Zakah as one of the Five Pillars
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain the importance and use of zakah and khums as charitable taxes within Islam.
Key learning points
- Zakah is one of the Five Pillars and Ten Obligatory Acts within Islam.
- Zakah is a compulsory charitable tax paid by Muslims of 2.5% of their wealth in a year.
- Zakah is used to support those in need in the Ummah and wider world.
- Khums is an additional tax paid by Shi'a Muslims of 20%.
Keywords
Giving alms - giving to those in need, e.g., money, food, time; this is a key practice in Islam
Khums - 'one fifth'; an additional 20% tax paid by Shi'a Muslims as alms
Zakah - 'to purify'; a charity tax where Muslims give 2.5% of their yearly wealth as alms
Ummah - community'; the worldwide community of Muslims who share a common religious identity
Common misconception
Zakah and khums are voluntary donations to charity.
Zakah is obligatory in Sunni Islam and both zakah and khums are obligatory in Shi'a Islam. Additional voluntary donations can be made to charity as well and is known as sadaqah.
Teacher tip
Students can research some of the projects around the world that zakah money supports, as well as looking at zakah and khums calculations online to see how much of someone's wealth is given away through these obligatory percentages.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
4 Questions
Q1.How many daily prayers are required in Islam?
Q2.Muslims can pray alone or in groups, as long as the place is .
Q3.One example of a difference in prayer between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims is that ...
Q4.What is the name of the Friday congregational prayer?
Assessment exit quiz
5 Questions
Q1.Zakah is part of which two groups of obligations in Islam?
Q2.How much of a Muslim’s wealth is given annually as zakah?
Q3.In Shi’a Islam, both zakah and are obligatory forms of charity.
Q4.What is the term for voluntary charitable giving in Islam?
Q5.What percentage of savings is given as khums?
To help you plan your 11 religious education lesson on: Zakah as one of the Five Pillars, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 religious education lesson on: Zakah as one of the Five Pillars, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
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The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
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