Dear Parents and Carers,

Thank you! We have been receiving your very kind thanks and appreciation for the enormous work our staff have accomplished this year. 

Thank you! Our first Year 6 families have shared their gratitude for the education, care and support our teachers have given to their children in building character and learning over the past 3 years. 

 Thank you! So many positive responses to our online Zoom sessions. Teachers have been working hard to adapt and show flexibility to ensure you can all see inside the classroom. 

Thank you! To our wonderful parent volunteers, Ayse Kizilkaya, Aysun Caliskan, Reyhan Sonmez, and Saliha Duran for the dedication and ongoing support throughout the year.

An extra huge THANK YOU from us all, for the fabulous teacher appreciation gifts given to all staff. We are so very grateful for the generosity and recognition.

Thank you! To our staff. What an outstanding group of individuals you are. The strength of commitment found in our teachers who continually strive to do their very best to ensure our children learn. It is seen in the professional way in which they meet many challenges and care unconditionally for every learner in our school without exception and any expectation of reward or thanks.

Thank you! Our wonderful admin Ms Tulay and Ms Gizem for their hard work throughout the year, and especially for their support throughout these last few weeks of term.

Farewell to our magnificent:

• Dilek Isanc, who will be spreading her teaching skills around Maarif as a casual teacher. Thank you for your enthusiasm and care.
• Cansu Kaba, we wish you all the very best with your growing family and look forward to seeing baby pictures in the new year.

It is with a saddened heart that we farewell these wonderful people who have made a real difference to our school and your children. Thank you so much for the energy and support you have given us here. We will miss you but wish you all the very best.

Thank you! To Maarif children, our learners, who come every day and try their very best. They are not afraid to make mistakes, support their friends and their teachers, and are always willing to have a go and try new things. Our teachers and I are very, very proud of every single child. We enjoy watching them learn and grow into responsible, loving, compassionate and caring human beings.

Enjoy this special time with your loved ones. Wishing you all an enjoyable summer break and I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday 1 February 2022.

Dr Zeynep Yaseen

Principal 

Well done to all students who have been displaying superior character and effort at school. The students of the week deserve recognition and are to be commended for their efforts. Keep up the good work boys and girls!

Here are some photos of students reciving Bronze, Silver or Gold Awards:

Our first Year 6 Graduation for International Maarif School students!

On Monday 6^th of December, we celebrated the graduation for class of 2021. Our First graduation ceremony was a success and all of our students and families should be proud. The night was enjoyed in style with a wonderful dinner, singing, speeches and awards. The students showcased ‘See You Again’ as their graduation song.

Special thanks to the staff involved in the organisation of the event, especially Mrs Aysun Caliskan for always going above and beyond for our students and school.

To the Year Sixes, we have loved having you and teaching you at International Maarif Schools of Australia for the past three years and hope that you have enjoyed your time here. We wish them all the very best as they continue their educational journey. Good luck and congratulations.

Here’s a few photos from the night:

Miss Asli Arici

Year 6 Teacher

Maarif students visited Auburn Gallipoli Home on Wednesday, 8th December to give a poetry and folklore performance for the residents. They were very happy to see our lovely students and enjoyed the Turkish poem and cultural folklore dance. After the performance, students were offered brunch and lolly bags were given by the residents to show appreciation.

Ready for Year 1 with our tricky words

Kindergarten students had lots of fun writing their tricky words on their whiteboards. They are more confident to write these and use them in sentences. Our daily morning sessions allowed them to familiarize with these common words. The more they develop their sight-speed fluency, the quicker they will transition to sounding out some words and recognize other words. Well done, Kindergarten.

Although our time has finished, our smiles will never fade. We won’t forget the handprints left; on memories we have made. Thank you so much for a wonderful school year. I have had so much fun being your teacher and I wish you the best of luck in all that you do. Remember to always do your best and to be kind to others. I am very proud of you, good luck next year.

Mrs Ulku Turkmen

Kindergarten Teacher

Up Up and away to year 3!

I would like to begin by thanking all my students for the warmth, memories, and the wonderful learning experiences we have shared together this year, which I will cherish forever. I have been privileged to watch all of your knowledge grow and your personalities blossom. I have been so impressed by all of your perspectives, opinions and respect towards each other and I know you will all go on to do great things in this world!

