.
*** you may have to formally state that the children may not work in groups. Some kids understand while others need extra instruction to explain that. Use your judgement based on your group.
