International Maarif Schools of Australia eNewsletter

Dear Parents and Carers

I wanted to take a moment to talk to you about Positive Behavioural Interventions and Supports (PBIS), an approach we are implementing in our school to promote a positive and inclusive learning environment.

PBIS is a proactive framework that focuses on teaching and reinforcing positive behaviours, rather than simply reacting to negative behaviours. It is based on the belief that all students can learn appropriate behaviours and that by providing clear expectations, consistent support, and meaningful rewards, we can create a school culture that fosters academic and social success for all students.

In our PBIS program, we have identified a set of behavioural expectations that we want all students to follow. These expectations are communicated to students through explicit teaching and are consistently reinforced in all areas of the school. By setting clear expectations and providing specific examples of desired behaviours, we empower our students to make positive choices and take responsibility for their actions.

PBIS also emphasizes the importance of recognising and reinforcing positive behaviour. We have implemented a system of rewards which are our Maarif Values cards and acknowledgments to celebrate students who consistently demonstrate the expected behaviours. This helps to create a positive and motivating atmosphere where students feel valued and encouraged to continue making good choices.

We believe that PBIS is a powerful tool in promoting a safe and respectful learning environment. However, we also recognise that it takes a collaborative effort between home and school to achieve the best results. We encourage you to reinforce the PBIS expectations and values at home, and to discuss with your child the importance of following these guidelines both inside and outside of school.

We greatly appreciate your support in this endeavour and look forward to working together to create a positive and nurturing environment for all our students. We previously shared our school’s PBIS behaviour flowchart, behaviour expectations matrix, values and reflect and restore cards via email. If you have any questions or would like more information about our PBIS program, please don't hesitate to reach out to us.

Additionally, we are delighted to inform you that International Maarif Schools of Australia will be participating in the world-renowned International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) assessments again this year.

ICAS is designed to target students’ higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Spelling, Science, Writing and Digital Technologies.

Each assessment celebrates students’ accomplishments by providing opportunities for recognition and development. Every student will receive a printed certificate and an online results report. Top performers will be eligible for medals and are invited to attend special award ceremonies to have their academic excellence publicly recognised.

Kind regards,

Dr Zeynep Yaseen

Principal

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Dear Maarif Families,

At Maarif, we believe in fostering holistic development, where we place an emphasis on not only academics, but also character building and extracurricular activities. We have been working on arranging clubs activities and I am pleased that we will commence recess and lunch clubs sessions this week. We will have external educators as well as our teachers who will run the clubs where students will be given opportunities to explore their talents, learn new skills, build teamwork skills and have fun.

Our aim is to also cater for a range of individual differences in our school. These include students who excel further and students who have additional needs. We have placed more emphasis on providing intervention and learning support for students who need support and extension with literacy and numeracy skills through an active team.

This term, we have commenced the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge at our school where we encourage all students from Kindergarten to Year 6 to read more and read a variety of books. Reading is highly beneficial for primary age children, providing them with advantages that contribute to their overall development by enhancing their language, vocabulary and general knowledge. Reading stimulates critical thinking skills and promotes cognitive development. It encourages children to make predictions, analyse information, and solve problems. Furthermore, reading stimulates imagination and creativity by transporting children to different worlds.

On another note, it was so nice to see our wonderful mothers come together to celebrate Mother’s Day over morning tea set up by our lovely P&C members. It was also rewarding to see students showing a sense of social responsibility and empathy as they took part in purchasing gifts for their mothers, knowing the proceeds will go towards those who were impacted by the devastating earthquakes, reinforcing the values of compassion and kindness.

Thank you for being an integral part of our Maarif community.

Kindest Regards,

Mrs Reyhan Er

Primary School Coordinator

On the 11th and 12th of May, International Maarif Schools of Australia held a Mother's Day Stall to give students an opportunity to express their appreciation to their mothers and/or female carers with the act of gift giving. Below are some photos of the Stall!

