These little feet are for Allah They are to stand up for salah They are to walk to Karbala These little feet are for Allah
These little feet can skip and run Kick a ball And have some fun They’re not to stamp They’re not to kick When we are mad, Not one little bit
These little feet are for Allah… (repeat first stanza)
These little hands are for Allah They are to raise up for dua They are to help mom and baba These little hands are for Allah
These little hands can hug and clap, Color a picture Wave and snap They’re not to scratch, They’re not to hit They’re not to snatch They don’t like it one bit!
These little feet are for Allah… (repeat first stanza)
This little mouth is for Allah It is to whisper our duas It is to say Subhanallah! This little mouth is for Allah
This little mouth can say thank you Smile, speak truth, Ask how do you do? It doesn’t shout It doesn’t scream It doesn’t say Things which are mean
This little mouth is for Allah… (repeat first stanza)
*Credit: Sakeena Kalyan
Following on from the rhymes, children can pick out a shape/body part and think of what kind of good deed it can be used to do.
They can also play ‘Yusuf says’ (like Simon Says) with a puppet doll, and ask the children to act out doing good deeds with their different body parts.
Children could decorate a cutout of ‘me’ and then use little dot stickers next to each body part every time they did a good deed.
Another activity to go with the same concept is to trace out body outlines of the children on butcher paper and then brainstorm and write in the right way to use each body part and the wrong way. This can be connected with showing gratitude to Allah swt by honoring the blessings He gives. One mum said: “They gave some funny answers like bottoms are not for sitting on people!”
This can also be done with chalk on concrete, etc.
One mum make Ali cookies with her little one! ‘We have a play dough set with Arabic alphabet cutters, my little one used them to cut the cookie dough and I just stuck the letters together, put toothpicks inside and baked. Then she helped me make the cupcakes too 😊 and we dropped them to all her friends. Then at home we stuck a candle inside and sung happy birthday to Imam Ali (AS) and she got to blow the candle out.’
One family read how Imam was a lamp in the darkness, and then made a lava lamp!
Mystery box: Usually used during circle time, you (or ask a child to) pull out items one by one that related to the theme or special person. As you take them out you explain the meaning or significance, and help deepen and broaden the children’s understanding of the theme or special person by attaching a visual and/tangible object to represent the different attributes of said theme/person. To make it more exciting, even with very young kids (2-5), you can put all items back in box and at the end of your session you can ask them to remember what items were in box. It’s a good way of seeing how much they picked up as well 🙂
The items mentioned below can be used for the mystery box idea:
No. 1 – to represent him being the first Imam
A small Kaaba – to represent where he was born
A toy lion – he was known as Asad-ullah
A ring – for when he gave charity while in ruku
A sword – to represent his sword of Zulfiqar
A door – to represent Khaybar/city of knowledge
A prayer mat, bread/rice – as he used to feed the poor at night
A bed – as he slept in the Prophet’s bed on the night of Hijra)
A spool of thread – to show how he used to mend his own clothes
A pen – because he transcribed/compiled the Quran
Scales – for his sense of justice
A small book – to symbolise Nahjul Balagha/Dua Kumail
A picture of his shrine in Najaf
The letter ‘ayn’ for his name
Read this jellybean poem on Imam Ali (as) and have the children colour it in, and then finish off with some jellybeans for them to eat as a wiladat treat! Alternatively, one mum used M&M’s instead:
Have a drawing competition on the theme, e.g. everyone draws a lion like one family did
Create Imam Ali (AS) bags for the less fortunate: “We first explained how Imam Ali always helped people. We then went to the store and she picked items she thought everyone would need on a daily basis – comb, toothbrush, snacks. We came home and she packed everything into ziplock bags and asked the grandparents to come home to help write Hadith from Imam Ali (as) on the hearts which we put in the bags. Inshallah we will be distributing them to the people we came across on the street.”
Or why not follow in his footsteps and take some food with your children to a food bank near you. Imam used to make every effort to feed those who had no food, often giving away the little he and his family had!
One family went on a walk and wrote down all the street names in their area they came across. Then they went home and tried to see how many words related to Imam Ali (as) they could find using just those letters.
Craft Ideas
Make Father’s Day cards with a hadith inside
Make bookmarks and write Ali on top and decorate them
Here’s a nice craft on the titles of Imam Ali by Teaching Young Muslims
Decorate your home with home-made decor like one mum did
Or decorate with balloons like one mum did!
Decorate cakes with Ali – this is what one community did!
One mum baked donuts! ‘I started off talking to them about the story of when Imam Ali (as) gave his ring to a needy person while he was in ruku. As an activity, we had fun making mini donuts and decorating them! Then, we put a donut on our finger and demonstrated how Imam Ali (as) may have given the ring. We made extra donuts so packed and distributed them to relatives as a Khushali treat!
Another thing we did in preparation for Khushali was make these lion decorations using a gold paper plate and coloured paper. I started off taking to them about Imam Ali’s (as) title of Asadullah and how he was very brave and strong. I explained how when we need help in being brave or strong we should say Ya Ali! I then had them cut around the paper plate to make it look like a lions mane the plate was a bit thick, so it make it slightly difficult to cut, so every time they would cut, they would say Ya Ali! Not only was the process effective, but the final product turned out quite nice for us to hang for Khushali!’
This is a craft one mum and daughter worked on. This is what mum said:
“FZ and I made a luminarium (paper lantern) using waxed paper that we normally use for baking, crayon shavings, oil pastels and sharpies, to celebrate the birthday of the Prince of Believers, Imam Ali as! We used a candle in a glass holder on the inside to ‘light’ it up, and the overall effect was pretty awesome. Luminarium tutorial here.
