· Umm Aishah · 8 min read
How to Teach the 40 Hadith of an-Nawawi to Kids (One Hadith a Week)
A calm, one-hadith-a-week plan for teaching an-Nawawi's Forty Hadith to children: 36 authentic hadith across a school year, each with its reference and a simple meaning, plus tips by age.
The easiest way to teach the 40 Hadith of an-Nawawi to kids is one hadith a week: read it on Monday, practise it through the week, and say it back on Friday. That takes one school year. In our home we teach 36 of the hadith. We leave out six whose chains the scholars of hadith graded differently, so everything our children memorise is clearly authentic.
Imam an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) gathered 42 short hadith that between them cover the whole religion: intention, belief, worship, manners, and how we treat people. That is why scholars still teach this book to beginners. For children it is a perfect second step after a set of very short hadith for kids.
Below you’ll find the weekly plan, the full list with references, and what works at each age.
Why one hadith a week works
A week gives a child time to hear a hadith, understand it, say it, and then notice it in real life. On Tuesday someone gets cross in the car and a child pipes up, “La taghdab! Don’t get angry!” That is when you know it has gone in.
Our weekly rhythm:
- Monday: meet it. Read the hadith in English. Tell the little story around it, if there is one. Ask one question: “When could we use this?”
- Tuesday to Thursday: say it. Read the Arabic together from your copy of the book, one phrase at a time, two or three times a day. Short sessions after Fajr or before lunch work well.
- Friday: show it. Your child says the hadith and its reference to the family. Tick it off on the plan.
- All week: live it. Catch them acting on it and name it out loud.
On the fifth week of every month, don’t add a new hadith: just revise the last four. Children forget fast and recover fast.
Which hadith we leave out, and why
An-Nawawi’s book has 42 hadith. The scholars of hadith graded the chains of a few of them differently, some saying authentic and others weak. Our rule at home is simple: if the grading is disputed, we leave it out of what children memorise. So in this plan we skip nos. 12, 30, 31, 32, 39 and 41. That leaves 36 hadith, all from Sahih al-Bukhari or Sahih Muslim, or graded sahih or hasan by Shaykh al-Albani without a conflicting grading.
This is not a judgement on the book or on anyone who teaches all 42. It is simply the cautious path for little ones. Children can study the whole book with a teacher and a scholar’s explanation when they are older.
One more note: for no. 33, an-Nawawi quotes a wording from al-Bayhaqi. We teach the same meaning from the wording in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim instead.
The weekly plan: 36 hadith for one school year
Numbers are an-Nawawi’s own, so they match your book. For Bukhari and Muslim, the grading is sahih by agreement of the scholars. For other collections I give al-Albani’s grading.
Term 1 (weeks 1 to 12): the foundations
| Week | No. | Hadith | Reference | What it means for a child |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Actions are by intentions | al-Bukhari 1; Muslim 1907 | Do good for Allah, not to show off. |
| 2 | 2 | Islam, iman and ihsan (Jibril’s visit) | Muslim 8 | The whole religion in one conversation. Worship Allah as if you see Him. |
| 3 | 3 | Islam is built on five | al-Bukhari 8; Muslim 16 | The five pillars hold up our house of Islam. |
| 4 | 4 | Our creation and Allah’s decree | al-Bukhari 3208; Muslim 2643 | Allah made us and wrote everything. Keep doing good until the end. |
| 5 | 5 | Rejecting new things in the religion | al-Bukhari 2697; Muslim 1718 | We worship Allah only the way the Prophet (ﷺ) taught. |
| 6 | 6 | The halal is clear and the haram is clear | al-Bukhari 52; Muslim 1599 | Stay away from what you’re not sure about. Keep your heart clean. |
| 7 | 7 | The religion is sincere advice | Muslim 55 | Be true to Allah, His Book, His Messenger and the people. |
| 8 | 8 | The sanctity of a Muslim | al-Bukhari 25; Muslim 22 | The shahadah, prayer and zakah are at the heart of Islam. (Explain simply.) |
| 9 | 9 | Do what you can | al-Bukhari 7288; Muslim 1337 | Stop what Allah forbids; do what He commands as much as you can. |
| 10 | 10 | Allah is Good and accepts only good | Muslim 1015 | Eat halal and make dua. |
| 11 | 11 | Leave what makes you doubt | at-Tirmidhi 2518, an-Nasa’i 5711 (sahih, al-Albani) | If you’re unsure if it’s right, leave it. |
| 12 | 13 | Love for your brother | al-Bukhari 13; Muslim 45 | Want for others the good you want for yourself. |
Term 2 (weeks 13 to 24): manners and the heart
| Week | No. | Hadith | Reference | What it means for a child |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 14 | The sacredness of a Muslim’s life | al-Bukhari 6878; Muslim 1676 | A Muslim’s life is precious and protected. (For older children.) |
| 14 | 15 | Say good or stay silent | al-Bukhari 6018; Muslim 47 | Think before you speak. Be kind to neighbours and guests. |
| 15 | 16 | Do not get angry | al-Bukhari 6116 | When you feel angry, stop. |
| 16 | 17 | Excellence in everything | Muslim 1955 | Do everything well, even kindness to animals. |
