Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said,
“Make the word ‘There is no god but Allah’ the first word that your children hear, and on their death, help them say, ‘There is no god but Allah’.”
In his book, Ahkam al-Mawlud, Ibn al-Qayyim said, “When a child struts to speak, his parents should teach him to say, ‘There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.’ A child should first hear something related to the knowledge about Allah, Most High; His Oneness, His Sovereignty and His Attributes. Therefore, the best names in the sight of Allah are ‘Abdullah and “Abd ar-Rahman. Thus, when a child commences to discern the meanings of things, he will understand that he is a servant of Allah, and that Allah is his Master.”
“Abd al-Karim ibn Umayyah reported that the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) used to teach children of Banu Hashim to say, “And say ‘Praise be to Allah, Who begets no son, and has no partner in (His) dominion: nor (needs) He any to protect Him from humiliation: And magnify Him, for His Greatness and Glory.’” (Surah Al-Isra’:111) seven times once they start to talk.[1]
In this connection, Ibn Zhufr al-Makki narrated, “When Abu Sulayman Dawud ibn Nasir at-Ta’i (may Allah have mercy on him) turned five, his father sent him to an instructor, who started to teach him the Qur’an. The child was keen to memorize what his instructor taught him. When he memorized Surah Al-Insan by heart, his mother saw him on a Friday, looking at the wall, reflecting and pointing (to something) with his hand. 
Being worried about him, she called him saying, ‘O Dawud! Go out to play with the other boys.’ He remained silent and his mother pressed him to her bosom, saying, ‘Woe to me!’ The child said, ‘O mother! Is there anything wrong with you?’ She replied, ‘What are you thinking about?’ He responded, ‘About the servants of Allah.’ She wondered, ‘Where are they?’ He disclosed, ‘In Paradise.’ She asked, ‘What are they doing there?’ He declared, “… Reclining in the (Garden) on raised thrones, they will see there, neither the sun’s (excessive heal) nor excessive cold.”[2] He, then, continued reciting the surah until he reached the verse that reads, “… Verily this is a reward for you, and your endeavor is accepted and recognized.”[3] He impressively asked, ‘O mother! What was their ‘endeavor’?’ As she was unable to answer him, he said to her, ‘Please, leave me alone to enjoy their company for an hour.’ His mother informed his father about the issue. Thus, his father answered his question saying, ‘Their ‘endeavor’ was that they said: ‘There is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.’ Therefore, the child continued to recite this statement most of the time.”[4]
On receiving the mission, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) called ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) to Islam although ‘Ali was not more than ten years old. On his part, ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) believed in his mission and secretly accompanied him to the outskirts of Makkah to perform Prayer, away from his parents and family. When the child’s father, Abu Talib, saw his son perform the prayer with the Messenger of Allah, he asked the Prophet (peace be upon him), “O my nephew! What is that religion you are calling to?” The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) answered him, “O uncle! This is the religion of Allah, His angels, and His Messengers. It is the religion of our forefather Ibrahim. Allah has sent me as a Messenger to all people. You are more deserving of my call than the others, and so you are to believe in it and help me in this regard.”[5]
Zayd ibn Harithah, who was brought from Syria as a prisoner of war by Khadijah‘s uncle Hakim ibn Huzam, was the first slave to embrace Islam. The Mother of the Believers, Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her) chose Zayd to be her slave-boy, and later, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) asked his wife, Khadijah, to give him Zayd. Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) set him free, and adopted and educated him.[6]
That was the way in which the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) founded his newly-born Islamic State, focusing his attention on children. He concerned himself with them, cared about them ) and called them to Islam, ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) played a vital role on the occasion of the Prophet’s Hijrah to Madinah, when he slept in the house of the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him). That was the Prophetic methodology in raising children to be the leaders of the future and the founders of the newly-born Islamic community.
[1] Imam “Abd ar-Raziq, Musannaf, vol. 4, p. 334.
[2] This is a quotation from the Qur’an, Surah Al-Insan: 13.
[3] Surah Al-Insan: 22.
[4] Ibn Zufr al-Makki, Anbu’ Nujaba’ At-Alma’, p. 160.
[5] Ibn As-Salah, Muqaddimah, p. 160.
[6] ‘Abd as-Salam Hashim Hafiz, Sirat Nabi Al-Huda War-Rahmah, Islamic World League, Makkah, p. 81.