Over the past week, we had discussed various aspects of Imam Ali’s life and teachings through stories and activities…his miraculous birth, devotion to Rasulullah and Islam, steadfastness in belief, compassion and charity towards those less fortunate, love of children, and his bravery, strength and courage. To culminate our activities, we talked about Sermon 187 from Nahjul Balagha, where Imam Ali as says: ‘Amongst you, I am like a lamp in the darkness. Make your way through Life by my Light…’ (paraphrased)
FZ used sharpies and oil pastels to draw her designs onto the front and back of the luminarium. She wrote ‘Ya Ali’ on the front and the drawing on the back is ‘a beautiful palace in Jannah for the Shia of Ali as’. Insha’Allah we shall be lighting up our luminarium often as a visual reminder to always hold on to the Rope of Allah swt (Qur’an 3:103) through His Chosen Ones.
One mum said: ‘We usually try and create some artwork for Khushali. This time we used metallic spray and glitter to create a sparkle, as per the sermon in Nahjul Balagha.’
One mum made was figurines: ‘The figurines are made out of Stockmar beeswax. We use beeswax for a number of reasons, firstly because of the sensory experience it provides. Beeswax has to be warmed by the hands to make it soft enough to be shaped. The process of warming the beeswax also brings out the lovely smell of the wax, which children and adults alike really enjoy. Finally, the wax comes in a wonderful array of colours making the wax visually pleasing for all. Working with beeswax has many benefits from a child development perspective. It requires commitment and perseverance as beeswax doesn’t easily mold in to the desired form. Modelling with beeswax also develops the fine motor skills and is used in Waldorf style education to prepare the child’s fingers for holding and writing with a pencil. We also mixes colours together which was a great learning experience of secondary colours too.’
This is a simple rhyme that goes to the tune of Barney’s I Love You song. These posters (Allah loves Imam Ali!_Rhyme) can be used alongside the relevant lines:
Here are some more rhymes:
Props like laminated picture of number “1”, a small cube painted like Kaaba, a toy lion from a dollar store, a ring, and the picture of a sword or a toy sword can be used when singing the rhymes, to help visual learning.
Story Books
Read ‘Isa Climbs Mt Mushkil’ and watch the corresponding nasheed:
Here’s a reading of it:
A craft to go with this is making a shield with Naade Ali on it:
Video Resources
Here is a link to a YouTube playlist on Imam Ali (as) with Nasheeds in English:
And here’s a movie on Imam Ali (as):
Books on Imam Ali (as)
The Secret Jar – from the Great Prophets and Ahl-al Kisa series (Kisa Kids)
Why was he Named Ali? from the Blessed Names Series (Kisa Kids)
The Name Chronicle (Has a chapter on Imam Ali which includes a timeline of his life. Kisa Kids)
Isa Climbs Mount Mushkil by Twelver Kids
Meet The Masumeen: With Class 786 (Chapter book)
Let’s Get To Know Imam Ali
The Champion of Islam
Imam Ali (as) – Illustrated Short Stories for Little Readers
Below is a compilation of some ideas by amazing mums from around the world, on how you can mark it with your children/classes:
Mark it as Mother’s Day – make some cards to gift to mums *some nasheeds are shared at the end to go with Mother’s Day theme!
Hold a Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea in her honour, and the children get to serve their mothers
Have a puppet show
Have a Mystery Box with items representing Bibi Fatima (as):
A mini Quran
A mini blanket representing the story of hadith kisa
A tasbeeh representing the story of when she asked the Prophet for help
Bread to represent the story of how Hazrat Fatima (as) gave away her food to someone poor after a long day of fasting
A doll’s dress to represent her wedding dress that she gave away
A band-aid/plaster because she used to take care of the Prophet’s wounds when he was hurt by people
The impact of these mystery boxes are amazing! Here is what one mum said: “I thought my daughter Fatima wasn’t paying that much attention during the Hazrat Fatima (as) mystery box, but when I was driving back home from somewhere, the kids were hungry and the only food I had was a piece of pita bread! I passed it to Fatima and my son said I’m hungry too; Fatima passed the bread to him and goes “Mama, I shared my bread with him just like how Hazrat Fatima (as) shared her bread with the hungry ones!”
Craft ideas can include making tasbeehs, or decorating candles (Lady of Light), or crafts around her titles (such as Umme Abiha)
A lovely craft idea is a Prayer Tree, inspired by Bibi Fatima praying for all those around her (as in the story when asked by Imam Hassan (as) – related book is ‘Pray for Others’ by Kisa Kids. Each child wrote who they would make a special prayer for on a heart (leaf).
Here are some rhymes:
Start a yearly tradition:
“In anticipation of my little girl growing into a young lady quicker than I can keep up with (!), I decided to start a yearly ritual at the time of the wiladat of Sayyada Fatema Zahra (sa) in the hope that she and her friends can begin cultivating a love for the lady who will be their guide and role model through life. We kept it a small gathering this year as it was our first one. We started with a story about a Princess who makes a sacrifice to help her mother get over an illness, out of love for her. We then talked about parents, how much we love and respect them and the things we can do to show them this. We talked about how special our mothers are in particular and how the most amazing mother was Sayyada Fatema Zahra (sa) and some of her amazing qualities that we all aspire to have. We ended with learning the du’a for parents “rabbir ham huma kama rabba yaanee sagheera.”
We all then got stuck into three fun activities! Decorating cupcakes and making paper tissue flowers as special treats for the mummies and also making a du’a card to display at home reminding the girls to recite the du’a that they had learned. The girls then chatted and enjoyed some snacks before going home with their girly pink bags filled with tabarruk and their activities, to present to their mummies :)”
Alhamdulillah, we have more and more English Marthiyas and Maatams available these days, with simple tunes that children easily pick up and learn from.
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