Worship Education in Childhood: A Pedagogical Reading of the Buniyal-Islām Hadith

This article presents a developmental–spiritual framework for childhood worship education based on a pedagogical reading of the hadith Buniyal-Islām ʿalā Khams. Using a conceptual–interpretive method, it integrates Islamic sources with developmental theories (Bandura, Erikson, Fowler, Kohlberg, and Piaget) and Islamic educational thought. Each Islamic pillar is aligned with a specific age range (3–14 years), supporting age-appropriate, embodied, and participatory practices. The model critiques Iran’s propositional religious curriculum and promotes child-centered, experiential learning in home, school, and mosque. By positioning children as spiritual meaning makers, this framework offers a transformative vision for Islamic education in contemporary pluralistic contexts.