To further celebrate our beautiful Maarif mothers and female carers, we held a Mother's Day Morning Tea at the Turkish Welfare Association. We were pleased to see the amount of attendees, and only wish to see this number grow as our school continues to develop. Here are some photos:

Thank you to our P&C committe for their contributions on both events!

The Maarif Chess team joined its first ever Chess Tournament, the New South Wales Junior Chess League 2023. It is a competition run by the NSW Junior League for primary school student giving them an opportunity to compete with schools across 33 zones within 10 regions.

On Friday, 12th May, the Maarif Chess Club competed against The King's School (Team B) and Wentworthville Public School (Team A). Congratulations to our Team A for winning!

Well done to the students who have been selected as 'Student of the Week'. These students are selected for academic achievement and for modelling our school values.

	Week 3	Week 4
KA	Luqman Dib	Sara Bulli
KB	Belinay Elustu	Nisanur Gecer
KC	Bilal Ufacikligil	Khattab Fahda
1A	Omar Halabi	Ayoub Hawat
1B	Omar Deeb	Asma Kanj
2A	Ameila Khan	Elif Dari
3A	Ameer Haouchar	Jasmine Skaf
3B	Yagmur Yesil	Alina Khan
4A	Zara Ergun	Kaya Isler
4B	Mina Ufacikligil	Rayan Badarani
5A	Khattab Chehaita	Vera Bulli
6A	Demir Kuran	Ela Naz Kiyak
6B	Evren Ozturk	Zayn Elhami

Let’s Play Cricket!

KA students have been busy on Fridays learning how to play the sport cricket. They are gaining the skills of how to grip their hands around the bat and to manipulate and maneuver the ball in its direction. This is a great Australian sport for the students to learn as it helps them not only with their eye-hand coordination or gross motor skills but also social skills as we put the students into teams, and they verse and cheer for each other. It also teaches them to be part of a team.

And this new understanding helps them learn the value in seeing things from the perspective of another team member which is a life skill to learn.

Not only will learning cricket skills build their confidence, but parents will also see their self-esteem visibly grow as they master all the small steps needed to show good sportsmanship.

Mrs Ulku Turkmen

KA Teacher

Mother's Day

This week we focused on Mother's Day and talked about how important it is to have our mums with us. Everyone had a turn and talked about how much they love their mum and what they do together. We sang some songs about Mother's Day and prepared these wonderful cards!

Ms Gulden Aksoy

KB Teacher

'Honesty'

In Week 3 and 4 our PBIS (Positive Behaviour Interventions and Supports) topic has been ‘honesty’. KC have learnt about the importance of honesty and related attributes such as truthfulness, fairness, sincerity, trustworthiness, and straightforwardness. We focused on the bathroom setting, for example, making sure there is one student per cubicle, throwing the paper towels in the bin, etc. KC students also role-played scenarios surrounding honesty.

For Science and Technology, KC followed a sequence to create a recipe on the Moose Maths app on the iPads. Students had a great time and they’re eagerly looking forward to next week’s Technology lesson for part 2.

Ms Saadet Ugur

KC Teacher

Cricket Program

This Term our Year 1 students have begun an engaging cricket program led by skilled coaches on Fridays. The program focuses on essential skills and the students have eagerly embraced the opportunity to participate and are thoroughly enjoying every moment. We are excited to witness their continued growth as they learn new skills and actively participate in the program.

Merve Sarikaya

1A Teacher

Cricket!

Hi Parents! We are lucky and very excited to have started cricket this term. The students are having an amazing time learning the basics of cricket. They have also learnt how cricket is an Australian national pass time and how it’s played all over the country, watched and loved by millions, and our national cricket team are looked up to as heroes by kids of all ages.

Ms Derya Karaman

1B Teacher

Cricket Cheers!

Students are participating in cricket lessons this term and are enjoying every moment of it!

Cricket is a great sport to teach students as it develops hand-eye coordination, ball handling skills, and other skills such as hitting, running, bowling, and throwing. Additionally, cricket can help children develop essential fine motor skills, improve endurance and stamina, increase balance and coordination, and learn how to communicate quickly and clearly.

