On Thursday morning the school had a visit from the Year 5 class at Dawlish Primary School. They were treated to a play by Year 6 called 'The Wooden Bowl' which was about showing respect and kindness to our elders. They were then hosted by our students and shown around the displays and art work where they had the opportunity to ask questions about the displays.

On Thursday afternoon we had some more visitors from the local community and parents who had been invited to bring in a guest. They watched Year 6's play and had a chance to look around the displays.

On Friday morning the school opened it's doors to our neighbours and on Friday afternoon, as part of our fund raising efforts there was a cake sale where cakes and other savouries kindly donated by parents were sold. The children's art work was also displayed in an exhibition with the opportunity for parents to purchase the work.

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There was a buzz of activity and excitement during Islam Awareness Week at Noor Ul Islam Primary School in Dawlish Road, Leyton. Pupils, staff and parents had a fantastic time organising events and activities as part of their contribution to Islam Awareness Week, which takes place every year in November.

Many events are held across the borough each year to raise awareness of Islam as a religion and way of life for its followers. This year staff of Noor Ul Islam Primary felt it would be a great opportunity to open its doors to the wider community to share the teachings of Islam as well as share some of the excellent work which goes on within the school. Sometimes there is a misconception of what an Islamic school is all about, comments such as “Oh! This looks just like a real school!” are not uncommon! So it was especially rewarding for staff to hear their school described by visitors throughout the week as “a warm and inviting place with a family feel.”

The children worked enthusiastically over the week to produce their own exhibition on Islam, which included work from Reception children all the way through to Year 6. Topics included ‘Why Islam teaches us to look after the environment’ to ‘Islamic contributions in Science’ and ‘How to honour and respect the rights of others in society.’ The children’s exhibition portrayed a range of work from writing and art work to a power point presentation on Islamic History.

Parents were invited to bring along a guest to view the exhibition and talk to the children about their work. Organisations who often work with the school were also invited to send along a representative to visit and take a look at the children’s work.  The school was happy to welcome members of the local Police team, Waltham Forest Council, London Wildlife Trust, Leyton Library, neighbouring schools Dawlish Primary and Newport, as well as Whipps Cross Hospital and not to forget the local neighbours! The adults were very impressed with the children’s willingness to talk about their exhibitions and the confidence with which even some of the very young children spoke!

All visitors were treated to a wonderful performance by the Year 6 class of a short play highlighting the status and respect Islam gives to the elderly. A common thread which runs through all of society but sadly can often be neglected as one teacher from Dawlish Primary School so aptly put. She was very impressed by the performance and summed it up by saying, “The message was given so clearly and to the point, a very good lesson.” The visitors from Dawlish Primary also included the pupils from their Year 5, it was a great opportunity for the children of both schools to interact and share their experiences over cookies and juice!

Guests were particularly impressed with some of the art work produced by the children. The range of art work was spectacular. For some it was the tile paintings which caught the eye, for others it was the cards with Islamic calligraphy or the beautifully painted canvases with symmetrical designs. The art work had been produced with a special enthusiasm as the end of the week culminated in an art exhibition in which the children’s art work was up for sale! Many children enjoyed the thrill of being able to quote their own price for their piece! Alongside the art exhibition there was the famous Noor Ul Islam Primary School’s Food and Cake sale! Always a great place to treat yourself, friends and family to a feast of mouth watering savoury and sweet delights! The sales raised over £600 which will be donated to the Whipps Cross Hospital’s Big Push Appeal, to raise funds for the maternity units within the hospital. Children of the school are encouraged throughout the year to put into action the importance Islam places on charity and helping those in need, and the Whipps Cross Appeal seemed a worthy cause to donate to.

All in all it was a great week and everyone adults and children alike were rather sad to see it come to a close. But as one visitor so rightly put it, often Islam is simply misunderstood by so many due to its misrepresentation by a few, so really we should not just have Islam Awareness Week once a year, but every day should be an Islam Awareness Day!