A request .. to share your stories and examples for teaching Qur'an.

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Abdulazeez Abdulraheem

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May 25, 2008, 4:06:02 PM5/25/08

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Dear Brothers / Sisters: Assalam alaikum

This time I am coming to you with a special request. I hope you will respond to my request. Just read this email and you will know what I need.

These days I am teaching (voluntarily) in a school to Grade-3 and Grade-6 kids. The purpose is to develop the explanatory material for children and do the field-testing also (by teaching it). This way, we will be able to develop things which are practical and simple.

I am teaching the short course to both of these groups (Children and early teens). I am trying to analyze the problems that they go thru in their daily life (and the ways to address them thru the verses and ahadeeth… during our motivational/learning tip section).

During my teaching of Qur'an (in this new style of relating it to their day-to-day lives), I have realized many things.

I need questions. To introduce the Surah thru questions.

Ex: Who wants to be safe? Can you give me a formula to be safe from all evils and harms? Well, here it is and that is our topic of today's lesson: Surah Al-Falaq.
I need the ways to relate it as a solution to their day-to-day challenges.

Ex: To be successful in this life and in the hereafter, you have to be safe and secure first… So, don't forget to recite it the way the Prophet pbuh did. If you want to be safe from bad friends.. those who hurt you… then recite this Surah.
I need stories!!! stories.. stories…The world is ruled by storytellers! Hollywood or Bollywood, CNN or BBC, … all these are story tellers. My point is: We have to come up with relevant stories. Starting from those of Prophets, Sahabah, Tabi'een, pious people, and even of deviant and bad people (Qur'an describes those of iblees, fir'oun, and others…). I need parables, and other useful stories. They can be from 'chicken soup' or from 'inspirational stories' but please note: They should be realistic. You know the kids are smarter today. So, let us not come up with 'tooooo simple cooked up' stuff.

Now, please do give references bu tmore importantly relate them to the subject of or the lessons from the Surah. This is again an art. My main challenge is to tell at least 2, 3 stories in each lesson THAT RELATE TO THE VERSES THAT I AM TALKING ABOUT. Not just irrelevant stories.

Let me give you an example: As I talk about Tashah-hud in my short course, I tell 2 true stories (of an old man dying and an accident victim, a girl dying…). That story itself has a huge effect on the audience. They are given with reference to ash-hadu al-laa-illaha illallah. I need similar relevant approach.

Please note: The stories should be around 1 to 2 minutes (maximum). Otherwise, we will loose focus and time. Note that we got to teach the lesson within 30 min. period of a typical school.

You know what!!! Stories have great 'calming' effect on the class!!! If you are a teacher (or a parent), you would realize it soon. As soon as I say, here is a story, the whole class becomes attentive.

And it is easy to retain the lessons thru stories.

(Even here, we can have questions! Do you know the story of a king who was very cruel, who used to kill children like you or even smaller than you. He was so cruel and Allah punished him,… Can you name him???).

Again, I request brothers and sisters to please come forward towards this GREAT project where we want to prepare a Qur'anic generation, i.e., a generation which is brought up with the vision and thinking that Al-Qur'an wants in everyone of us.

For the purpose of sharing, we have activated the FORUM. Please register yourself and start posting.

Please note that this project needs your help (of your writing or sharing your thoughts). Your little time, your one example, your one story, will go a long way in changing the lives of perhaps 100s or perhaps 1000s of children. Don't be stingy and don't feel shy. Go to forum and post your story, example, question, etc.

To start it with this week, please post your stories, questions, and examples for Surah Al-kawthar and Surah Al-Ikhlaas, Surah Al-Falaq and Surah An-naas. (you can post for other Surahs/azkaar also).