A child who has lost their parents needs more than food, shelter and schooling. They need something to hold on to — a framework that explains suffering, a set of values that guides conduct, and a sense that their life has meaning and direction. Religious and moral education gives our children that foundation.
This program runs alongside academic schooling, not in place of it. Its purpose is to shape character: to raise children who are honest, disciplined, respectful and compassionate, and who carry those qualities into adulthood whatever path they take.
Qur’anic education
Children learn Qur’anic recitation from the beginning, starting with the Arabic alphabet and progressing to fluent reading. Instruction covers correct pronunciation and the rules of Tajweed, so that children recite properly rather than merely approximately.
Children memorise Surahs appropriate to their age and ability, beginning with the shorter Surahs needed for daily prayer and progressing as far as each child’s aptitude and interest carry them. Memorisation is never forced or used as a measure of a child’s worth. Children who take to it are supported fully; children who do not are equally valued and continue with recitation and comprehension.
Alongside recitation, children study meaning. Learning to pronounce words in a language one does not understand teaches very little about how to live. Children are taught what the verses they recite actually say, in Bangla, at a level appropriate to their age.
Foundations of belief and practice
Children learn the fundamentals of Islamic belief and practice: the pillars of faith, the pillars of Islam, and the practical knowledge required to observe them correctly.
This includes wudu and purification, the correct performance of the five daily prayers, the significance of the Qur’an and Sunnah, fasting in Ramadan, and the meaning and purpose of Zakat and Sadaqah — a subject with particular resonance for children who are themselves supported by the charity of others.
The stories of the Prophets are taught, along with the life and character of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). These narratives carry moral instruction more effectively than direct exhortation ever does, and children absorb them readily.
Prayer and daily religious life
The five daily prayers are performed in congregation at the facility. Prayer times shape the daily routine: the day begins with Fajr, and study, meals, school and rest are arranged around the prayers that follow.
Younger children learn by joining older ones. Prayer is taught as something a Muslim does rather than something imposed as a rule, and the consistency of doing it together every day, year after year, establishes the habit far more effectively than instruction alone.
Ramadan is observed as a community. Children old enough to fast do so with proper suhoor and iftar arrangements, and the month is marked by additional Qur’anic study, Taraweeh prayers and shared meals. Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are celebrated with new clothes, special food and gatherings — among the happiest days of the year at the facility. Donors frequently sponsor these occasions, and for children who have no family to celebrate with, the sense of being part of a community that marks these days properly matters enormously.
Moral character and conduct
The conduct that religious education teaches is as important as the ritual, and often more visible in a child’s daily life.
Children are taught honesty in speech and dealing, respect for elders and teachers, kindness toward those younger or weaker, gratitude for what they have received, patience in difficulty, humility in success, keeping promises and fulfilling responsibilities, and forgiveness rather than grudge-holding.
These are taught largely through daily life rather than lessons. A child who receives charity and is taught to be grateful, who is corrected without being humiliated, who sees the adults around them behave with integrity, absorbs these values through repetition and example. Caregivers and teachers are expected to model what they teach, because children learn conduct from what they observe far more readily than from what they are told.
Emotional anchoring
Children who have experienced loss ask questions that adults find difficult: why their parents died, why this happened to them, what will become of them. Faith gives them a framework within which those questions have answers, and a source of comfort that does not depend on any individual person remaining in their life.
We do not use religion to suppress grief or to discourage children from expressing what they feel. Children are allowed to be sad, angry and confused, and caregivers are trained to sit with those feelings rather than correct them. What faith provides is meaning alongside the grief — an understanding that their suffering is neither meaningless nor a punishment, and that patience through hardship carries value.
The children who do best emotionally are consistently those who have both: adults who let them grieve honestly, and a belief system that gives their loss a place in a larger picture.
Teaching and approach
Instruction is delivered by qualified teachers with experience teaching children, in a supportive environment adjusted to each child’s age, ability and background.
Teaching is age-appropriate: young children learn through stories, songs and simple practice, while older children engage with meaning, reasoning and application. Children who join us late, with no prior religious education, are taught from the beginning without embarrassment.
Physical punishment is prohibited without exception. Religious instruction is never used as a means of control or humiliation, and children who struggle receive patience rather than pressure. A child taught the faith harshly learns to associate it with fear, which defeats the entire purpose of teaching it.
Children of other faiths
BS Orphanage Foundation admits children in need without regard to religion.
Children of other faiths are supported in their own religious practice and are not required to participate in Islamic instruction or prayer. Where possible we arrange appropriate religious guidance within their own tradition, and their festivals and observances are respected.
All children, regardless of faith, take part in moral education covering honesty, respect, kindness and responsibility — values held in common and taught to everyone.
Frequently asked questions
Do all children have to take part in Islamic religious education? No. Children of other faiths are supported in their own practice and are not required to participate.
Are all children required to memorise the Qur’an? No. Children memorise Surahs appropriate to their age and ability. Those who wish to memorise more are supported; those who do not are equally valued.
Does religious education take time away from school? No. Religious instruction is scheduled around school hours and supervised study, and never at their expense.
Who teaches the religious curriculum? Qualified teachers experienced in teaching children, working under the same child protection policy as all other staff.
Is physical punishment used? No. Physical punishment is prohibited throughout the organisation without exception.
Are children of non-Muslim families accepted? Yes. We admit children on the basis of need alone.
How is Ramadan observed? As a community, with proper suhoor and iftar arrangements, additional Qur’anic study, Taraweeh prayers and shared meals. Eid is celebrated with new clothes, special food and gatherings.