Ms Maryam Faisal

2A Teacher

Exciting Activities in Class!

In the classroom, students participated in a science experiment that explored the states of matter using custard and water. This hands-on activity allowed the students to apply their knowledge of the characteristics of solids and liquids. The students were tasked with observing and comparing the behavior of custard and water by poking gently, punching, holding and squeezing the mixture. Through this experiment, the students gained a greater understanding of the properties of matter and how they change in different circumstances. Additionally, the use of custard and water made the experiment engaging and enjoyable for the students, making it an effective learning experience.

In PDH, students of Year 3A are learning about healthy lifestyle. Engaging students in healthy eating activities is an excellent way to promote healthy eating habits among school children. One such activity is sorting out different groups of food in a healthy eating plate. In this activity, students are taught about the different food groups and how each of them is beneficial for their health. The students are given a plate with different food items, and they are asked to sort them out into different groups as per their nutritional value. This helps them to understand the importance of a balanced diet and the role played by each food group in maintaining good health. Such activities make students aware of healthy eating habits at an early age, and they are likely to carry these habits throughout their life.

Ms Samira Asad

Year 3 Teachers

Fractions

We have reached Week 4 and there have been marked improvements in 3B, these being both social and academic. The class has made leaps and bounds in their understandings of subject matter. The concept of linking real world applicability to taught content is a central theme within my classroom. This was demonstrated when students were advised of the manner fractions were utilized in a range of professional fields. As a result, students gained an understanding that taught content within school was not simply a collection of abstract concepts but rather ones that had tangible application in the world around them. The subsequent effect of this was that student engagement was bolstered significantly, with fractions being favourite topic in recent days.

Mr Aziz Hawlader

Year 3 Teacher

The First Fleet

During our History lessons, students have been learning about the first fleet that arrived in Australia. In this lesson, students were required to research one of the eleven ships and present their findings. Students were asked to research what the ship’s purpose was, how many civilians, crew members and convicts were on the boat, who the skipper was and what happened to the ship after its return. Students were highly engaged and impressively showcased their comprehension and research skills when trying to access information to answer the above queries.

Mrs Ayse Yildiz

Year 4 Teacher

The World of Cricket!

Over the past few weeks, our 4B students have been diving into the wonderful world of cricket as part of our Physical Education curriculum. And we have to say, they've been doing a fantastic job! From mastering their throwing and catching skills to strategising and practicing their moves, our Year 4B students have been showing great improvement and enthusiasm.

As per the NSW PE Syllabus Outcomes, our students have been working on various areas of their physical development and sporting abilities. They've been focusing on developing their fundamental movement skills like throwing, catching, running and jumping, which are essential for not just cricket, but many other sports and everyday activities as well. In addition, they've been learning different game strategies and tactics to hone their decision-making abilities, identify strengths and weaknesses of opponents and adapt their gameplay accordingly.

But cricket is more than just physical fitness and sport - it's also about good sportsmanship and fair play. Our students have been learning about the importance of respecting their opponents, working collaboratively as part of a team, and following the rules. We're so proud of their progress in these areas, which will undoubtedly serve them well both on and off the field.

We would like to encourage you to continue supporting your child's learning at home. You can practice cricket skills together and participate in other sports activities that promote physical activity and mental wellbeing. It's a great opportunity to bond and have some fun while also staying healthy!

Ms Suzan Tarpis & Ms Fatima Memedoski

Year 4B Teachers

Jump Strategy

Welcome to week 4! This week in Mathematics 5A worked on the jump strategy method. This method allows students to effectively learn addition and subtraction solutions through a visual representation. In class, we had an activity where student’s were engaged with working through examples of jump strategy on the Interactive Whiteboard.

Mrs Sevim Keselik

Year 5 Teacher

Welcome to Week 4 of Term 2!

I hope that all students have been able to settle in well and are excited to be back for another amazing week. Students from Kindergarten to Year 6 have commenced Cricket lessons with professional instructors at the courts across the school. Cricket lessons this term aligns with our PDH theory lessons about practising safe behaviours and working as a team. One of the case studies that we have been looking at has been respecting our peers and working as a team. These cricket lessons improve students' practical skills and enhance knowledge about safer physical participation.

