Khatam Ramadan Matching Game Tutorial

We really enjoyed making the Khatam Ramadan Window Clings and they became the inspiration for today's craft, an Islamic matching game.

Just remember that if you don't have the Sealed with a Star Fiskars Punch (it makes the 8 pointed star design above), you can simply cut out two identical squares and glue them on each other, offset.  The punch just makes it fast and even.

You can buy the chipboard squares to make your matching game more durable (we plan to make ours a traveling game) as we did, or you can just use a sturdy cardstock. The thicker the paper, the longer lasting your game will be.

Supplies
2 inch chipboard squares
Friskas Punch
Glue
Coloring pencils
12 x 12 colored cardstock

Use your punch and go around the 12 x 12 paper, getting your cuts as close as possible to each other.  You will need 20 (or more) squares and it's a good idea to conserve on paper. Ramadan is a great time to teach the kids about our environment and how we should use up as little paper as possible.

Once you have cut all the way around your paper, get rid of the excess on the outer side and cut more from the center.  Again, making your cuts as close as possible to make it all fit.

Draw two sets of an image on your 2 x 2 cardstock with your color pencil. When you are drawing the second image, it's a good idea to keep the first one near you to match it as close as possible.

Once all 20 squares are drawn, glue the colored khatam punchouts to the back of your drawn chipboard masterpieces.

Can't think of ideas of what to draw? Read below for a list to get your brain started.

Here are what we drew, and their Arabic names, on our squares: subha (prayer beads), hilal (crescent moon), shahe (tea), sazjat al sala (prayer rug), jamal (camel), masjid (mosque), shajara nakhl (date palm), najma (star), Ka3ba (Ka'ba), fanoos (Ramadan lantern).  Over the month, we'll go over the significance of each to Muslims as we create crafts about them.  For now, here is how we drew them on our squares.

Turn all your pieces over, mix them up (or have someone else do it for you) and start a game with a sister, brother, cousin, friend or anyone else you can find. 

Here are the rules: flip over one square and see what it is.  Flip over only one more square for a match.  (Fun adaptation - once you flip over a square, practice saying the Arabic word for it.) 

If they do not match, flip both squares over to the khatam side and the next person goes.  If they match, you get to keep both and they count as a "point". 

The person with the most points at the end of the game wins.  If it as a tie, you'll have to play again!