How can we practise good guest manners through role-play at home? 

Parenting Perspective 

Role-playing is a wonderfully effective tool for teaching social skills because it provides a safe space for practice without the pressure of a real audience. By turning guest manners into a fun and playful activity at home, you can help your child build the confidence and muscle memory they need to be a warm and welcoming host when visitors arrive. 

Keep It Playful and Fun 

Turn the lesson into a game. Take turns being the ‘guest’ who knocks on the door. Use toy tea sets or real glasses of water to practise offering drinks. When the activity is framed as play rather than a chore, children are far more engaged and less anxious about getting it right. 

Teach One Step at a Time 

Avoid overwhelming them with a long list of rules. Focus on mastering one skill at a time. One day, you might practise a cheerful ‘Assalamu Alaikum’ at the door. The next, you could focus on politely offering a seat. Breaking it down into small steps makes the process feel manageable and builds confidence with each success. 

Offer Gentle Feedback and Praise 

After each practice run, offer warm and specific feedback. You could say, ‘I loved the big smile you gave me when you opened the door!’ If a correction is needed, frame it positively: ‘That was great. Next time, let us try offering the drink with two hands.’ 

Build Natural Confidence 

Regular, low-pressure practice helps these gracious behaviours become second nature. Your child will move from feeling anxious about what to do, to feeling confident and capable as a host. They learn to associate welcoming guests with a sense of pride and accomplishment. 

This approach ensures that when real guests arrive, your child’s good manners will flow from a place of confident habit, not anxious duty. 

Spiritual Insight 

In Islam, honouring a guest is a significant act of faith and a key component of the Prophet’s ﷺ Sunnah. When we use role-play to teach these manners, we are actively preparing our children to live out a beautiful and beloved part of their religion. 

Allah Almighty states in the noble Quran at Surah Al Nisa (4), Verse 36: 

‘ And worship Allah (Almighty) only, and do not ascribe to anything instead of Him (Allah Almighty); (which amounts to  icon worshipping/paganism); and with parents (proceed with them favourably), and with close relatives and friends and impoverished (people); and your neighbour that is close to your neighbourhood, and the neighbour that is remote from you; and the companion by your side and the traveller and those (women) that are legally bound to you; indeed, Allah (Almighty) does not love those who are deceitful and arrogant.’ 

This verse places good conduct towards guests and neighbours right alongside the command to worship Allah, showing that our social manners are deeply connected to our faith. 

It is recorded in Sahih Muslim, Hadith 47, that the holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: 

‘He who believes in Allah and the Last Day should honour his guest.’ 

This direct and powerful hadith makes hospitality a proof of one’s faith. By teaching our children to honour their guests, we are helping them to live out one of the most important signs of a true believer. 

By using role-play to train your children, you connect their learning with the values of the noble Quran and the Sunnah. Over time, they will learn that good manners towards guests are not only family traditions but also sacred acts that bring them closer to Allah Almighty.