Here are some photos of students participating in practical cricket lessons.

Just a reminder that students must be in their winter uniform for Term 2 girls in navy skirts and school shirts and boys in their cargo long pants and white school top.

Miss Dilara Ozhan

6A Teacher

Story Telling Through Movement!

For our drama unit this term, students will use movement and storytelling to develop and present a performance which explores the features on the theme of Anzac Day. 6B students have been working hard during our drama lessons to showcase certain themes related to ANZACS through movement. They had a fun time coming up with different ways of portraying emotions and settings through body language, movement and facial expressions. Next week 6B will be focusing on a single theme for their portfolio performance tasks. I wish them all the best and cannot wait to see the creativity and talent carried out during our drama lessons.

Here are some images from our drama lessons utilising handmade props and classroom equipment.

Mrs Asli Tekirdag

6B Teacher

Happy Mother’s Day!

There is no better way to make a mother feel special than to receive a lovely handmade card from her children. It is a great opprtunity to thank them for all that they do.

Maarif students made Mother’s Day cards /letters and expressed their feelings to dearest mums in Turkish.

Also here is a video of Year 4 students reciting the song ‘Bilmece’:

Bilmece Song

Mrs Ayşegül Şeyma Akdemir

Turkish Language Teacher

Mother's Day

Students in Year 2 made a gift card for their mothers with the cut-and-paste activity for Mother’s Day. They enjoyed making them and had a lot of fun.

Ms Fisun Benlisoy

Turkish Language Teacher

Types of Maps

In our Turkish lessons, this week we have learned about different types of maps. How we can use these maps we had a class discussion and coloured in maps together. We also sang the song of the week and had a fun concert in class.

Ms Müge Tuğrul

Turkish Language Teacher

Islamic Studies

Assalamu Alaikum wa rahmetullahi wa barakatuh,

All praise be to Allah (SWT) and may peace and blessings be upon His beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAW), his family, companions and to all those who follow him.

In Islamic Studies Year 4 students are learning how to perform wudu and watched a detailed video on the steps of performing wudu.

In Qur’an class Year 4 students were reciting, practising, and memorising Surah Quraysh which was displayed on the smartboard as well as watching a YouTube Qur’an lesson which went over and covered some of the pages in their Elif Ba books.

We pray that Allah (SWT) allows our students to keep the Qur’an in the centre of their lives and let the Book of Allah be the light of their hearts.

Mr Muhammed Ordukaya

Qur’an and Islamic Studies Teacher

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The Student Corner is a dedicated space for students of any year level to showcase their unique work and talents!

Khadijah Kassem - KC

Hazel Mete - 1A

Esila Bayindir - 2A

Nilgun Basiri - 3A

Anaum Khan - 4A

As our school is growing, we request that our parents and/or carers are extra cautious during school drop off and pick up times.

Please ensure NSW Government rules regarding road safety are being followed and adhered to at all times.

This means:

- Respecting the road rules and signs, and driving within the speed limit of 40km/h in a school zone.

- Parking safely in designated parking areas or in drop off/pick up zones.

- No double parking, as it is dangerous and illegal.

- Three point turns and U-turns are not permitted in school zones, as not only is it dangerous for students and other vehicles but also causes traffic congestion.

- Follow the directions of our school crossing supervisors.

- Give way to our School Bus drivers.

Thank you for your cooporation.

Road_Safety.pdf

Road_Safety _pdf 1.68 MB

All uniform requests can be made as follows:

Order Submission Only

Primary school parents are to complete the attached uniform order form
Order forms should be emailed to uniforms@maarif.nsw.edu.au or sent in to the school office with students if required
Orders will be processed weekly on Wednesdays and uniform items will be sent home with students by the following day
Contact number for uniform related enquiries 0402 393 844

Attached below is the Uniform Order Form

2023_Primary_School_Uniform_Order_Form.pdf

2023_Primary_School_Uniform_Order_Form _pdf 186.13 KB

Maarif students are expected to wear their Summer school uniform during Term 1. Please be reminded of the importance of naming all items of school uniform with your child’s name and class. This means that lost items found around school can easily be returned.