To the parents I would like to say thankyou for supporting your child and me this year and entrusting me to be your child’s teacher. It has been a wonderful and rewarding year to work together. I hope you all enjoy the summer break and I cannot wait to hear about the amazing things you will all accomplish in the future. Please enjoy some pictures from our last weeks of school.

Mrs Dilek Isanc

Year 2 Teacher

STEM Challenges

Year 3 students have been participating in STEM challenges to boost their problem-solving skills. One of the challenges involved students using only a piece of paper and a pair of scissors to try and change the state of the piece of paper so that they can fit their body through it. Their favourite challenge involved students trying to create the tallest paper tower using only paper and tape, within a given time. Students needed to ensure that their tower was not only tall but sturdy enough to stand on its own. Well done to all students for putting in a fantastic effort throughout all activities!

 Thank you, and Farewell

 The last week of school has been bittersweet as we celebrated the end of Year 3. After what has been a rollercoaster of a year, we have finally made it to the end. Year 3 students worked with determination and persistence throughout the year and their efforts have not gone unnoticed. I would like to take this opportunity to thank parents for their ongoing support this year. Wishing you all a happy and safe holiday break. Farewell!

Ms Amel Mehana

Year 3 Teacher

Bringing Year 4 to a strong finish

This year has been tough on all the students but Year 4 showed great resilience and came back strong after 13 weeks of online learning. They presented great projects and should be proud of their efforts. 

 

In Science, Year 4 were focusing on weathering and erosions where they investigate how and why natural processes and human actions change the Earth’s surface over time.  Students had the opportunity to be in a research project where they explain the effects of weathering and erosion. It was a great learning experience for them and Year 4 should be proud of their amazing work.

Last day of school we all had happy tears, I will miss them but at the same time, I am really happy for them to progress further. I wish the best of luck for the future and I believe that they can conquer their goals if they put their mind to it. Year 4 had an amazing last day with their friends watching a movie and celebrating their achievements.

Ms Samira Asad

Year 4 Teacher

Our Colourful Classroom!

To mark the end of this year, Year 5 were given the opportunity to create a tie dye t-shirt. The students created the shirts to symbolise a colourful year; in personalities making up our wonderful class and to celebrate the resilience students had shown through the adversity of the year. The boys and girls who make up Year 5 really are a wonderful cohort of students who shine brightly in their own ways. They support one another and celebrate the success of one another.

Year 5 has truly made 2021 the most memorable teaching and learning year yet.

Excitement; Year 5 students show pure joy and excitement in most lessons. They ask questions, they seek answers and are always excited to learn.

Adversity; this year has truly been like no other. With online learning, teachers and students were tested and the strength, determination and success Year 5 showed was admirable.

Resilience – students of Year 5 have shown resilience and grace in all they have accomplished this year. They supported one another as they immediately bounced back from the challenge Covid threw at all of us. Year 5 not only succeeded during home learning, but they also returned to school with increased independence and motivation.  

5 x 4 = 20 fabulous Year 5 students I wish happy holidays farewell!

To all the parents and families of Year 5, I personally thank you for raising such beautiful and grounded children. I thank you for your support throughout the year and for working so collaboratively to give your child a memorable Year 5 experience when we couldn’t be in the physical classroom. Together we truly did hold up the Maarif school values of cooperation and solidarity with pride and I sincerely thank you for being on this journey with Year 5 and I. Wishing you all a healthy and happy break over the school holidays and may 2022 be a year of good health, peace and unity.

Mrs Olivia Peach

Year 5 Teacher

YEAR 6 FUN DAY!

On Tuesday 7^th of December, Year 6 students celebrated the end of their primary school education by having a FUN DAY OUT. We had a day filled with activities including laser skirmish, bowling, arcade and trampoline experience at Flipout! It was great to finally spend some time and ensure ‘normality’ together in a different environment outside of school after the challenges 2021 brought to both students and families.

It was a pleasure organising a fun day for such deserving students as they were all on their best behaviour and represented Maarif to the best of their ability.

Here are some photos from our amazing fun day:

Miss Asli Arici

Year 6 Teacher

For Years: Kindergarten, Year 3, Year 5 and Year 6

Treasure Hunt!

