Cultural Considerations when Working with Arab Families and their Children with Complex Communication Needs (Part II)

Diana Deaibes

9/23/2018 3:48 AM

                                                      Why do some Arab parents not engage in floor play with their children?

In my clinical practice, I participated in an interdisciplinary evaluation with colleagues from occupational and physical therapy.  We were evaluating a young child with her family who recently immigrated to the United States from the Middle East.  During our evaluation, we took the child and her family into a gym area and our occupational and physical therapist began working with the child on the floor.  My colleagues invited the child’s parents to join us on the floor and were left confused when the parents chose to remain standing.  After the evaluation, I explained to my colleagues the various cultural and religious reasons why this family may have chosen to avoid participating in floor play.

For conservative Arab families who practice the religion of Islam, removing shoes, wearing clean clothes, and keeping the body clean is of utmost importance in preparation for prayer.  Practicing Muslims typically pray five types per day.  It is unlikely a practicing Muslim adult will sit on the floor with their children in a room that has been walked on with shoes for the reason that the floor would be considered “unclean” for the Islamic standards of being “pure” for prayer. 

While not all Arab families practice the religion of Islam and follow these practices, there are other Arab families who may not engage in floor play for other reasons.  Some Arab families may not engage in floor play with their children simply because it is not something they have experienced as children or observed within their community.

When we are working with Arab families and their children, it may be important to ask the family where they prefer to sit during the evaluation and provide them with the option to sit in a chair if the family does not want to sit on the floor. It may also be appropriate to ask the family where their child plays in the home and who typically plays with the child in order to provide that person with additional training.  Identifying an appropriate location (i.e., table versus floor) for intervention to occur and family’s roles is essential to ensure that the activities targeted during therapy can be successfully carried over to settings beyond the therapy room. 

Works Consulted:
Why do Muslims take off their shoes? (2010, December 14). Retrieved September 22, 2018, from https://www.knowswhy.com/why-do-muslims-take-off-their-shoes/

Speech-Language Pathologist,Educator,Parent/Family Member,Occupational Therapist,Physical Therapist,Researcher,Developer Vendor,Other,Arabic

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