How to celebrate Eid-al-Fitr with a Muslim foster child

The end of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, is marked by Eid-al-Fitr. Expected to happen on 30 or 31 March this year, Muslims visit friends and relatives and gives gifts to celebrate the end of the fasting period and the importance of gratitude.

If you are fostering or thinking of fostering, you may be looking after a Muslim foster child, so here are some ways to celebrate Eid-al-Fitr with them when they’re in your care.

The week before Eid

In the week leading to the end of Ramadan, Muslim families shop for new clothes and decorate their houses, a bit like Christmas for the Christian community. You can take your foster child to a specialist shop selling Muslim attire, though mainstream stockists such as Next, George and Matalan are also good choices too, depending on where you live. You can also decorate your house, and encourage your child to get involved. The decorations can be shop bought or homemade.

Traditional dishes

The day of Eid is a time for feasting, and dishes include lamb and lentil patties, rice, pakoras, biryani, chicken tikka and nunor bora (salted rice flour puffs). For dessert and sweet snacks, check out nankhatai (cardamom biscuits) and halwa, or settle for dates. Recipes for these dishes are available online from sites such as BBC Food.

Interactions with the community

Many Muslims go to their local mosque for early morning congregational prayers on the day of Eid-al-Fitr. Attend one with the child in your foster care; not only will they have the opportunity to participate in prayer, but they can also meet and socialise with other members of their religious community.