Dates From Tree to Table

Discover the significance of dates during and immediately after Ramadan. Study the date palm's botanical characteristics and create a replica of Eid al-Fitr.

• 1.

  What holidays do you celebrate with certain foods? Why are those foods eaten then? Is it because the food is ripe during that season or is there a tradition associated with it? For Islamic people, the fruit of the date palm tree takes on a greater significance during the month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, the festival that follows the end of Ramadan fasting.

• 2.

  Dates trees are very well suited to the desert. Their long, flexible trunks can withstand strong winds. Learn more about this tree's botanical features to discover more reasons why it grows well in such an extreme climate.

• 3.

  There is an Arabic saying that the date palm has as many uses as there are days in the year. Besides the fruit that has been harvested for more than 6,000 years, oasis dwellers use the leaves for fuel, the fibers for rope, and the wood for construction. A palm tree's shade protects other plants from harsh desert sun. Research date palms to learn about their 360 other uses.

• 4.

  Create a triarama display to show your understanding of the role that date palms play in the observance of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr. Open a recycled file folder and cut it into a square with Crayola® Scissors. Fold the square into a triangle, and then fold it the other direction to make a smaller triangle. Open the file folder and cut along any one of the new folds from the edge into the center of the square. Slide the two triangles on either side of the cut on top of one another to form a floor and two-sided corner. Flatten out, noting which sides are walls and which triangle is the floor.

• 5.

  With Crayola Colored Pencils, draw a scene of breaking the fast on the two walls. Include dates and water as well as people, furniture, or other details. Add more visual information to indicate the time of day and location of the home. Decorate the floor

• 6.

  Pop up your triarama and use Crayola School Glue to seal the bottom triangle under the floor.

• 7.

  On another piece of file folder, draw a date palm tree, ripe with dates ready to be picked. Include details from your study of the tree. Cut it out. Cut another small piece of file folder and fold it to fit behind the trunk for support. Glue in place. Att

Benefits

• Students research the date palm and its role in desert life and Islamic beliefs.
• Students gain an understanding of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, the festival that follows.
• Students visually represent their findings by integrating them in a triarama scene depicting a feast at the end of Ramadan.

Adaptations

• Encourage students to taste dates. Collect and prepare recipes that use dates.
• Children with disabilities may benefit from working in small groups to research the date palm and create their triaramas.
• Muslims begin to fast when there is enough light to see the difference between a black and a white thread. Wake up early one morning and try this way to tell time. <UL>