We consider that uniform is important for several reasons.

It provides pupils with a sense of identity and pride in their school.
It enhances the appearance of pupils and therefore the reputation of the school.
It helps to instil a sense of purpose in pupils when they put on their uniform in the mornings.
It helps overcome the worry about “fitting in” with fashions and keeping up with other children. All children feel equal and there is no stress, competition or worry for families about expensive brands/labels.
It overcomes the problem for both parents and teachers about what is suitable attire for school.

Parent-Teacher Communication

When communicating with teachers, please try to be respectful of their time and understand that they may not always be able to respond immediately. This means, giving them a reasonable amount of time to respond to your emails or messages, and understanding their work hours.

Please avoid sending multiple follow-up messages when not receiving a response immediately, teachers have many responsibilities.

Written Communications

Written communications to the school, including emails and letters, please include student's full name and class for identification purposes

Phone & Electronics

Primary School students are not permitted to bring to school, their phones and/or any electronics. This includes smart watches.

Birthday Celebrations

We love to celebrate our students at Maarif and accept that some families may want to share the special occasion of their child’s birthday with his/her class peers. As a school, we embrace this opportunity however would like to enforce a strict policy of not bringing in food or other edible items for these one-off occasions. It is important we cater to all students including those who have severe allergies by monitoring this closely. If you would like to celebrate your child’s birthday, we would suggest an alternative to food.

School Permission Notes

All school permission notes must be returned by the due date that is on the note. In the case where signed notes are not received by the due date, students may not be able to attend.

All permission notes must always be returned to the class teacher and not the school office. Hard copies can be sent in with students or soft copies can be emailed to class teachers directly.

We are no longer accepting cash payments for excursions. Please use the link or QR code provided in the permission notes for payments.

Toys and Valuables

Students are not permitted to bring toys and valuables to school. These include Pokemon cards, fidget toys and weapon like toys. Students are only permitted to bring in appropriate toys on allocated Show and Tell days. Please check with your child's class teacher if unsure.

According to ACARA National Standards for student attendance, parents are required to complete an Application for Leave Form for holidays within the school term or other leave. Applications should be submitted 14 days prior to the leave. The Principal approves this leave as appropriate.

For all student leave requests (1-50 days) an application form should be submitted to the school at least 14 days prior to the requested leave date. Supporting documentation, such as travel ticket or itinerary, should be included with student holiday leave applications.

Holidays taken by students outside of School vacation periods are included as absences.

Families are encouraged to holiday or travel during school vacations rather than in term time. If travel during the school term is necessary, the following considerations apply:

If the Principal accepts the reason for the absence, the absence will be marked as justified leave.
If the Principal does not believe the absence is in the student’s best interests and does not accept the reason, the absence will be recorded as unjustified leave.

The Leave form can be accessed below:

Student_Short_Term_Leave_Application_Form_less_than_50_days_.pdf

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We have many items including school uniform, lunch boxes and water bottles in our lost property baskets. Please be advised that all these items will be thrown out if not claimed. The lost property baskets will be located in the office area. Please clearly label all items with your child's name, surname and class.

Instagram: @australiamaarif

Facebook: Maarif Australia

Twitter: @AUmaarif

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National Road Safety Week	15 - 19 May 2023
Food Allergy Week	22 - 26 May 2023
Australia's Biggest Afternoon Tea	25 May 2023
National Sorry Day	26 May 2023
World Environment Day	5 June 2023
Public Holiday - King's Birthday	12 June 2023
Fundraising Event	13 - 16 June 2023
WriteOn 2023	16 June 2023
World Music Day	21 June 2023
Public Holiday - Qurban Eid	28 June 2023
Qurban Bayramı Festival	30 June 2023
Term 2 - Last Day for Students	30 June 2023

2023_Academic_Calendar.pdf

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