The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Partnering with the Athar Lina Initiative, Lina Boraei – a History and Graphic Design student at the American University in Cairo – designed an educational game for children aimed at enhancing their knowledge of history. The game, Al Foora, is a card game focusing on educating children on the rich history of the Al-Khalifa region by showcasing 30 historical landmarks, allowing children to learn Egyptian heritage through interactive and entertaining tools. 

Throughout Lina’s training at Athar Lina Initiative, she further developed Al Foora to enable players to identify landmarks by competing with cards they acquire during the game. Such cards are specific to each of the 30 landmarks regarding size, age, etc. Boraei says her aim is to make learning history fun and present it creatively so that players can enjoy the learning process; otherwise, they would just be learning random facts about history, which is less attractive to children. 

During an educational trip to Al-Khalifa, Boraei was inspired to develop Al Foora when she noticed that shops sold products that reflected the place’s history. After that, she decided to design a game that helps children enhance their knowledge of historic landmarks they encounter daily but do not fully appreciate their value. 

Players compete by placing a card in their hand and comparing the numerical categories related to landmarks on their cards, such as size and century. The player with the highest number in the chosen category wins that round.