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Quraan Based Unit Study:

Suratul Fil (105)

The purpose of this unit study is to memorize Suratul Fil and understand this surah. We will also learn about elephants, which are an important part of this surah, as well as learn a little bit about Yemen, which was a central location in the events that this surah relates.

 

This unit includes learning activities in the following subjects: Quraan, Arabic, English, math, and geography.

Levels: Although originally written for upper elementary to junior high students, I've included activities for younger students as well. It can also be used for adults as well.

 

 

 

 

 

Younger children:

 

Write the name of the surah on the board.

Say: This is Suratul Fil, surah 105, and this Surah was revealed in Makkah.
Ask: (with student looking at text) This surah has how many ayaat?
Say: "Al-Fil" means "The Elephant". The name of the Surah comes from the army of elephants mentioned in the first verse.

 

Older Students:

 

Using the Tafsir opening for this surah, fill out the Introductory Information Chart (also available in Study Guide Template Pack)

 

 

1. Reading

 

Younger students:

 

• Recite the surah to students in Arabic.

• Show Suratul Fil PowerPoint to students (It is the English translation, illustrated.) or show it after the reading of the story.

• Read story to students:

 

In 570 AD, the year of the birth of our Holy Prophet ( salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam), a Christian governor from Abyssinia (modern day Ethiopia) named Abrahah marched to Makkah to destroy the Holy Kabah. He wanted to destroy the Kabah, because he wanted people to come and worship at a huge church he had built in Yemen instead.

Abrahah's army also had elephants, which wasn’t very common in Arabia. History calls this army
"Ashabul Fíl" or "The People of the Elephant".

When he reached Makkah, he captured some camels belonging to the chief of Makkah, Abdul Muttalib, the grandfather of the Holy Prophet (salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam), ). When Abdul
Muttalib went to see him, Abrahah thought he would ask him to spare the Holy Kabah. Instead, Abdul Muttalib asked for the camels to be returned.

Abrahah laughed and said, "What! I have come to destroy your place of worship, and you are speaking of your camels!" Abdul Muttalib replied, "I am the owner of the camels, so I have come for them. The Kabah too has an Owner, Who will look after it."

Abrahah ignored this warning and tried to invade the Holy Kabah with his elephants. Abdul Muttalib ordered his people to leave Makkah and seek shelter at the top of the mountains. . Then he (Abdul Muttalib) took hold of the metal ring of the door of the Kabah and with a number of Quraysh, he called upon Allah to give them victory over Abrahah and his army.

 

The next morning, Abrahah prepared to enter Makkah.  He prepared his army and turned Mahmud, a great, powerful elephant with a "huge body the like of which had never been seen before" toward the Kabah.

 

Then Allah sent against them flocks of birds carrying small stones the size of lentils in their beaks and claws which they dropped on Abrahah's army. Everyone who was hit by them was eventually destroyed.

 

The birds were small (like swallows or herons), but their effect was great, because they had
the help of Allah.

 

The appearance of the remains of the army after the birds had left was like straw that has been chewed by cows, broken and useless.

 

 

This story adapted from material from madressa.net and Tafsir Ibn Kathir.  Talibiddeen Jr. does not endorse madressa.net. I took information from their retelling based upon what was in accordance with the tafsir and history.

 

 

 

 

Older students:

 

• Students should read the surah aloud in Arabic and English (preferably in presence of teacher).

• Student reads the complete tafsir for this surah (pp.588-598). Teacher can also break the reading down into smaller parts, if desired.

If student does not have a copy of the tafsir, the text can be viewed with this links from Tafsir.com:

The Tafsir of Surat Al-Fil (Chapter - 105)
Which was revealed in Makkah
A Summary of the Story of the People of the Elephant
Dhu Nafr was captured and taken along with the army of Abrahah.
Concerning Allah's statement,

Optional: As student reads the tafsir, have him outline it or turn statements into study questions and write them down. There is a form in the Study Guide Templates Pack where student can record these questions.

