Reposted on Learning with Busy Brains‘ on September 9th, 2024; originally posted on the Mom Homeschool Diary website around March, which has since been deleted.
I came across a reminder from Ustaz Dr. Abu Iyaad Amjad Rafiq hafidhahullah that really struck me. He spoke about the delicate balance we have to maintain as homeschooling parents—ensuring our kids are aware of the world around them without exposing them too much or sheltering them entirely. Subhanallah, it hit home because it made me wonder if I’m getting that balance right with my daughters, especially with the unique challenges we face with our busy brains.
As parents, we naturally want to protect our children, but we also need to prepare them for the real world. Ustaz Abu Iyaad emphasized the importance of dedicating a specific area in the house for learning, establishing a routine that starts with simple daily lessons on character and sincerity. He reminded us to teach our children adab, guiding them on how to behave respectfully towards their parents, siblings, and others. This foundation helps them grow into respectful individuals who know how to interact with the world.
This reminder left me feeling a bit anxious, to be honest. How do I find that middle ground, especially when life with ADHD can make things feel a bit more overwhelming? Ustaz Abu Iyaad warned against closing our children off from the realities of society. We need to inform them of the world around them, keeping them up to date with current events, so they develop an understanding of the society they live in. I’ve realized that I need to incorporate discussions about real-world issues into our homeschooling, allowing my daughters to understand and engage with the environment they are growing up in.
It’s something I’m still reflecting on, and I’m not sure yet how to incorporate it fully into our homeschooling journey. Ustaz Abu Iyaad also emphasized the importance of being a role model. By showing my daughters my own commitment to learning—sharing what I read and encouraging them to share their learnings—I can inspire them to cultivate a love for knowledge.
As a resource for those interested, I’m sharing the full lecture titled “How to Establish a Successful Home School Environment” by Ustadh Abu ‘Iyaad Amjad Rafīq. I used YouTube’s automatic transcription feature and carefully re-listened to correct it word by word. I found this lecture incredibly enlightening and wanted to ensure its accuracy as I plan to use it as one of my sources for critical thinking. It’s filled with valuable insights that I believe will benefit homeschooling parents.
But it’s a start, alhamdulillah: a step toward being more mindful of the world my daughters are growing up in while embracing the busy brains that shape our learning.
Transcription of Ustadh Abu ‘Iyaad Amjad Rafīq’s Lecture: “How to Establish a Successful Home School Environment”
Speaker: What is your advice on establishing a successful homeschool environment? Obviously, this is connected to the topic to the issues that we discussed earlier on, and this is a very, very important question in general.
First of all, again this might not apply to every household, but these are some of the things that you can establish. First of all, dedicate a specific room or a specific area of the house, and if not, then use the kitchen table or something. But have a specific area where you, where your children, where they know that at set times they, you know, do their studies and they meet together and they sit there and you sit there with them, and, you know, you give them tarbiyyah, uh, you make them establish a daily routine. And so that routine, uh, starts with things like a basic lesson, a basic daily lesson on just a simple five, ten-minute lesson on something to do with the tawheed of Allah Azzawajalla, or about being sincere, or about from the, you know, explaining the of dzikr, you know, one of the supplications—something practical on a basis that you give them something like that on a daily basis.
Then, uh, you, uh, teach them, uh, adab, like ways of behaving, how they have to behave with the parents, how they behave with the siblings, how they behave with the grandparents, how they behave with, uh, the imam in the masjid, how they behave with other Muslims, right? Because the adab is extremely important that their, that their behavior, that they are able to behave in a manner where they are, where they are respected—that these are respectful children who know how to interact with, with other people, right? Know how to speak with other people. So these are tarbiyyah types of things to do with, with, with the character.
As for the actual, uh, contents and the materials of the, you know, the lessons, you have to give them something in, aqeedah and tawheed, um, you, you have to give them something in a, and so you choose certain books, like, or something simple, the three-principle, three PR principles, choose explanations. Maybe many of the students of knowledge have given explanations on cassette or something. You sit there, you know, make them go through those lessons, so you have to address as a routine, as a regular part of the, of the home school, and then you choose other things, things which they have to learn because we are in the environment that we’re in, things like maths, uh, things like make them, uh, reading, make them read, read books, make them aware of.
Now, this is an important point. Do not close your children off to the degree that they are totally oblivious to the environment that is around, right? This is a danger that we have now because sometimes we might trying to be overly protective such that they become oblivious to the realities of the society that they are living in, and they can’t cope with that society, which means that to some degree or other, you have to inform them of the nature of the society that they are living in—things which are happening around them, right? And you know that they at least aware of what’s happening and what’s what so they’ve got some level of intelligence and understanding of what’s actually going on, right? So you can’t close them completely off, and so to that extent maybe you sit down and you, you know, you take something that’s happening in the news or some event, right? No, I’m not saying you sit them down, but I’m saying you take some issue or event. You say, “Oh, yes, there’s actually a war in Yemen taking place right now, and this is what’s going on there is the aqeedah, and they are trying to commit Revolutions in the Sunni Muslim lands because they are waiting for their Imam, and what those Muslim countries are trying to do—the Gulf countries, they’re trying to repel, and obviously in history, we know that, you know, as Ibn Uthaymeen rahimahullah told us that the rafidhah always, they ally and they, they collude, you know, with the munafiqeen, and kuffar and whatever else in order to attack the Sunni Muslims. This is from their history.
So what I’m saying is that you can’t just make them oblivious to the things which are happening either in that society or just generally around the world as a whole. So you keep them up to date, you keep them informed, you allow them to gain an understanding, a working understanding of the world so that they, you know, they know what’s going on, right? And they can make sense of the things which are going on around them. So obviously, I know that the answer to this question we can go on and on and on and on, and we can speak about a curriculum, we can speak about— but I’m giving you some of the things which are maybe not often mentioned, which are often forgotten, you know, when we, when we try to home educate our children.