| 17 | 18 | Fear Allah wherever you are | at-Tirmidhi 1987 (hasan, al-Albani) | After a mistake, do a good deed. Be good to people. |
| 18 | 19 | Be mindful of Allah | at-Tirmidhi 2516 (sahih, al-Albani) | Remember Allah and He will protect you. Ask Him for help. |
| 19 | 20 | Modesty | al-Bukhari 3483 | Haya’ keeps us from doing shameful things. |
| 20 | 21 | Say “I believe in Allah”, then be upright | Muslim 38 | Believe, then stay on the straight path. |
| 21 | 22 | The obligations lead to Paradise | Muslim 15 | Pray, fast, and keep to halal and haram. |
| 22 | 23 | Purity is half of faith | Muslim 223 | Wudu, cleanliness and dhikr fill our scales. |
| 23 | 24 | Allah has forbidden oppression | Muslim 2577 | Never be unfair. Ask Allah for everything. |
| 24 | 25 | Every tasbih is charity | Muslim 1006 | SubhanAllah, al-hamdu lillah: even these are sadaqah. |
Term 3 (weeks 25 to 36): good deeds and the Hereafter
| Week | No. | Hadith | Reference | What it means for a child |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 26 | Every joint owes charity | al-Bukhari 2989; Muslim 1009 | A kind word, helping someone, moving something harmful: all sadaqah. |
| 26 | 27 | Righteousness is good character | Muslim 2553 | Sin is what bothers your heart and you’d hate people to see. |
| 27 | 28 | Hold to the Sunnah | Abu Dawud 4607, at-Tirmidhi 2676 (sahih, al-Albani) | Follow the Prophet (ﷺ) and the rightly guided caliphs. |
| 28 | 29 | The deeds that lead to Paradise | at-Tirmidhi 2616 (sahih, al-Albani) | Worship Allah alone and guard your tongue. |
| 29 | 33 | Proof is on the one who claims | al-Bukhari 4552; Muslim 1711 | You can’t just claim something is yours. Be fair. |
| 30 | 34 | Changing what is wrong | Muslim 49 | Stop wrong with your hand, your words, or at least hate it in your heart. |
| 31 | 35 | The brotherhood of Islam | Muslim 2564 | No envy, no hating, no looking down on others. Taqwa is in the heart. |
| 32 | 36 | Relieving someone’s hardship | Muslim 2699 | Help others and Allah will help you. |
| 33 | 37 | Allah records good and bad deeds | al-Bukhari 6491; Muslim 131 | Even planning a good deed is written for you. |
| 34 | 38 | The friends of Allah | al-Bukhari 6502 | Do the obligations first, then extra good deeds. |
| 35 | 40 | Be in this world like a stranger | al-Bukhari 6416 | This life is a journey. Use your time well. |
| 36 | 42 | Allah’s vast forgiveness | at-Tirmidhi 3540 (sahih, al-Albani) | However big the mistake, ask Allah’s forgiveness. |
Teaching the 40 Hadith by age
Ages 4 to 6: the meaning plus one Arabic line. Don’t aim for the whole text. Teach the English meaning and one short Arabic phrase, such as innamal-a’malu bin-niyyat (no. 1) or la taghdab (no. 16). At this age, nos. 1, 13, 15, 16, 25 and 26 are the most useful.
Ages 7 to 9: the full short hadith. Most of the hadith in this plan can be learned in full by this age, a phrase at a time. For long ones like no. 2 (Jibril’s visit), teach the key lines (what Islam is, what iman is, what ihsan is) rather than the whole narration.
Ages 10 to 12: with an explanation. Older children are ready for a scholar’s commentary. Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymin’s Sharh al-Arba’in an-Nawawiyyah is clear and practical. Read a page together each week and ask them to explain one point back to you.
A few hadith touch on serious matters, such as no. 14 on when a life may be taken by law. With young children, keep to the main lesson (a Muslim’s life is sacred) and leave the details for when they are older.
Make it stick
- A family hadith wall. Write the week’s hadith on a card, in Arabic and English with its reference, and stick it by the dining table. Text only.
- Link it to the stories. Many hadith come alive through the lives of the Companions. No. 19 was said to Ibn ‘Abbas when he was just a boy, so pair it with our Sahabah stories for kids.
- Track it. Use our free 40 Hadith reading plan to tick off each hadith as your child learns it.
- Fit it into your week. If you homeschool, one hadith a week slots neatly into Islamic studies. See how we fit it in for 8 to 12 year olds.
Frequently asked questions
At what age can children start the 40 Hadith of an-Nawawi? From about four you can teach the meanings and a few Arabic words. Full memorisation usually works from around seven. After eleven or twelve, add a scholar’s explanation.
Why does your plan have 36 hadith and not 40 or 42? An-Nawawi’s book contains 42 hadith. Six of them (nos. 12, 30, 31, 32, 39 and 41) have chains that hadith scholars graded differently. To keep everything our children memorise clearly authentic, we leave those out at this stage.
How long does it take to learn the 40 Hadith? At one hadith a week, with a revision week each month, the 36 hadith take about one school year. Some families go slower, and that is fine. Consistency matters more than speed.
Should my child memorise the narrator chain? No. Teach the name of the Companion who narrated it, the words of the Prophet (ﷺ), and the reference (for example, “al-Bukhari and Muslim”).
Which explanation should I use? For parents, Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymin’s Sharh al-Arba’in an-Nawawiyyah is clear and reliable. Read the explanation of each hadith yourself before you teach it.
May Allah make our children carriers of the Sunnah and people who act on it. Ameen.
