Learning about Algeria for Kids

Our next stop on our nations of the world tour is Algeria. The People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria is located in northern Africa.

Algeria Basics

Albania is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea and the nations of Tunisia, Libya, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Western Sahara and Morocco. It is the largest nation in Africa and the tenth largest in the world by area, covering 919,595 square miles, or 2,381,741 square kilometers. It is more than 200 times larger than the smallest country in Africa! (Which is Gambia, by the way.)

At 44 million residents it is only the tenth most populous nation in Africa. The capitol is Algiers, and the languages spoken there are mostly Algerian Arabic and Berber. The country has 58 provinces.

Algeria was a colony of France from 1830 until it gained independence in 1962. Read more about Algerian history at Britannica Kids. Because of the French influence, that language is still spoken a lot in Algeria, but it is not an official language of the country.

National Symbols

The Algerian flag is half green and half white, with a red crescent and star in the middle. These represent Islam, which is the religion of most people in the country. Green is also a symbol of Islam, and red represents the blood spilled in the struggle for independence, while white is for purity and peace gained through independence.

The national motto is “By the people and for the people,” and the national anthem is called “We Pledge.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-CBPYBA_Qc?si=CN_2ZDMc3ywm64Dq]

The national currency is the dinar.

Algeria Activities for Kids

Learn more about Algeria and download the worksheets from KidsKonnect to test your knowledge.

Algeria has seven UNESCO World Heritage sites, including the kasbah (ancient walled city) in Algiers. You can learn more about the site and check out photos and videos at the UNESCO site.

Another heritage site is Tassili N’Ajjer National Park, which features amazing prehistoric rock art. Read more at National Geographic.

Other than this Reddit post I couldn’t find much on traditional games in Algeria, so if you know about them let me know in the comments!

Couscous is a popular dish in Algeria, which I saw referred to as the unofficial national dish. This recipe from Halal Home Cooking uses lamb, but you can use other meats if you prefer, or just try it with vegetables. And check out this post from Very Hungry Nomads to learn about other popular dishes from Algeria.

Read more about Algeria with the book My First Book: Algeria, or check out this Algeria coloring book that also includes facts about the nation.

[Algeria map via Encyclopaedia Britannica]

I did a post earlier this year with activities and ideas for teaching the alphabet, but a lot or learning letters and recognizing them just has to do with seeing them and working with them a lot.

That means coloring, tracing, identifying things that start with different letters and more.

One way to reinforce the letters is through little activity books like these cute printable alphabet books from Life Over Cs.

These are available for free when you subscribe to her newsletter, and I’d say that’s well worth it if you have a little one (or a group of little ones!) working on the alphabet and letter recognition.

Each mini book includes a collection of things that start with that letter to color, color and read with words that start with the letter, tracing the letter, finding the letter in a grid and other coloring pages with objects that start with that letter.

These little books are super useful reinforcing the different letters and giving kids different activities related to the letters.

If you do a letter of the day or letter of the week you can use a new book for each one, and then keep the copies in your reading center or in a basket where kids can look at them again.

And of course you can add in all the other letter activities you like, go on a scavenger hunt for items that start with that letter, read alphabet books, practice writing letters in rice or with pompoms or playdough or whatever sensory activities you like.

You can grab the free printables when you enter you email address at Life Over Cs, and check out her other great alphabet resources and activities while you are over there.

Do you have favorite activities for teaching letters to kids? I’d love to hear about them!

[Photo: Life Over Cs]

Algeria Basics

National Symbols

Algeria Activities for Kids

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