The third Treasure Hunt game at Maarif was held last week with the years 3, 5 and 6. Students searched for the hidden treasure by following a trail of clues. They found the answers of the questions that were left in different places.

Whilst having lots of fun during the treasure hunt the students’ ability to follow instructions, problem solving skills and spatial awareness also developed.

Year 3

Here are the videos;

CLICK HERE TO VIEW Year 3 Treasure Hunt 1 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oGc4B4cwytz_0LCGhZOBGSYysD8rJp_0/view?usp=sharing

 

CLICK HERE TO VIEW Year 3 Treasure Hunt 2 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1METNjxdbVset4tTZSyDpWVXvCmltLd-O/view?usp=sharing

Year 5

Here is the Year 5 video;

CLICK HERE TO VIEW Year 5 Treasure Hunt https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YFf-EReD4q-o2zJb-jHRXm8366jiWPP-/view?usp=sharing

Year 6

Here is the Year 6  video;

CLICK HERE TO VIEW Year 6 Treasure Hunt https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pBHbO4JHYZRMrwYgkF9IrzgvJLiMgyqJ/view?usp=sharing

Kindergarten

Kindergarten students revised the vocabulary and songs they learnt in Turkish. They rolled the vocabulary dices and said the words by taking turns in pairs and groups.

To the students of International Maarif Schools of Australia, I wish you all the best holiday period filled with fun and excitement. I wish your holidays be filled with joyful moments to be cherished and treasured forever, have a happy holiday.

Mrs Şeyma Akdemir

Turkish Teacher (Years 3, 5 and 6)

We are learning Turkish!

Kindergarten started their Turkish lessons with games, and they have already learned their first words. They are learning Turkish with the little puppets, Turkish cartoons and painting activities.

Turkish lessons started quickly in Year 1. First, we did some revision from last year then we started on the Turkish letters. Year 1 will be able to read and write while speaking Turkish by the end of this year.

Emotional expressions were learned after some repetition in Year 2. Year 2 students can now say how they feel in Turkish.

The class continues to learn new Turkish games. They also practice speaking in Turkish by explaining how these games are played.

Miss Esra Pamuk

Turkish Teacher 

Kindergarten

Kindergarten has memorised and learnt what the 5 pillars of Islam are. They had a fun time tracing thier own hands into thier books, then colouring in the pictures indicating the 5 pillars. Students also had a chance to learn about 3 Prophet stories. They listened attentively as i explained the amazing stories of Prophet Adam (as), Prophet Nuh (as) and Prophet Suleiman (as). Here our some of our photos in class:

We have finally finished learning all the letters of the Arabic alphabet. Students enjoyed making some of the letters out of playdough in class. I would randomly pick a letter and they would race to be the first to get it done. Some making the letters extra small, and even extra-large. They had fun while learning alhamdulilah!

Year 2

Year 2 students learnt about the family members of Prophet Muhammad (saw) and this week had a chance to draw another family tree. This time it included the children of our Prophet (saw). Well done students.

Year 3

We revised all the surahs we learnt at Maarif in the last 2 weeks, so we don’t forget what we have memorised. Year 3 students have done a superb job at learning their surah this term. They started their memorisation from verse one 'online' then repeated in class and at home to memorise till they got it right! Surah Asr is the second shortest surah in the Quran, but it a surah which has many letters which need to be pronounced properly. I would like to suggest students listen to the following video which includes Surahs they have been memorising since starting at Maarif. I hope our students will start to pray these holidays, so they can repeat them daily and receive many rewards inshallah.

Link to playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoRzASIvjYm6d_xlOZyfQ2JpGL01R2WNl

I would like to thank parents for their help with thier child's journey with thier Surah memorisation and Islamic studies journey. I hope your child will continue to practice all the good manners they have learnt in class and also follow the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah which they have been listening to each and every week.

I wish everyone a healthy and safe holiday break and hope to see you all in 2022!

Ms Gulcan Aksu

Islamic Studies Teacher (Years K, 2 and 3)

Asalamualikum Dear Parents,

Alhamdulillah, we finished the last term of the year safely and positively after the lockdown. In Shaa Allah you are going to enjoy your holiday. 

