Principles and Methods of Teaching the Belief in God to Children Aged 3 to 9

Using the analytic-descriptive method, this research was conducted with the aim of examining the way to teach the belief in God, and especially finding the way to teach it to children under 9. Among its other aims are awareness of the importance of educating children, knowledge about some characteristicsof childhood, and examining and finding the main principles and most effective methods of teaching belief in God. Given the characteristics of childhood, teaching the belief in God should begin from early days of second childhood (i.e. from the age of 3 to 7) and continue from easy to complicated in view of children’s abilities, perceptions and understanding. It was also shown in this research that considering the physical and mental-spiritual characteristics of childhood, the most important principles of teaching the belief in God to children are as follows: the principle of beginning teaching the notion of God since childhood, the principle of child’s readiness, the principle of the primacy of actions over words, and the principle of individual differences. Furthermore, the most effective ways of teaching the notion of God are: the method of the introduction of divine attributes to children, the method of dhikr in different circumstances, and the method of using natural wonders.