Learning
1) Approach
2) Subjects
3) Every Child Matters
4) Striving for Excellence
Approach
Our beloved Prophet (PBUH) taught and interacted with children in such a way that many of them grew up to be outstanding companions and model Muslims. He taught us that in order to nurture Imaan in our children; we must first build the foundation blocks.
1. The first is to establish the bond of trust between teacher and student. His approach was always gentle and He made the children feel valued and special. As a result of this bond, children become more receptive to learning.
2. The second is to nurture love for and awareness of Allah.
3. The third is creating positive associations when teaching Islam. He would motivate them with rewards and teach them at their level of understanding.
4. The fourth is to develop the child’s morals and manners.
5. The final is to develop the social dimension of the children by teaching them to implement what they have learnt so that they grow into positive, contributing and active members of their community.
The Prophet (PBUH)’s methodology is the foundation of our of core values; Learn, Love and Live Islam.
1) Our children Learn about Islam in a nurturing and creative way,
2) We instil the Love of Islam by showing them the beauty of our religion, and
3) We teach our children to Live as practising and productive Muslims.
Our core values embodied within the School
Learning Islam
Instead of simply referring to good and bad actions; we all refer to “things that Allah (SWT) would be pleased with and things that Allah (SWT) would not be pleased with”. For example, instead of saying, we should be kind to each other because it is good to be kind, we say, “we should be kind to each other because Allah (SWT) is pleased with us when we are kind”. In this way, it would help the children lay a foundation of purifying their intention to please Allah (SWT) from a young age.
Loving Islam
When we teach about Jannah, we become very excited about how it is a place that we can have whatever we want. But to get there, we have to walk along a straight path doing lots of good deeds and avoid opening doors which lead us to doing bad deeds. This helps the children to develop a deep love of Jannah in their hearts and a simple visualisation in their minds of how they can get to Jannah.
Living Islam
Wherever possible, we relate everything to the creation and provision of Allah (SWT). For example, in a lesson on how Allah provides for us, we looked at a map and talked to the children about how the rice on our plates started growing in a rice field many months ago, in another country. Then Allah (SWT) transported these items across the world to a supermarket where our parents brought it and cooked it and served it as for their dinner. We further explained how each grain of rice or portion of food that we eat was intended for us only and what someone else eats was intended for that person only. Always referring everything back to Allah’s (SWT)provision and love, helps the children to develop taqwa and gratitude from a young age inshaa Allah.
Subjects
We teach:-
• Quran (reading, understanding and memorising)
• Arabic (learning to write and introduction to Arabic Language)
• Islamic Studies (learning and applying real life lessons from the Quran and Hadiths)
Al-Bayyinah School uses the Al Barakah curriculum, which has been developed over years of research by a dedicated team from Al-Barakah Foundation.
Quran
The curriculum for Quran has two components to it; firstly the skill of learning to read Arabic with the correct makhaarij and in older years this will include learning rules of tajweed with understanding the meaning and secondly hifdh.
We always stress that time constraints at Al Bayyinah do not allow us to take a student through a completion of reading the whole Quran, rather we aim to equip students with the skill of reading, knowledge of tajweed and a love to engage with the Quran inshaa Allah. Both these component of reading skills and hifdh are important in all classes from year one up the senior classes. The syllabus specifies what topics are to be covered week by week.
Older students have a syllabus that caters to more advanced topics of tajweed and explanation of the meaning.
Arabic
After years of research, Al Barakah has developed its’ own unique syllabus and books for English speaking students. It is a seven year progressive programme of Arabic reading, writing and understanding. It provides a strong foundation for future Arabic studies and the understanding of the Quran. Arabic reading and writing skills are taught, frequently using words from the Quran. Older students will use these skills and additional grammar learnt to translate Surah’s from the Quran. Our focus in Arabic is to enable students to gain knowledge of the Quran and Hadiths. Senior classes build on the Arabic knowledge gained and continue to develop through advanced Arabic courses.
Islamic Studies
The aim of Islamic Studies is to teach the correct knowledge of Islam according to the Quran and Sunnah. We endeavour to create the love of Islam within all students and enable them to implement what they have learnt within their everyday lives. Different aspects of Islamic Studies topics are covered in a structured curriculum. This way the students build their knowledge and understanding term by term, year by year.
Every Child Matters
As all children learn in different ways, it is essential for the teacher to provide a variety of learning opportunities throughout the day in different subjects. All students receive targeted support and are challenged so that their learning is tailored to their needs, interests and abilities. This is achieved by adopting a well-structured approach to a child’s learning, which allows more progress, better outcomes and participation.
We regular hold training sessions for our staff delivered by experienced mainstream teachers on how to teach children with special needs, the different learning styles, safeguarding our students, delivering first aid to children of particular medical needs and effective lesson planning.
Striving for Excellence
We have developed a scholarship program within the school for our gifted students who have shown particular ability to excel in their studies. These students are taken out of their normal lessons to be given specialist focused time with our Senior teachers in order to enhance their potential.