This term we have been encouraging children to become confident public speakers. Every Friday, The boys  and girls in upper key stage 2 have the opportunity to take part in performing the Kuthba (For public proclaiming in the Islamic tradition) for the boys, and Naseeha  (Giving advice )for the girls.

Children are encouraged to plan and write down what they want to share with the congregation. They have to work on projecting their voices and getting their message across with clarity. We are pleased to say that this kind of public speaking has made a positive impact on the confidence of the children and we hope to continue to support this initiative.

We have been encouraging the upper and lower KS 2 boys to perform the Adhaan (Call to pray) at Dhuhur time.  This practice has really made an impact on the confidence  of these boys as they have had to stand in front of everyone and perform the Adhaan in Arabic using the correct techniques of pronunciation . We have seen  so much enthusiasm amongst the boys  who want to have a go and participate.

We ended the week with an amazing assembly where children from each class presented their pioneering personality. The children highlighted key facts about the lives of these special people and show cased their fantastic art work . Well done to all the children for putting so much effort into this week.

As part of our Pioneering Personalities week, we invited guests from our local boxing club ‘Left hook’ to talk to the children about how Mohammed Ali inspired them to take up boxing. They demonstrated  boxing moves and were really impressed with how much the children knew about boxing themselves. We also found out that there were quite a few children who trained in boxing after school! Boxing requires a lot of dedication and discipline so it was great to know that our children were acquiring these important life skills.

To start the week with a bang, the children were welcomed into their classrooms with a special introduction to their pioneering personality. Can you guess who these personalities may be?

During Poetry Day, Key Stage 1 explored various parts of their faith in poetry form. Using their knowledge of poetry and the different types of poems, KS1 created their own in their favourite forms. Year 1 enjoyed creating acrostic poems about what Islam means to them, whilst Year 2 used their poem to explore their relationship with Allah.

The police constable support officers paid  KS 2 at Buttercup a visit to talk to them about being ‘street smart’ – being safe by not talking to strangers or trusting anyone that they are not familiar with. This included remembering not to take anything from those ‘strangers’ regardless of the ‘gifts’ or promises they make. The children also identified who would be a trusted person to go to for help within their network. We look forward to welcoming the officers back again in the future!

The school councilors and vice councilors were taken on a special trip to visit the state rooms of Buckingham palace. The children learned about the history of the rooms and the reasons why these rooms exist and what are the purposes of having them were. The visit also gave the children an insight into the Queen’s role and responsibility to her country and made them think about their own roles and responsibilities to the school council and how important their jobs are!

As part of the Tower Hamlets Linking project, the Year 6 children from Lansbury Lawrence spent the morning with our Year 5 and 6 children. They were given a group task to make the tallest tower using spaghetti and marshmallows. This task encouraged the children to communicate and reason with each other. We ended the day with a picnic in the park and a game of football! We look forward to   visiting Lansbury Lawrence soon.

Refugee week in KS1 culminated in a workshop run by Ummey Shah and Sima Dorasat from Human Relief Foundation. The children participated in a group activity where they shared their knowledge and understanding of refugee week. They were shown a video with information about the responsibility of communities and importance of helping those in need. There was a PSHE message about helping others and hope in the face of adversity. The children also learnt about different situations that can result in someone becoming a refugee, e.g. from war, natural disaster or people being persecuted for their faith, culture and or family unit. The children then wrote letters to a refugee friend as a whole class and then took templates home to write a personal letter that will be delivered by the HRF team. 

The lesson was wonderful, insightful and very engaging.

Here are some thoughts from the children: 

 “I learnt that people have different ways of life and sometimes if someone has two mummies or two daddies some people might not agree and they could harm the family so they need to go to a different country and find a safe home” – Simrah Year 2.

“I found out my teacher Miss Ifraah is from Somalia, in that country a big war happened and many people had to leave. Miss Ifraah came to London when she was my age and she said she felt happy when there was no more war and no sadness” – Talhah year 2.

“I found out that refugee means when someone is scared that they are in danger” – Shajidul Year 1