My Prophet ﷺ, Myself

The author of this new Daybreak Press publication, Anse Dana Nass, holds dual master’s degrees in psychology and applied behavioral analysis and is an educator, community leader, and scholar. Her educational and religious learning influenced her approach to this book. She focused not only on sira (stories from the life of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ), but also on how to connect these stories to personal growth and behavioral change. She wanted readers to see how the Prophet ﷺ serves as a model for emotional regulation, character development, and everyday decision-making. The author emphasized the importance of positive self-talk and adopting a growth mindset to help students develop these virtues.

My Prophet ﷺ, Myself, a student textbook, draws stories from the Prophet’s ﷺ life, examining his virtues and characteristics, and how children can understand, value, and implement these manners into their own lives. There are twenty-one chapters and each chapter covers a virtue, explains it, and gives related Prophetic stories and examples. At the end of each chapter, reflection prompts and practical exercises are provided to encourage self-awareness and genuine transformation, rather than merely learning facts. The goal is to help internalize the Prophetic examples in a way that feels personal, doable, and deeply rooted in love.

This student textbook can be read alone, but it is also accompanied by a Teacher’s Guide, which is designed to make teaching the virtues more interactive, thoughtful, and practical for students. The Teacher’s Guide allows for a deeper understanding of the topics. It includes hadith for warm-up discussion, discussion points and reflection points, class activities, vocabulary, suggestions for students on how to apply the virtue in their lives, and much more. The supplemental Teacher’s Kit offers additional ample resources and material, including discussion cards, fill-in-the-blank pages, and coloring or drawing pages. Stay tuned to Daybreak Press for more information on how to access the supplemental materials. 

As the materials make up an entire curriculum, I can see this working well in a homeschool, co-op, weekend Islamic school, or other educational setting. 

The book and curriculum is about helping hearts grow spiritually, emotionally, and in character through connection to the Prophet ﷺ. As a homeschool educator myself, I have explored numerous Islamic curricula, and I truly appreciate the time and effort the creators put into this. And since it was created by a behavioral specialist, it will certainly be a unique book that goes beyond teaching information to nurturing deeper, meaningful character growth in a child.