INDEPENDENT LEARNERS: arabic

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Friday, 3 July 2009

Lots to do...

...but so little time!!
Assalamu alaykum
summer just started and as promised the free courses and sport events are out! So much to choose from. This year looks even bigger and better than any other year! Mash'Allah.
So I took advantage of those great free courses once again and registered both boys to some maths, literacy, science, fencing, tennis, cricket, art and craft club and much more!!! Insh'Allah.
This year, above all, I am so interested about what the Muslim Community has to offer for our youngsters and small ones. I found some excellent resources and I am sure so many kids won't be bored at home, stuck in front of telly! Mash'Allah there is lots to choose from: from Islamic science to the Seerah, from Quranic classes to Nasheeds workshops! There is bound to be something out there for your kids,insh'Allah.

Back to us...
The past week I have home educated the kids for 3 days mash'Allah. I was hoping to stay indoors for 4 days but the weather was irresistible!! Mash'Allah!
Saturday A. gave a miss to the Saturday school and we ended up having a picnic at the park.
Sunday the boys were at wrestling all day while me and baby attended a janaza prayer at the masjid. May Allah have mercy on my dear friend/sister.Amin.
On Monday we re-started homeschooling.We carried on with Calvert curriculum for A. . Just few more lessons and we are finished for this year. I am really hoping to finish before the end of July insh'Allah but I don't think we will.
S. carried on with mindsprinting for literacy and numeracy. But he used enchanted learning and parents in touch for science.
Monday the boys attended swimming and had their tests. Looks like they passed, mash'Allah. I am just awaiting for their certificates and new badges.Insh'Allah.

This week was also the start of our new Islamic curriculum. I am so pleased with it and I cannot tell you how much my kids have enjoyed so far.
We started to talk about Tawheed. I wanted the boys to re-start afresh with Islamic Studies and go back to basic.
We made a poster and wrote about the categories of Tawheed:
Tawheedur-Ruboobiyyah: Maintaining Oneness of the Lordship of Allaah
Tawheedul-Uloohiyyah: Maintaining Oneness of the Worship of Allaah
Tawheedul-Asma was-Sifaat: Maintaining Oneness of the Names (Asma) and the Qualities/Attributes (Sifaat) of Allaah
We studied Tawheed Ar-Ruboobeeyah and Tawheed Al Uloohiyah in depth and produced some nice work. Kids listened to this lecture prior to start the lesson about Tawheed.
The kids worked on two main projects: it was a story book for A. He had to write down a story for children of 3-4 years about Tawheed Ar-Ruboobeyah. He wrote a story of two children that while enjoying in the park wondered about Allah's creation and ask questions about who created this and that. Mash'Allah. He completed his work adding colourful pictures to his booklet and a hard back.
S. worked on a mobile made out of paper clips and straws. He attached to each paper clip a cloud. In each cloud he wrote about Tawheed ar-Ruboobeyah answering questions such as 'Who is my Creator?' 'What does Rabb means?' ' Name three small things Allah made' etc. Mash'Allah.
This Islamic Curriculum is really one of the best for us as it uses very nice and inexpensive resources, mostly free from the Internet. Hamdulillah! I would recommend it to all. (see my previous entry for more details about Tailor Made curriculum).

Thursday we attended the usual meeting with other homeschoolers...there weren't many this week. Where were you all???? I bet the weather was far too out for the kids!!
My boys really wanted to go so I made an extra special effort to take myself down the park without the car! And the bus was crowded and hot!!!!Kids complained all the way...hamdulilah.

Also this week, art and craft club for S. He mastered a new technique using paint and cotton buds. Mash'Allah. We reproduced same technique at home and decorated some paper plates.

What's more?
-There was a visit to the Natural History Museum to learn about mammals and to the Investigate Centre;
-Qur'an and Arabic was on as usual;
-Learning the stories of the Caliphs from a audio CD from Islamic Foundation. Really nicely made and A. really like to put it on in the evening before listening to the Qur'an. It's a bit like bed time story, mash'Allah.
-Boys received new Islamic books mash'Allah. Some great titles there such as 'Qur'an stories', 'Parents love', 'Ramadan is coming', 'The story of Yusuf (as)' and I was impressed by one in particular. It is called 'Let's go Dua catching'. A really sweet story with very nice pictures. A different Islamic book from the rest.Mash'Allah.

More about this week in our pics...it's 4.15am and mash'Allah dawn is here...such a beautiful time of the day...I am going to catch some blessings insh'Allah!

Happy home edu to all! x

Bubbles: a classic of summer!

Thursday Group!

Baby at the Thursday group.

Some more pics of the park we do attend on Thursdays

Foam puzzle, learning about continents. £1 from Poundland

Learning about the Human body in English and French.

Baby's art attack!

New arty technique

Painting with cotton buds

A.'s painting his paper plate

Baby and his friends: ducky and eeyore.

Learning about Art very fast, mash'Allah.

The mobile S. made about Tawheed Ar-Ruboobeya.

It's the one with the clouds!

A close-up of one cloud. it says: Allah is my creator.

Lavender blooming in my garden

Some really nice flowers I forgot kids planted in Spring

And our veggies...cherry tomatoes

Dwarf beans

Some freshly made mint tea after dinner...

better drank in the garden.

A collection of 5 books, great value for money and great titles.

' Let's go dua catching'

At the Investigate centre, Natural History Museum

baby's learning too.

A.'s writing about his findings

A 3 mt. long snake skin (python)

S.'s using the computer in the centre

The Investigate centre

Thursday, 25 June 2009

Summer is here!