 

NOTE:

During the duration of this lesson, it is a good idea to have student read and recite the surah daily while the teacher listens.

 

 

Putting It Together

 

You might want to have student write all work in a special Quraan notebook or make a lap book/portfolio.

Younger students:

 

A. Have students answer the 5 W's about this surah (orally or written):

 

1. Who is this surah about?

2. When did the events in this surah take place?

3. Where did the events in this surah take place?

2.What happened in this surah?

3. Why did this happen?

 

You can use TJ's 5Ws worksheets: 

Version 1: With space for drawing a picture

Version 2: With space to record where surah was revealed, number of ayaat

 

B. Have students answer orally or in writing:

 

1. Who was Abrahah and where was he from?

2. Why did he want to destroy the Kabah?

3. Where is the Kabah?

4. What type of unusual animals were in his army?

5. What did Abrahah take when he first got to Makkah? Who did these belong to?

6. What happened when Abrahah's army?

7. What can we learn from this surah? (next to the last paragraph of story shows one lesson)

 

Older Students:

 

 

Have students answer the following questions in writing:

 

A. Have student, orally or in writing, answer the 5W's of this surah (see above)

 

1. Make up 10 study questions about the story and answer them.

2. What is sijjil, according to the tafsir?

3. List 5 opinions of what "abaabil" means.

4. What increased the force of the stones?

5. Yemen was under the control of what nation before being returned to the Arab people?

 

 

 

Vocabulary

A. Review

There are many basic words that appear over and over in the Quraan.  Quiz older students regularly on this basic vocabulary.  You might dictate the English of these words to student for him to write in Arabic.  Keep a list of missed words (student does not know definition or spelling).

 

lam, kayfa, fee, alayhim, min

 

B. In this Surah

Teach vocabulary depending on the student's level.

 

For more advanced students, use the Ayaat breakdown form in the Study Guide Pack to write each Arabic word and its corresponding English translation. In most cases, teacher should complete this activity with the student.

 

For students less advanced in Arabic, pick out key vocabulary (especially nouns) and assign activities to help them learn the words. Here are some vocabulary words to use or get you started.. If you feel student can handle more, select more words from the surah.

 

Students should know the definitions and spelling of  the following Arabic terms at the minimum:

 

fil, tayr, kayd, hijaarah, as-haab and its singular

 

Activities to practice the vocabulary:

• Write each new word (x number of times)

• Write review words (x number of times)

• Take dictation on vocabulary words

• Write the current ayaat or surah

• Alphabetize Arabic/English vocabulary

• Match English to Arabic words

• Given the English word, write the Arabic word

• Given a clue, write the correct Arabic word

• Unscramble a word or ayaat

• Supply the missing letters in words or missing word in ayaat

• Make flashcards to review vocabulary and concepts

 

 

Also see TJ's Spelling Page for more spelling activities

 

 

Tajweed

 

Teach one or more concepts of tajweed found in this surah.

 

Grammar

Here are some topics you might use  for grammar lessons:

 

• Conjugation of verbs presented in the ayaat (fa'ala, ja'ala, rasala)

• Particle alif for asking questions

These are just some suggestions. If student has an Arabic class, try to match the concepts that they are learning/have learned with those found in the surah.

 

Memorization Schedule

 

If student has not memorized this surah already, set up a memorization schedule with the schedule form in the Study Guide Pack.  Work together to establish a realistic goal. 

 

For older students, schedule daily memorization sessions, after salaat are often good times.

Work with younger students daily to memorize the surah.

 

Use TJ's Surah Progress Chart (Color in a star for each ayaah memorized) for younger children to track their progress through the surah.

 

 

Audio Recitations

 

Before and during memorization, student should listen to teacher or a Qari to learn the correct pronunciation. Below are links to recitations several popular Qaris.

These links point to the pages which list all surahs recited by that particular Qari, not this particular surah. Simply select this lesson's surah, insha Allah and download or listen to.