Fourthly, obviously, you have to be an example yourself. So you have to be an example of a person, you know, who is serious about knowledge, who’s reading books. So if you read books, you tell your children, “You know, today I read two books, and this is what the books were about,” right? Make them read a book and make them tell you what did they learn from the book, what have they, what have they read, whether it’s fiction, whether it’s non-fiction. Sometimes kids, for kids especially who are younger, maybe they like to read, you know, stories. You choose the stories that they read, and then let them tell you, “What did you learn from this?” You know, whatever. So you be an example. If you are someone who spends time reading, studying, and then they will follow that example as well, inculcate within them the desire to want to read and explore and to, you know, acquire knowledge and whatever else. Then this will follow through on them as well. (End of Transcribed Lecture)
Here are some strategies we can plan by Allah’s permission to incorporate based on these insights:
1. Centralizing Tawheed and Aqeedah
Daily Lessons
- Structured Routine: Dedicate 5–10 minutes daily to teach a lesson on tawheed or aqeedah. For example:
- Monday: Stories of the Prophets focusing on their call to tawheed.
- Tuesday: Short explanation of a du’a or dhikr with its meaning.
- Wednesday: A practical example of sincerity in actions.
- Thursday: Simple discussion on Allah’s names and attributes.
- Friday: Lessons from “The Three Fundamental Principles” by Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab.
- Resources: Use explanations from reliable scholars (e.g., audio lessons by students of knowledge, or simple written materials adapted for children).
Practical Integration
- Visual Cues: Use posters or flashcards with Allah’s names or Islamic principles in the learning area.
- Story-Based Learning: Narrate historical events highlighting the importance of tawheed and , such as the stories of early Muslims and their struggles.
2. Teaching Adab and Character
Interactive Lessons
- Role-Playing Scenarios: Simulate daily interactions like greeting elders, showing kindness to siblings, or helping neighbors to teach Islamic manners.
- Storytime with Lessons: Use Islamic children’s books to share stories of adab and discuss what the characters did right or wrong.
Practical Applications
- Daily Reminders: Encourage children to apply what they learn, such as saying “JazakAllahu Khair”, “barakAllahu feekum” or helping with chores respectfully.
- Parent-Modeled Behavior: Demonstrate adab through your own actions, ensuring consistency in what you teach and practice.
3. Balancing Awareness and Protection
Introducing Real-World Issues
- Age-Appropriate Discussions: Explain world events in simple terms, linking them to Islamic principles. For example:
- “What’s happening in Yemen, or Palestine reminds us to make du’a for Muslims in hardship.”
- Highlight how unity under tawheed strengthens Muslim communities.
- Guided Learning: Discuss history and current events, emphasizing lessons in patience, gratitude, and standing up for justice.
Unit Studies for Contextual Learning:
- Maps and Geography: Explore maps to understand the location and significance of places like Palestine, Makkah, and Madinah.
- History: Study historical events, such as the Isra and Mi’raj, and their relevance to Islamic heritage.
- Storytelling: Share stories of resilience and Islamic principles from the lives of Prophets or key historical events.
Critical Thinking
- Encouraging Questions: After discussing an event or topic, ask, “How does this make you feel?” or “What do you think we should do as Muslims?”
4. Creating a Designated Learning Space
- Consistency: Dedicate a learning area with Islamic decor (e.g., Islamic quotes or educational posters).
- Flexibility: Adapt the space for family discussions, reading sessions, or lessons on Islamic studies.
5. Practical Curriculum Suggestions
Integration of Character with Academics
- History: Study Muslim scholars and leaders, focusing on their achievements and character traits.
- Writing: Encourage children to write about what they learned in a lesson on tawheed or aqeedah.
- Math/Science: Relate lessons back to Allah’s creation and His signs in the universe.
Diverse Resources
- Books: “My Tawheed Book” for younger children, and more detailed resources for older ones.
- Hands-On Projects: Create mini-books or visual displays on Allah’s names, the five pillars, or stories from the Seerah.
6. Emotional and Social Readiness
Social Skills Development
- Role-Playing: Teach polite greetings, listening to elders, and being kind during play.
- Community Involvement: Arrange visits to the masjid or Islamic events where children can interact with peers.
Emotional Check-Ins
- Open Communication: Regularly ask children about their feelings and encourage them to express concerns or struggles.
7. Role Modeling by Parents
- Sharing Knowledge: Let children see you studying or reading, and share what you learn in an age-appropriate way.
- Family Learning Time: Organize joint activities like reading Islamic books or listening to a lecture together.
- Read-Aloud: Organize a cozy themed session, such as a tea party with light snacks, cushions, and decorations. Use props or dress up to match the story’s theme to make it memorable and engaging for your children.
8. Continuous Reflection
- Assess Progress: Monitor how well children grasp the concepts of tawheed, aqeedah, and adab. Adjust lessons based on their understanding.
- Celebrate Success: Acknowledge improvements in character or understanding of Islamic principles, reinforcing positive behavior.
Would you like me to design sample weekly lesson plans based on this framework, dear mommas?
Invitation for Engagement:
I’m eager to hear your thoughts! How do you navigate the balance between protecting your children and preparing them for the world?
- What strategies do you use to maintain this balance?
- How do you incorporate real-world issues into your lessons?
- What role do you play as a model for your children’s learning?
Let’s learn from each other’s experiences! Share your insights in the comments below—I can’t wait to read what you have to say!
Final Thoughts
I hope you found this lecture as enlightening as I did. It provides practical advice for creating a balanced and effective homeschooling environment, especially for those of us raising children with busy brains.
I’d love to hear your insights and experiences in the comments below!
