It’s important to sit down with your child and teach them what Allah and His Messenger ﷺ say about friendship. Adding a lesson about what good friends should look like is valuable because many children step into the real world without guidance on this topic. Sadly, as parents, we might unintentionally expose our children to bad friends because of the environments we place them in.
I wanted to share a lesson about friendship from the Quran and Hadith in hopes that our children can learn how to choose good friends and avoid bad ones. I’ve used a creative arts and crafts activity to make it engaging, which helps children better connect with the lesson. I’ve included beneficial ayahs from the Quran and Hadiths that are relevant to friendships. This is a concern not just for parents but also for Muslim children themselves.
Over the years, I’ve often heard of and witnessed children struggling with bad friends—whether at school, at home, or online. As parents, we have valid concerns about the people our children mix with. One bad friend can negatively impact their life significantly. Many of us adults have probably experienced this firsthand.
What might surprise you is that many Muslim children have approached me over the years, expressing their struggles with bad friends. They ask how they can distance themselves from harmful friendships or how to identify bad influences in their social circles. These issues weigh heavily on them, just as they do on us as parents. I plan to address these concerns in more detail another time, In’shaa’Allah.
Today, I want to share a lesson I’m doing with a group of girls aged 7–14 years. In this class, we frequently discuss the topic of friends, and I thought this lesson would be perfect for them.
Our lesson is: What do Allah and His Messenger ﷺ say about friends?
I encourage the children to reflect on this question first. Then, I ask them to evaluate their own friendships in light of what they’ve learned. This helps them think critically about the type of friends they choose while understanding the blessings of righteous companionship and the dangers of bad influences—not only in this life but also in the Hereafter.
Here are some teachings we’ve focused on:
1. Friendship with Evildoers Brings Regret:
Allah (the Most High) says in the Quran:
“And the Day the wrongdoer will bite on his hands [in regret] he will say, ’Oh, I wish I had taken with the Messenger a way. Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken so-and-so as a friend. He led me away from the remembrance after it had come to me. And ever is Shaytan to man, a deserter.’”
(Al-Furqan: 27–29)
2. Righteous Friends are a Blessing:
“Close friends, that Day, will be enemies to each other, except for the righteous.”
(Az-Zukhruf: 67)
3. The Impact of Friendship:
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“A man is upon the religion of his close friend, so each of you should pay attention to whom he takes as a friend.”
(At-Tirmidhi)
4. Good Friends Help You Stay Obedient to Allah:
Allah says:
“By time. Indeed, mankind is in loss, except for those who believe and do righteous deeds, and advise each other to truth, and advise each other to patience.”
(Al-Asr)
These lessons encourage children to reflect on their friendships, helping them recognize the value of righteous companionship and the harm of bad influences.
May Allah guide our children to choose good friends who bring them closer to Him, protect them from harmful influences, and bless us as parents with wisdom and patience in guiding them. Ameen.
This is not a resource I created; it is a lesson you can replicate with your own children or students, In’shaa’Allah.
Here is a copy of the Quran and Hadith page I used, in case you’d like to save and use it. I also bought some arts and crafts supplies, like flowery and plain-colored card, sticky tape, and stickers.
There’s no doubt about it—this lesson was also beneficial for me too. If you’d like to see our finished result, leave a comment below, and I’ll upload it here for you, In’shaa’Allah.
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