Year 1 students did very well after the lockdown and achieved their best, I am very happy for them as they are going to be in Year 2 for next year. Well done and keep it up. Some photos of Year 1 happy finishing this year safely.

Year 2 and Year 3 were excited and happy with their achievements in Quran lessons. Great effort keep up the good efforts.

Year 4 learned about the Kabbah and Madina watched documentary about both Masjid Al Haram and Masjid Al Nabawi. They watched video about Zamzam water. They were interested and enjoyed learning about the topic. Year 4 achieved their best, I wish them the best for next year.

 Year 5 & 6 learned about the last Rightly Guided Khalifah in Islam (Ali Ibn Abu Talib(R), tried to memorise Surah Al Asr understand the meaning of importance of time that Allah SWT mentioned and described in the Quran.

I wish my Year 5 all the best for next year and Year 6 too as they are starting new journey with H.S.

Enjoy your holiday and stay safe in Shaa Allah.

Ms B. Mohammed

Quran and Islamic Studies Teacher (Years 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6)

Time to Revise!

When you take some practical internet safety precautions, you protect your child from potentially harmful or inappropriate content!

School-age children like going online to look at videos, play games and connect with friends and family. They might also be using the internet for schoolwork and homework. They can do this using computers, mobile phones, tablets, TVs and other internet-connected devices, including toys.

Because school-age children are starting to be independent online and might go online unsupervised, there are more internet safety risks for them than there are for younger children. There are particular risks if your child uses the internet to communicate with others – for example, on social media or within games.

When you take some practical internet safety precautions, you protect your child from potentially harmful or inappropriate content and activities. And your child gets to make the most of their online experience, with its potential for learning, exploring, being creative and connecting with others.

Internet safety risks for school-age children

There are four main kinds of internet risks for children.

Content risks
For school-age children these risks include things that they might find upsetting, disgusting or otherwise uncomfortable, if they come across them accidentally. This might include inappropriate content in games, images of cruelty to animals, and real or simulated violence.

Contact risks
These risks include children coming into contact with people they don’t know or with adults posing as children online. For example, a child might be persuaded to share personal information with strangers, provide contact details after clicking on pop-up messages, or meet in person with someone they’ve met online.

Conduct risks
These risks include children acting in ways that might hurt others, or being the victim of this kind of behaviour. For example, a child might destroy a game that a friend or sibling has created. Another conduct risk is accidentally making in-app purchases.

Contract risks
These risks include children signing up to unfair contracts, terms or conditions that they aren’t aware of or don’t understand. For example, children might click a button that allows a business to send them inappropriate marketing messages or collect their personal or family data. Or children might use a toy, app or device with weak internet security, which leaves them open to identity theft or fraud.

Protecting children from internet safety risks: tips

You can use a range of different strategies to help your school-age child stay safe online.

Here are some ideas:

• Create a family media plan. It’s best to create your plan with your child and ask them for suggestions. Your plan could cover things like screen-free areas in your house, internet safety rules like not giving out personal information, and programs and apps that are OK for your child to use.
• Use child-friendly search engines like Kiddle or Kidtopia, or content providers like ABC Kids, CBeebies, YouTube Kids and KIDOZ, or messaging apps like Messenger Kids.
• Check that games, websites and TV programs are appropriate for your child. You can do this by looking at reviews on Common Sense Media.
• Use the internet with your child or make sure you’re close by and aware of what your child is doing online. This way you can act quickly and reassure your child if they’re concerned or upset by something they’ve seen online.
• Check privacy settings and location services, use parental controls, and use safe search settings on browsers, apps, search engines and YouTube. Limit camera and video functions so your child doesn’t accidentally take photos of themselves or others.
• If you use TV streaming services, set up profiles for different household members so your child is less likely to come across inappropriate programs.
• Find out how to make complaints about offensive online content.
• Block in-app purchases and disable one-click payment options on your devices.
• Encourage all your children, including older siblings, to help each other use the internet safely and responsibly – for example, by watching only age-appropriate programs.

Trust between you and your child helps keep your child safe online. Calm, open conversations about internet use can help your child feel that you trust them to be responsible online. And if your child feels trusted, they’re more likely to talk with you about what they do online and tell you about online content and contacts that worry them.

It’s best to avoid using surveillance apps that let you secretly monitor your child’s online activity. Using these apps sends the message that you don’t trust your child. It’s better to talk openly about your own internet use and encourage your child to do the same.

