2015-16

Our Future –Our Children

Contents

1. Welcome to Ayasofia- Message from the Head teacher

2. Facilities

3. Our vision

4. Creating a learning environment

5. Teaching and learning

6. Islamic nurturing

7. Extra curricular activities

8. Extra curricular activities

9. Health, safety and Well being

10. Admission to our school

Head Teacher’s Message

Firstly we thank you for showing your interest in Tower Hamlets most popular and successful Muslim Primary school. We initiated this project to open a unique and leading Muslim Primary school in heart of Tower Hamlets. Alhamdulillah we have succeeded in our plans to establish and develop Ayasofia from strength to strength.

This school is borne from the significant need from the local community for an outstanding primary co educational establishment, which combines the Tarbiyah ( Pastoral care/ Nurturing) programme that our community is in in need of alongside a broad , balanced and exciting curriculum.

We have been serving the community since April 2009 and are strategically based in a location which benefits from nearby large libraries and sport centres.

This information pack provides some of the details of what we aim to do and how you can help. In addition we would greatly welcome enquiries from parents and guardians regarding our school.

Our Vision • To form the Islamic personality, behaviour and build awareness of our

pupils in partnership with parents through an enhanced Islamic environment.

• Providing an environment where our children's personalities can be built upon the Islamic values, whereby Islam is the criterion of judgement and action between the teacher and children and between the children themselves.

• To impart valuable social skills according to the Sunnah of the Prophet (saw) such as cooperation, patience, caring for others, reacting property, people- and their cultures etc so that they have the skills to interact with the wider society

• To equip our pupils with the knowledge, skills and confidence for the challenges of life in the contempo­rary world, and enhancing their Love for Allah (SWT) and His Rasul (SAW)

• To provide a fun accelerated programme that enables each child to learn his or her own pace, achieved by maintaining relatively small class size.

• To produce well nurtured and balanced children with a strong Islamic personality who will be the children of tomorrow and a role model to many amongst them Insha’Allah.

• We aim to be a beacon of excellence in all areas of the child’s learning and development and Islamic character.

• To allow every child to work to their full potential with originality and creativity.

• To develop on our National Curriculum and integrate it with Islamic Studies which will offer a more spiritual and moral development for our children.

Facilities

Ayasofia Primary school is a community primary school in the heart of East London with approximately 110 pupils. The children who attend Ayasofia are aged from 5-11.

Our school consists of two premises one for each Key Stage. We have recently refurbished classrooms which accommodates children’s needs.

We have a well equipped computer suite, library and big halls for individual and group sessions.

As our facilities grow and develop Insha’Allah, hey will allow creativity in our teaching and learning.

We also enjoy our playtime in the local parks which provides exciting and stimulating activities for the children.

Creating a learning environment

We start the day of with the Remembrance of God. Children recite their Quran and Qaida which freshens them up and enlightens them for the whole day.

The school maintains a happy and secure atmosphere for children and staff. ‘

’Pupils’ personal development, especially their spiritual and moral development, is good. The arrangements for pupils’ welfare, health and safety are good, including those

for safeguarding. The school is a very caring community’’

Ofsted March 2011

ASSEMBLIES Assemblies play an important part in the life of the school. They serve to emphasize and perpetuate the school's strong Islamic, social and moral values and contribute to the development of the school's ethos and collective conscience as well as the personal development of each child. Assemblies are conducted by the Head teacher, the Head of Islamic Studies and other members of staff as well as classes of children.

Effective Learning We acknowledge that people learn in many

different ways and we recognise the need to develop strategies that allow all children to learn in ways that best suit them. We take account of visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning styles when planning our teaching. In so doing many learning opportunities are made available to the children.

These include:

investigation and problem solving;

research and finding out; group work;

pair work; independent work; whole-class work;

asking and answering questions; use of ICT;

fieldwork and visits to places of educational interest; creative activities; multi-media activities (e.g. watching television and responding to musical or tape-recorded material)debates, role-plays and oral presentations; designing and making things;

participation in athletic or physical activity.

We encourage children to take responsibility for their own learning, to be involved as far as possible in reviewing the way they learn, and to reflect on how they learn – what helps them learn and what makes it difficult for them to learn.

Effective Teaching When teaching we focus on motivating the

children and building on their skills, knowledge and understanding of the curriculum. We use the national curriculum and school curriculum maps to guide our teaching. This sets out the aims and objectives of our school and details what is to be taught in each year group.

We base our teaching on our knowledge of the children’s level of attainment (Assessment for Learning) Our prime focus is to develop further the knowledge, skills and understanding of the children. We strive to ensure that all activities set are appropriate to each child’s level of ability.

When planning work for children with special educational needs we give due regard to information and targets contained in the children’s individual and group education plans (IEPs). We have high expectations of all children, and we believe that the vast majority

of their work is of the highest possible standard.

We set literacy based targets for the children each term and we share these targets with children and their parents. We review the progress of each child at the end of each term and revised targets are set as appropriate.

We plan our lessons with clear learning objectives. We take these objectives from the National Curriculum or the National Literacy or Numeracy Strategy. Our medium and short term lesson plans contain detailed information about the teaching activities and tasks to be set, the resources needed, and the way we assess the children’s work. All lessons so that we can modify and improve our teaching and the children’s learning in the future.

The National Curriculum Our curriculum focuses on the early

learning goals and on developing children’s skills and experiences. We fully support the principle that young children learn through play, creativity and by engaging in well-planned and structured lessons and activities.