• Shaykh Sudais

• Muhammad Minshawi

• Muhammad Minshawi Learning

• Mahmoud Husary

• Mahmoud Husary learning

• Recitation for Teaching Children

• Saeed Al Ghamidi

Memorization Aids

 

Software

 

Juz 30 memorization software (download).

Called Juz 30 but you can memorize the whole quraan with this program now. Husary is the Qari for Juz 30 and you can select the Muhsin Kahn translation or the Saheeh International. You can also download translations in other languages.  Cute for kids and can be used by adults and children.  Many options to tailor your memorization sessions to fit your needs. Really neat!

 

Quraan Explorer (use online, no download)

Haven't got a chance to try it yet, but took a quick peek. It looks really nice. A friend of mine sent in the link on a homeschooling group. Listen to the Quran Recitation and Translation online in Arabic, English, and Urdu.

Repetition Aids

 

Have student use something such as TJ's Hifz Helpers to help them keep track of their repetitions during the sessions. With younger students you might also count off the repetitions with your hands (counting up or down)

Hifz Helper-Counter Mat

(food theme)

 

Hifz Helper-Counter Mat

(vehicle theme)

 Completion

When student has memorized the surah, present him/her with a completion certificate and use progress charts such as those below to chart your progress through the Quraan.

 

Juz Amma Progress Chart

Color in a star for each surah memorized

 

Quraan Progress Chart, by Surah (.DOC)

Track your progress through the whole Quraan by surah.

 

Quraan Progress Chart, by Juz (.DOC)

You've finished Juz Amma and ready to move on to the next Juz? Track your progress with this handy progress chart.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read and Learn about Elephants

• Elephants -  pictures, large text, videos, photos.

• Elephant Pictures and Facts

• All About Elephants Unit Study (5 lessons)

• Elephants: Printouts and Information - Enchanted Learning 

• Elephants and Mammoths: crafts, printouts - Enchanted Learning

 

 

As listed on http://www.babycenter.com/reviews/recommendedlists/view/231:

Official Home Page of Elephant Appreciation Day
A trunk-full of goodies awaits elephant fans here. Learn how to make an elephant breakfast, play elephant games, and even make an elephant cake. View web site.

National Geographic Creature Feature: Elephants
View video clips, be surprised by fun elephant facts, and check out the online coloring book. View web site.

 

 

Fluency

 

Select a short paragraph in the story or tafsir. Have student read it repeatedly several days to increase fluency. See TJ's Language Arts Reading Skills page if you are  unfamiliar with repeated reading.

 

With younger students, do paired reading with the English ayaat. You and student read, teacher letting the student read the words he/she knows or can sound out and teacher reads unknown, undecodable words.

 

Spelling/Vocabulary

 

Younger students:

 

Choose vocabulary from the story according to the child's level. Discuss the meanings and write in sentences, if appropriate for child's age.  See TJ's "Working With Words." section on the language arts page for more ideas to practice vocabulary or TJ's Spelling Page.

 

Older Students:

 

Have student look up and write the definition for the following words and use in sentences.

Also, see TJ's "Working With Words" section on the language arts page for more ideas to practice vocabulary.

 

These words are found in the tafsir:

 

delegation

commentators

retribution

pestilence

emissary

routed

venerate

thwart

appease

loot

precede

clarify

sanctuary

consensus

abundance

You might use the following exercise, Writing Descriptive Sentences, with these words to have students write descriptive sentences

 

Give students vocabulary words and a passage (from the story above or tafsir) for dictation. Student should practice writing the passage each day. At the end of the unit, dictate the words and passage to student. 

Grammar

 

1. Using the text of the English translation, have students sort all words in the ayaat into categories of parts of speech. (nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, etc)

 

2. Use the dictation passage that you have selected (mentioned in the vocabulary section above) and discuss grammar concepts found there.

 

3. Take the following verbs found in the tafsir and turn them into nouns.

 

Example: amaze   --> noun: amazement 

 

clarify, destroy, unite, deny, gather, separate

 

Composition

Assign a paragraph or report or other creative writing assignment related to elephants (see English section above for reading material) or the history of Yemen (see Geography section below for reading material).

