08/10/2026
What does salah look like when your child genuinely struggles to be still?
I’ve been thinking about this question a lot lately.
We talk so much about teaching our children to pray.
Pray on time. Focus. Stand still. Build the habit early.
But what happens when your child’s brain or body makes some of those things genuinely difficult?
What does teaching salah look like for a neurodivergent Muslim child?
For the child who fidgets through prayer.
Who struggles with transitions.
Who is overwhelmed by the masjid.
Who needs the same reminder again and again.
Who may love Allah deeply — while struggling with the way we expect that love to look.
And maybe an equally important question:
How do we teach our children salah without making them feel like they are constantly failing at it?
I don’t have all the answers.
I’m a Muslim mom trying to figure some of this out too — and I realized I wasn’t seeing enough people talk about it.
So I wrote about it.
Not as an expert giving parents another list of things to do, but as a mother asking questions I think more of us need to be asking about Islam, parenting and neurodivergent children.
My newest Dear Muslim Mom is up now:
“What Does Salah Look Like When Stillness Is Hard?”
Read it at the link in my bio.
And if you’re raising a child with ADHD, autism, sensory differences, or simply a child for whom salah looks a little different, I’d really love to hear from you:
What has been the hardest part of teaching your child to pray?
