Key Question: Is it better to express your religion in arts and architecture or in charity and generosity?

LO: Describe and make connections between examples of religious creativity

Study Islamic belief about Allah / God with pupils, through a poem and some art works
Remind the children that our title question asks if art should be less important than giving to charity.
• Use the 99 Beautiful Names as a way to understand what Islam teaches. Teach / remind children that Muslims make beautiful writing, but no pictures of Allah. Use the NATRE searchable database of pupil writing (http://old.natre.org.uk/db/profile2a.php ) to see what young British Muslims say about their beliefs.
Muslim Poetry: Al Ghazali on God, Muslim Art: Yasmin Kathrada and Ahmed Moustapha
• Use the poetic lines of Al Ghazali (born 1058CE, over 950 years ago) to explore Muslim belief about Allah. Pupils might record them being spoken, whispered or shouted: which works best to make sense of them? Ask pupils which lines they agree with, disagree with and don’t understand. Ask them to create up to twelve lines of poetry that state their own key beliefs. Good examples can be found, free, here: https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/6335650/spirited-poetry-a-competition-for-creative-re-national-association-