Research Help and Tips:

kidcyber guide to Researching a topic

Chart for recording notes

 

 

 

Have students complete elephant themed math problems or make up your own.

 

 

I. Elephant Math from Time For Kids (PDF at this link)

1. Twenty-seven elephants are bathing at a water hole. Nine elephants wander off to find some bark to eat. How many elephants are still bathing at the water hole?

2. The African elephant is the largest living land mammal. A male African elephant
can weigh as much as nine tons. About how many tons would 10 male African
elephants weigh?

3. One elephant can eat more than 300 pounds of food in one day. How many
pounds of food could an elephant eat in five days?
 

4. A tusk is a very long, large tooth that sticks out of an elephant’s mouth. An
elephant’s two tusks grow about four inches each year. About how many years
would it take for a tusk to grow 12 inches?
 

5. A pack of elephants travels 22 miles per hour as the animals search for food.
How many miles would the pack cover in four hours? In eight hours?
 

6. An elephant can drink 50 gallons of water a day. How many total gallons of
water will a zoo need for 15 elephants each day?

 

 

II. Grades 3-5: from http://www.marylandzoo.org/Downloads/Document.aspx?ID=279

 

Another Elephant?

Until recently, scientists thought that there were two species of elephants in the world: the African and the Asian elephant. Recently, studies showed there were two types of African elephant. Our Elephants, Dolly and Anna, are African savannah elephants. The other type of African Elephant is known as the forest elephant.

 

Today, scientists estimate that there are 150,000 forest elephants and 350,000 savannah
elephants. Twenty years ago, there were about 1,500,000 African Elephants. Use the numbers given above to solve the problems below.

Write all three of the numbers given above in word form and expanded form.
 

One hundred fifty thousand
Three hundred fifty thousand,
One million five hundred thousand
 

What is the estimated total number of African elephants (both forest and savannah) alive today?

 

Which is greater, the number of savannah elephants or the number of forest elephants?

 

Is the estimated number of African elephants alive today greater or less than the estimated number twenty years ago?
 

What is the difference between the estimated number of elephants today and the number twenty years ago?

 

What is the value of the 5 in the number of forest elephants? What is the value of the 5 in the estimated number of elephants twenty years ago?

 

The estimated number of forest elephants x _ ?__ = the estimated number of African elephant twenty years ago.

 

III. Food of a Lifetime

How many pounds of food will you eat in a lifetime?

A clue: An elephant weighs about 10,000 pounds. In your lifetime, you will eat the equivalent weight of 6 elephants.

Solution

 

Miscellaneous or for younger students:

1. This surah is number 105. Count by 5s (or 1s) to 105.

2. Abdul Muttalib said" I want the king to return my camels which he has taken drom me which are two hundred in number." (Tafsir) Write this number in numeral form. Count by 2s.

3. In the Tafsir, the People of the Ditch were mentioned. It was said that there were approximately twenty thousand. Write this number in numeral form.

4.How far is Yemen (Sana'a) from Makkah?

 

 

 

How far is Yemen (Sana'a) from Makkah?

On a middle east map mark: Makkah, Abyssinia (Ethiopia), and Sana'a, Yemen.

 

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Read about Ancient Yemen

 

Ancient Yemen (includes pictures)

Yemen's History

Ancient History of Yemen

 

 

 

 

 

Elephant themed Recipes

Elephant Pie (Homeschooling.about.com)

Ingredients:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 eggs

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup whole milk

9" unbaked pie shell

Whipped topping

Shelled peanuts

 

Follow the directions to make the pie - then watch out for hungry elephants while you enjoy your Elephant Pie dessert!

 

Elephant Ears Recipe 1  

Elephant Ears Recipe 2

Elephant Ears Recipe 3

Collection of elephant ears recipes

 

Know of any great elephant themed crafts that don't involve images? Please let me know. :)

 

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If you know of any additional resources that you feel would be great to add to this unit, please let me know.