These young Londoners got real artsy to prepare for the month of Ramadan

Young Londoners from the Muslim community put their crafty hats on and made their own home decorations for Ramadan, while also learning about the history and traditions of the holy month and Eid celebrations that follow.

The kids designed decorative lanterns out of craft paper, gems, and jewels to hang in their homes. Many of them also learned how to write their names in Arabic at a children's workshop at Museum London on Sunday. 

"The lanterns are mostly a symbol of Ramadan and a way to start the celebration. It's kind of like lights being put up during Christmas," said Dalia El Toark, who led the workshop.

The sold-out workshop gave the youngsters an opportunity to prepare for 30 days of Ramadan, observed by millions of Muslims around the world through fasting and extra prayers, El Toark said. This year it'll start on March. 23.

"Ramadan isn't just fasting from food, but you also feel for others and it's a time for you to worship and just be thankful," she said. "It's about giving, understanding, and being patient." 

The kids, aged six and older, got creative with their lantern designs. For Danya Ziada, 10, it was important to include a crescent moon inside a mosque in her lantern. 

"When I think of Ramadan, I think of crescent moons," she said. "I love art and doing different things outside the box, so this workshop is really fun and I really like it."

Ramadan is one of Ziada's favourite times of the year because fasting makes her feel closer to God, and allows her to spend lots of time with her family, she said.

The Byron Southwood Public School student does lots of community work to teach the rest of her schoolmates about Ramadan and its significance. 

"Every year, me and my mom prepare a slide show and fun games where we tell my class more about Ramadan because in school you don't really hear much about it, and we wanted people to know that it's a really fun celebration," she said.

Although she's quite familiar with her culture, Ziada learned through the workshop about the origins of the Islamic religious text, the Qur'an, during the month of Ramadan.

'Our community is growing'

El Toark was over the moon when she found out the event was sold out weeks in advance, putting her worries of a low turnout to ease, she said. 

"It just shows that our Muslim community is growing and it makes me feel so great because there's a sense of inclusion going on and I feel like London is truly evolving, which is amazing," she added. 

Six-year-old Motaz Ibrahim and his sister Manar were competing to see whose lantern design could be the prettiest. Ibrahim decorated his with stars and the moon, he said.

"There's so much excitement to make lanterns, I've noticed a lot of them [kids] knew what Ramadan is and they were very excited to share what they know about it," El Toark said.

"It really allows fellow Muslims to connect with one another and get refreshed about Ramadan. Sometimes we forget that it's really about, so I feel that getting together and talking about it gets us ready for this festive month."

Many parents are already asking her if there will be similar events in the future, El Toark said. She said she hopes people from non-Muslim backgrounds can also join and learn what Ramadan is all about.