Kisa Visual Arts Curriculum

“And the Earth, We spread it out, and cast therein firmly set mountains and We have made to grow therein of all beautiful kinds; to give sight and as a reminder to every servant who turns to Allah.” Noble Qurʾān [50:7-8]

Fashioner, The Shaper). The Noble Qurʾān guides us to observe nature and to reflect on the wonders of creation. Each creature and each phenomenon in nature is a sign of Allah, and these signs when contemplated on, reveal the attributes of Allah. While describing heaven, the Noble Qurʾān uses examples that invoke images of beauty and grandeur in our minds. Allah speaks to us about the beauty and wonders of His creation in Sūrah ar-Raḥmān and in various other verses.

Creating art is one of the ways through which we observe the marvels of nature and connect with our Creator. Art is also essential for a child’s emotional, sensory, creative, spiritual and intellectual development.

Education

A well-rounded art education develops a child’s visual communication skills, stimulates creative thinking, and promotes the use of imagination. It cultivates problem solving skills, enhances socio-cultural development, and is a beautiful way to help develop a child’s self-esteem.

In the recent few decades, there has been an emergence and growth of Islamic schools nationwide, the inclusion of elective courses such as art has often been lacking due to budget.

Developing the Arts Curriculum

Children’s creative growth is highly essential along with academic and religious learning. With this thought in mind, I began working on creating a custom Islamic art program, Kisa Visual Arts Curriculum, based on the National Core Arts Standards. The curriculum contains various resources to help with planning, organizing, execution and the assessment of art lessons. The theme for this set of lesson plans, draws its inspiration from Al-Kisa Foundation’s ‘Roots of Risers’* character-building themes.

Roots of Risers

The Roots of Risers are based on the teachings of the Qurʿān and Ahl al-Bayt, and it is our hope that by strengthening our roots, our tree of life will be healthier, and bear better fruit. We wish to see this outcome in our students in the form of a more well-rounded life, and prosperous results inshāʾAllāh.

The Roots of Risers are: 

1. Guardianship, or Wilāyah
2. Trust, or Amānah
3. Patience, or Ṣabr
4. Mercy, or Raḥmah
5. Respect, or Iḥtirām
6. Gratitude, or Shukr
7. Justice, or ʿAdālah

Kisa Visual Arts Curriculum aspires to the following goals:

• Enhance the holistic development of our children.
• Enable our children to learn the creative nonverbal language of artistic expression.
• Fortify our children’s spiritual-social-emotional learning through the creation of art projects based on Islamic principles.
• Complement and enhance the religious education our children receive.
• Teach children the rich and diverse history, culture, and heritage of Islamic arts.
• Help children develop mindfulness through the creation process of traditional Islamic
• arts.

I sincerely thank you for being a part of this beautiful journey. Please visit the Kisa Visual Arts Curriculum website, try some lessons and give us your feedback.

With duʿā,
Siddiqua Shahnawaz

Visit Kisa Visual Arts Curriculum webpage