If you do choose to monitor your child’s internet use while they're online or by reviewing their browser history, it’s good to talk about this with your child.

As your child gets older and more confident and starts using the internet independently, you’ll need to review your strategies. Our article on internet safety for children aged 9-11 years has ideas.

Teaching safe and responsible online behaviour

You can help your child learn how to use the internet safely, responsibly and enjoyably. If you teach your child how to manage internet safety risks and worrying experiences, your child will build digital resilience. This is the ability to deal with and respond positively to any risks they encounter online.

You can do this by:

• going online with your child
• talking with your child about online content and listening to their views
• being a good role model
• teaching your child to be careful with personal information
• teaching your child to avoid online purchases
• talking about appropriate online behaviour.

Going online with children

Going online with your child gives you the opportunity to see the apps or games your child plays, or the videos they watch.

You can share your child’s experience while also checking that the content is appropriate. One way to do this is by asking questions that show interest in what your child is doing – for example, ‘That looks like an interesting game. Can you teach me to play too?’

You can also show your child sites that are fun, interesting or educational and show your child how to bookmark them for later. You could help your child find information they need for homework by using the right kind of search words. For example, for information on a school project about how people lived in the past, your child might use a phrase like ‘life in Australia in the 1900s’, rather than ‘past life’.

If you come across pop-up advertisements while you’re online together, it’s a good opportunity to talk with your child about not clicking them. You can explain that pop-up ads can lead to sites with unpleasant pictures or sites that want your personal or financial information.

Talking about online content

It’s a good idea to explain to your child that the internet has all sorts of content and that some of it isn’t for children.

You could explain that there are parental controls, safe browsing settings and internet filters set up on most devices to protect children from inappropriate content. But these are not a guarantee and your child could still come across inappropriate content.

So it’s also a good idea to encourage your child to talk to you or another trusted adult  if they see something that worries them. For example, you might say, ‘Sometimes people put horrible things on the internet. Some of it’s made up and some of it’s real. If you see anything that upsets you or makes you feel uncomfortable, let me know’.

If you name things to look out for, it can help your child identify unsuitable material. For example, ‘If you see a site with upsetting, scary, swearing or angry words, let me know. It’s not a good site for you to look at’.

You could also explain that not all information on the internet is true or helpful – for example, some news is made up. Encouraging your child to question things they find on the internet helps your child develop the ability to tell whether a website has good-quality information. This is an important part of digital and media literacy.

Being a good role model

Your child learns from you. This means you can model safe and healthy internet use by using digital media in the way you want your child to use it now and in the future. For example, you might keep internet-connected devices out of bedrooms, and use technology for positive purposes like sending supportive messages to friends.

Taking care with privacy and personal information

It’s a good idea to make sure your child knows not to communicate online with people they don’t know in person. This is particularly important if your child is using in-game social networks. For example, gaming sites like Roblox and Minecraft are targeted at children but have messaging features that might allow strangers to communicate with your child.

Encourage your child to:

• tell you if someone they don’t know contacts them online
• not give out personal information. You could say, ‘Some people online are fakers. Never tell anyone online your name, address, phone number or birthday. Never send or post images of yourself’
• check with you before filling out membership forms on gaming sites, online competition entry forms and so on
• ask you before they use a new app, so you can show them how to check the privacy settings to keep their personal information safe.

Avoiding online purchases

You can help stop any accidental in-app purchases by switching off in-app purchases and one-click payments on your devices.

It’s also a good idea for you and your child to agree on clear rules about not accepting in-app purchases. You might say, ‘It’s important that we don’t waste our money on things we don’t need. If you want to buy a new game or something in a game, please ask me’.

Talking about appropriate online behaviour

Talking with your child about appropriate and inappropriate online behaviour will help your child learn how to stay safe. For example, you could:

• tell your child not to do or say anything online that they wouldn’t do or say face to face with someone
• encourage your child to think before posting photos or comments
• help your child to walk away from online arguments. You could say, ‘Friends can say things they don’t mean. It’s good to let people get over their moods and not talk to them online for a little while’.

The following students have their birthday in the month of December.

On behalf of Maarif, we would like to wish them a very Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to Students: