Laylat al-Qadr is easy to make exciting for children: it is a “secret” night with a huge reward.
The simple explanation
- It is the night the Quran was first sent down.
- It is “better than a thousand months” (Quran 97:3). A thousand months is more than 83 years: longer than most people’s whole lives.
- Nobody knows exactly which night it is, but it is in the last ten nights of Ramadan, especially the odd nights (Sahih al-Bukhari 2017).
The dua to teach
اللّٰهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي
Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul-‘afwa fa‘fu ‘anni: “O Allah, You are forgiving and love to forgive, so forgive me.” The Prophet ﷺ taught this dua for Laylat al-Qadr (Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 3513).
A child-sized plan for each odd night
| Activity | Time |
|---|---|
| Pray 2 rak’ahs with a parent | 5 minutes |
| Say the Laylat al-Qadr dua 10 times | 2 minutes |
| Recite a surah they know | 2 minutes |
| Put a coin in the charity jar | 1 minute |
| Make a personal dua list | 5 minutes |
On school nights in the UK, the last ten nights can be late. Do the plan before bedtime; it still counts as part of the night.
Make it memorable
- A special “odd nights” calendar: 21, 23, 25, 27, 29.
- Fairy lights or a lantern on those nights.
- A special snack after the activities.
Teacher’s tip: let your child write their dua list in their own words. Children treasure finding it the following Ramadan.
Related: Explaining Ramadan to a young child.
