Is it permissible to use images to teach children, such as images of animals?

The questioner : It is the same thing with drawing. If I am teaching my son that this is not permissible, if it is just a skeleton, it is not permissible.

The Shaykh : Not at all. If the child does not understand from you what you want to convey to him, then if it is by an image he understands, there is no harm, but it is depicted and explained. This all falls under the rule that "necessities permit what is prohibited" and "necessity is measured by its extent." For example, let me give an example of the countries we live in today. The donkey, for instance, and the horse, the mare, the sheep, and the chicken; all these things are known to those who live in these countries. So there is no need for the teacher to come and draw a picture of a donkey for this boy to understand that this is a donkey. He sees it; it is one of the creations of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). But if I want to explain an image, and it is necessary to understand this creation that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) created, then it is depicted. But if there is no necessity, there is no need.
The Shaykh : I am giving a practical example. The circle of knowledge for young children is, of course, very limited, within the bounds of their age. And as each one of them grows older, their circle of knowledge expands. So a boy who, for example, has reached the age of accountability may be exposed to eating, for example, some animals. He is among many young people who do not distinguish between the forbidden and the lawful, such as the falcon, or the eagle, or something like that. He has never seen it depicted. So you want to explain to him that this type of flying predator is not permissible to eat, so you depict it, so that he understands what Allah has forbidden for him. But if he has also seen it with his eyes, then there is no need for depiction either. So "necessities permit what is prohibited" and "necessity is measured by its extent." This expansion that we are afflicted with today in using images to teach children is a contagion from the contagion of the disbelievers who do not prohibit or permit. So we have become taking everything they present to us without presenting it to the law of our Lord. We take what agrees with it, and we reject what contradicts it. We do not do this, and this is how we must actually do it. May Allah reward you with good.