Assalamu alaykum, summer is here!!! Such a special time of the year and this year is even more special!! Ramadan will be starting soon. Here the kids cannot wait...they are looking forward to the atmosphere and peace of such a blessed Month!!!
I am too getting ready for it, I know it's late, not really an example taken from our predecessors...Ya Allah!
We have the summer all sorted, insh'Allah and Allah is the Best Planner!! A. will be attending summer schools and learn some more literacy and numeracy, ICT and Maths and finally gardening. Insh'Allah. S. will be at a summer play scheme in the local leisure centre. Both kids will then join the local leisure centres for some fencing and archery. I cannot wait!! And the best bit? It's all for free!!! Mash'Allah.

Back to our past week.
We have been homeschooling 4 days, mash'Allah. Trying our out most to finish Calvert on time. Mindsprinting and Calvert will be put down by the end of July so I hope by then to have the kids completed all the required lessons. Insh'Allah.
So what have we been up to?
Art and Craft was on. We painted glass jars with the same paint-markers we used for the tiles. Kids painted two big jars for the biscuits. And three glasses that we now use as candle holders.
Also this week S. brought back home his clay pieces he made 2 weeks ago at the Art and Craft Club. Mash'Allah he was so happy with himself and showed the pieces around to his friends!

Qur'an and Arabic was on. The tajweed is getting along mash'Allah and the tutor seems happy with the boys. They are now approaching the last few verses of Juzz 'Amma.
Although they already know all the 30th part of the Qur'an by heart, mash'Allah, this time around they are more confident because they know their Tajweed rules and can actually reading the surahs rather than repeating them.Mash'Allah tabarak'Allah! It's a long process to teach kids tajweed rules, but I felt it is for the best as only Hifdh cannot replace reading Qur'anic Arabic.

Also to implement their understanding of Qur'an,we carried on using the tafseer booklets from the ad-Duha institute, hamdulillah. I find that kids can benefit much more by understanding the stories behind each surah.
I have also ordered two guides from Tailor Made Educational Guides. Mash'Allah I have received them both in record time and I couldn't believe myself!! They are fantastic! I have asked them to tailor two guides in Islamic studies for my boys concentrating more on the lives of the Companions and Tawheed. I am so pleased with the guides and we have started using them right away. Mash'Allah! Prices are very competitive and the resources are based on authentic sources. They don't do only Islamic Studies.
Here it's what they do.
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Asalamuu ‘aalaykum,
Are you a Home Educator who wants to provide your children with a fun education, specific to their own interests and needs? Do you want your children to learn the ‘traditional’ subjects but in a fun way related to their hobbies? Are you a parent who is unhappy with the ‘boxed in’ approach within your children’s school and wish to provide a supplement at home to your child’s education that they will enjoy? Are you a parent who not only values the education of your children but also is passionate about them excelling in their unique interests? Are you a teacher who works in a private school and needs help with planning for your unique students?
If you have answered YES to any of the above questions, then I am excited to announce something that will insha’Allah meet your needs, more importantly your children’s needs and will give you more time to enjoy educating your children. My name is Umm ‘Adbullah and I would like to introduce you to Tailor Made Educational Guides.
All praise is due to Allah, we are a small group of sisters who have led careers as teachers. Some of us left the ‘traditional’ teaching path and are now home educating our children. We provide a service whereby the parent, home educator or teacher contacts us with the interests, strengths and weaknesses of the child. A tailor made educational guide is then produced specifically for that child. We take into account the hobbies of the child, what they absolutely HATE doing, and what they LOVE to do.
One of our recent customers was a homeschooling mother. Her youngest child, aged 5 loves insects and reptiles, hates writing and loves maths. We took this into consideration and produced a 6 month guide whereby he pursued his love of insects and reptiles (with integrated Islamic Studies), enjoyed the fact that there was a lot of ‘insect and reptile maths’ and we created ways in which he could practice on his writing skills without realising he was actually doing so. In the end, a happy mother and child.
We have a range of guides to suit you:
* 1 YEAR CURRICULUM
* 6 MONTH CURRICULUM
* 3 MONTH CURRICULUM
* HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES
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* UNIT STUDIES.
The process is as follows: – You contacts us with your requirement. We then email you a questionnaire which will enable us to create a tailor made curriculum for your child. – You choose a GOLD, SILVER or BRONZE option and within an agreed time frame, you receive your educational guide.
GOLD: The guide with resources.
SILVER: The guide with ideas to do with your child.
BRONZE: The guide.
We specialize in Islamic Studies as well as integrating Islamic Studies into your child’s hobby-based guide.
The benefits of this option:
* A quality educational guide based on what YOUR child ENJOYS.
* You have more time to enjoy educating your children as we do all the planning for you.
* Authentic Islam integrated into the tailor-made guides based on the Qu’ran, Sunnah and way of the righteous predecessors.
We are in the process of setting up our website, but in the meantime, if you would like to take benefit of our services and to request a quote, you may contacts us on tailormadeeducationalguides@hotmail.co.uk
Waalaykum ‘aasalam Umm ‘Abdulla
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What's more?
-Lots of picnics and visits to the park. One more visit to 'Discover' but opted to stay outdoors in their front garden.
-Wrestling;
-Swimming;
-Saturday Supplementary school for A.;
-Gardening and eating 'al fresco'!
Hamdulillah!

wa alaykum assalam
happy weekend and a very good home education week to all!