…the joy in cultivating the Deen in our precious little ones has no boundary…the children of the Ummah are a trust and part of their Haqq on us is to provide for a creative and fun way of learning the essentials of the Deen…simple paper play that requires very little to arrange and is a ‘minimal mess’ activity lends itself to our tiny tots grasping concepts and understanding story lines and lessons from the Qur’an, Seerah, the endearing stories of the Illustrious Sahabah RadhiAllahu anhum and the basics of what is deemed good Akhlaq…
…here you see the cutest of elephants representing the ones that came with Abraha from Yemen with the intention of destroying the Ka’abah…seen with some of the cruel army…the children ‘acted out’ this encounter using the characters they had drawn…as those who knew Surah Fil recited it with great gusto…with tinier ones making effort to sing along, mimicking sounds…
…with the birds flying above with the baked clay in their beak and in each claw…
…Insha’Allah, such vivid and active play has the potential to make the wonders of the Qur’an come alive in the smallest of hearts…and short verses can be chanted while they are immersed in their ‘art work’…
…groups of friends or families may be the focus for a specific lesson based on Hadith or any aspect of Fiqh or the Sunnah…topics are endless…
…the simple cut out figures are made to stand by using large paper clips stuck to the back…making the ‘character’ easily moved around and able to ‘interact’ with others…
…or ‘transported’ to a particular place for the purpose of ‘educating’…this is Masjid Hassan 11 in Morocco, beautifully illustrated by a very talented Yusuf, JazakumuLlahu khaira…may Allah Ta’ala guide him to use this gift in the best way to benefit others, Ameen…so with a Masjid as the background the learning could be about the Fiqh of children in the Masjid…or the etiquette of the Masjid…
…or taking some of the advices on visiting our Beloved Porphet SallAllahu alaihi wasallam from the etiquette of visiting the Haramain…
…so many inspiring ideas to engage the young flag bearers of our Deen are available online …check here and here for a start…and Insha’Allah begin such play very early with those in your care…children are a trust, not only to parents but to us all…and Allah Ta’ala will question us as to how much we have satisfied the spiritual, social and religious needs of the little ones around us…make time to cultivate good Adab, pleasant Akhlaq and positive role modelling using creative play in addition to basic ‘telling or lecturing’…learning can be so much fun for all…and a manifestation of our mercy to children, and thus fulfilling the wisdom of the Hadith…and gaining the greatest of rewards…Insha’Allah…
We unite believers with their offspring who follow them in faith…We do no deny them any of the rewards for their deeds… (52:21)
JUMA’AH MUBARAK!
…may Allah Ta’ala shower all who contributed to this post with His Choicest Blessings and Unlimited Bounties from His Treasury, Ameen…
All good is from Allah Ta’ala whereas mistakes are from this humble speck. May Allah Ta’ala Bless all readers, bringing you all closer to Him and His Rasul SallAllahu alaihi wasallam. May He accept our humble efforts and grant us the capacity to be good and do good. Ameen.