Ayasofia Primary School promotes the Islamic personality development of the child,. Therefore, Islamic development and Arabic language & Qur’an also form part of our foundation stage Curriculum.

Areas covered

Personal, social and emotional development

Communication, language and literacy

Mathematical development

Knowledge and understanding of the world

Physical development

Creative development

Learning Support

We at Ayasofia believe that each child is different and each

child has their own individual needs and strengths and

weaknesses. No two pupils are the same. This is why we have

extra booster classes twice a week for some children who may

need extra support. Individual lesson plans are carefully

tailored to individual needs. We believe that no child should be

made to feel less bright than another.

Homework

At Ayasofia we believe children learn best when parents and

teachers work together. Parents can help in the classroom by

hearing children read, sharing their skills and also participating

on outings.

At home, we hope parents are able to share the enjoyment of

books and maths games which children take home on a regular

basis every week, and to hear them read regularly. Parents

can also help support class work when teachers ask children to

do some research or to try to collect objects to enrich school

projects. Details of such and other homework are provided to

all parents by the class teachers at a team meeting at the

beginning of each term.

Homework is a collective responsibility of the class teacher,

pupil and the parent or carer. Homework demands should not

infringe on children’s rights to play, physical activities and rest.

The school views home work as an extension of the learning

process and not as a test or competition

Islamic Nurturing and Curriculum

Our curriculum covers broadly the teachings of Islam including belief in Allah, the articles of faith, prayer, the life of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW), the lives of other prophets, the glorious Islamic history. This subject is supported with religious assemblies covering Islamic morals and concepts. Most notably we have a special Hifz Program alongside

Pupils are taught the correct pronunciation of all 29 Arabic letters with its correct articulation (Makhaarij) and attributes (Siffat). We use the Qaida of Arabic reading and progress onto the correct and fluent reading of Quran. The lessons also include memorization of Qur'an with the target that children have memorized Juz Amma by the age of 5-6, followed by the memorisation of the Surahs of the Quran that are recommended for daily reading. The overall meaning of the chapters will also be discussed with the pupils

The level of memorization is subject to a child’s personal ability as well as parental support. The basic rules (Tajweed) of recitation will also be taught.

Aqaid: This covers the pillars of Iman, i.e. Tawheed, the Attributes and Siffat of Allah (SWT) and its memorisation, the love for the Sake of Allah [Wt] and his Messenger (SAW), overview of Quran, the 5 Pillars of Islam etc

Fiqh: This covers topics from Cleanliness, Wudhu, Salah, Sawm, Zakah, Hajj etc

Adab Wal-Akhlaq: This covers topics like manners of eating, sharing, dressing and travelling and all the daily Duahs daily supplications (Essential Memorization Course) are also covered in this topic (this is our core subject for early years)

Hadeeth: This covers the memorisation of Hadeeth together with its translation and its source

Tareekh: This begins from the creation of Adam and includes the life’s of all the previous messengers, most notably the life of Rasullah in Mecca and Madina.

We aim to nurture our children in the best Islamic way possible

Extra curricular activities

Educational Visits, Resources & Activities

Educational visits are arranged on average once a term, to various places of interest to support Children’s learning. Parents/guardians may be asked to contribute towards the cost of the trip and occasionally to assist with the trip.

For the most part, the school provides materials and equipment that the children need. Parents may be asked to purchase resources that are to be used at home on

Ayasofia Summer Fun School

We have a summer school programme every year. This is usually for 2-3 weeks during the summer holiday. This has proven to be very successful since 2009. We have many children participating and a lot of volunteers willing to help out.

Ayasofia Summer School will take place again this year Insha'Allah. Children absolutely love all the different activities that take place every day. We do glass painting, masjid crafting, clay modelling, bouncy castle, trips, puppet shows, sewing, picnics and much more.

Al Hikmah Institute and Ayasofia Weekend school

Alhamdulillah we also have a supplementary weekend school where your child will receive extra help on a one to one support basis. We also have Al Hikmah Girls Institute which caters for young girls. The syllabus covers everything they need to know at this age and will benefit them greatly.

Gallery

Health, safety and well being

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils

Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Behaviour in lessons and around the school is good in the vast majority of cases. This helps to make the school an orderly and respectful community and also supports the development of good attitudes to learning.

Pupils’ enjoyment of school is reflected in their good attendance. Rules and expectations are underpinned by Islamic moral teachings and are understood by pupils. Their self-esteem is developed effectively in a number of ways. There are satisfactory opportunities for pupils to contribute in lessons and individual academic, creative and sporting performance is celebrated.

Ofsted 2011

Admission to our school

Our Admissions Policy details the registration and admissions process. In summary the process is as follows:

Registration Form and Questionnaire received are placed on the waiting list

During intake periods or on availability, the applicants are invited to an interview

A successful applicant is offered a place or put on standby until a place becomes available;

Admissions are processed and a start date given.

We at Ayasofia take the following criteria into consideration before admission:

Ability of children in Islamic studies

Ability of children within the National Curriculum

Motivation of children learning, parents support and Islamic mindset

Ayasofia is a mixed gender school which recruits children between the ages of 5 to 11.

Contact Us Address

Ayasofia Primary School

130-132 Cavell Street

Whitechapel

London E1 2JA

Journey

Nearest tube station: Whitechapel Underground

Bus Route: 25, 215, 254, 106, DW

& ELW

Contact

020 7247 4928

07823486134

info@ayasofiaprimary.com

www.ayasofiaprimary.com