Opening the ayah…
وَلَا يَتَمَنَّوْنَهُۥٓ أَبَدًۢا بِمَا قَدَّمَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌۢ بِٱلظَّٰلِمِينَ
Wa lā yatamannaw'nahu 'abadan[m] bimā qaddamat' 'ay'dīhim' . wa-llahu ʻalīmun[m] bi ẓẓālimīna
But never will they express their desire (for Death), because of the (deeds) their hands have sent on before them! and Allah knows well those that do wrong!
Translation: Abdullah Yusuf Ali
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4-I guide
But they will never wish for it, because of what their own hands have sent ahead, and Allah knows the wrongdoers well.
Start with bismillah.
Ask: "How long does it take an acorn to grow into a big oak?"
Watch the Planter Banter video Grow an Oak Tree from an Acorn. (It has music.)
Now listen to the ayah together in the app, with the translation. Ask: "What had their hands sent ahead?"
Each child keeps one wonder question, for example: "What deeds am I sending ahead?" Younger children can draw theirs.
Find it in the mushaf: Surah Al-Jumu'ah is surah 62. Find ayah 7. The key words bima qaddamat aydihim mean because of what their hands sent ahead. Every deed we do now is "sent ahead" to meet us later. Planting an acorn today means shade for years to come.
Fact: How many years does an oak tree take to grow acorns of its own?
Ages 5–8: Plant ahead. Plant a seed today and care for it.
Ages 9–12: Sending ahead. Write five good deeds you'd like to send ahead this month.
Finish with: "I found that an oak takes about ___ years to grow acorns."
Talk together:
Make a small plan: "This week, I will send ahead one good deed each day."
Action: Send ahead one good deed each day.
