A number of applications and YouTube accounts went to create content aimed at explaining the teachings of religion to children in an easy and fun way, which is a big challenge that needs support and expertise in this field.
A cartoon video shows a child in front of a prayer rug in his room. He said, "Let us stand upright in an equal row, and let us head towards the Kaaba in Mecca." Understood language for youngsters, where the three-dimensional character explains the first steps to teaching the performance of the five daily prayers imposed by Muslims, such as raising the palms of the hands at the shoulder level and repeating the call "God is great".
The video clip has more than two million views on YouTube, and it is one of the most successful videos in the religious animated series "Ali and Sumaya" and they are the champions of these educational episodes that explain to children in all parts of the Islamic world these religious teachings in a simple and fun way.
Not only is Islam, but many online educational series with religious content belonging to the children of Christianity or even Hinduism, which are characterized by their simplified nature and playful colors, are numerous on the Internet and their digital applications. Game makers and digital application designers also joined this trend.
"The more we learn and learn more about Islam," says Badir Balam, the producer of "Ali Wesameh", "we got more understanding that the Prophet of Islam Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, was friendly and cheerful."
He also participates with others in the production of the series in English, targeting the audience of Muslim children in Britain, the United States and Canada, as well as children of the English-speaking community in other countries, and explains Balam that their slogan is "achieving communication between Islam and children with love and enjoyment."
Although the developers of the application did not clarify the religious sources on which they relied on the review of Islamic information, it appears in the Egyptian reader series, Sheikh Muhammad Jibril, with his sweet voice in reciting the Qur’an and religious clarifications.
Ali and Somaya makers have already launched a mobile application. The product is active on social media and is used by a platform to promote its series and ideas.
| The PoE Statistics Institute predicts that Muslims will reach one billion and 800 million (German). |
There are one billion and 800 million Muslims worldwide, of whom about 400 million live in the Arab world. The Pew Research Center predicts that Muslims will reach 3 billion by 2069, given the high fertility rates in these societies.
Children usually teach the teachings of religion at an early age through their parents, at school, or through lessons memorizing the Qur’an in mosques. As is customary - in television channels and programs for years - the animated series during the month of Ramadan send an ethical message to explain the significance of fasting, the fourth pillar of Islam, and its association with good morals and generosity, benevolence and altruism.
And now that we are living in the age of YouTube - the digital platform that displays tapes and videos of just about everything, from food, space and corn sciences recipes, to explaining highly complex applications, to deliver content targeted to pets like cats and dogs - the producers of this type of clip are striving to showcase their work That combines religious content with an entertaining, informative message in a cheerful and fun way.
Among these works that made a reputation on YouTube are the series "Zaki and his Friends", and its hero, Zaki, has a violet color, which closely resembles the "Winnie Pooh" bear from Disney World, but it is aimed at Muslims.
His video, the educational photographer of the alphabet, has achieved more than 75 million views, through an educational song in which the letters of the alphabet are echoed in a harmonious form, linking education to the etiquette and values of Islam such as: God, Ramadan, Hajj ... etc.
With the advent of technology, there were attempts by some American video game companies to offer digital games with Christian religious content, but their success was very limited, including for example "Bible Games, Captain Angel under the Dome of Darkness" and during which players had to answer questions on topics Related to the Old Testament of the Bible.
On the Internet there are now many games with Christian religious content and evangelical and entertaining content at the same time, including card games, coloring booklets that tell stories like David and Goliath, and other famous stories of the Old Testament.
There are attempts by some Arab companies and institutions to develop games and applications in different languages to simplify the concepts of religion for children, but unfortunately they are still limited and did not take their right to spread.