IFNSS Principal Newsletter
Week of Sunday, December 3rd, 2023
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ قَالَ مَنْ كَانَ لَيِّنًا هَيِّنًا سَهْلًا حَرَّمَهُ اللهُ عَلَى النَّارِ
Source: al-Sunan al-Kubrá lil-Bayhaqī 20806
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ
Assalamu alaikum respected parents,
I pray you are all doing well. We look forward to seeing our students tomorrow in sha Allah. Our IFNSS Annual Qirat Competition will also be held tomorrow, December 10th, in sha Allah at Sunday School, during school hours. One surah is assigned for each grade level (See image below in description to see the names of the assigned surahs).
MORNING ASSEMBLY: Last Sunday (12/3), our morning assembly was led by Br Imam Azfar on the topic of Masjid Al Aqsa and why is it so special in Islam. He even showed students a video with a virtual tour of Masjid Al Aqsa, which students enjoyed a lot ma sha Allah. We ended with dua for Masjid Al Aqsa and our brothers and sisters in Palestine.
PHOTO GALLERY!
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Meet our Amazing Staff!
Sr Zeinab Moustafa - Dean of Quran & Arabic, 4th grade Quran & Arabic Teacher, also teaches IFN Quran Nazirah program, an extremely dedicated, passionate, positive, caring and loving teacher and team player Ma Sha Allah. "Like a Gem" on our Team Alhumdulillah!
This is one of my favorite sections of the Newsletter as I get to brag about our amazing team Alhumdulillah, who make Sunday School special. We are blessed and fortunate to have an excellent team of teachers and TA's who are very passionate and dedicated members of our community offering their valuable time and efforts to the noble cause of imparting Islamic education to our youth Alhumdulillah. Please refer to this FULL LIST OF TEACHERS for the 2023-24 school year along with their contact information. Our goal is help parents gets to know their children's teachers in sha Allah. Hence I will be introducing one to two teachers/TA's every week in my Newsletter Teacher Spot Light Section. See image below.
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NEWS YOU CAN USE!
IFNSS Students will Present Nasheed: IFN Expansion Fundraiser Event in Sha Allah
Some of our IFN Sunday School Students will again be presenting a Nasheed at the IFN Expansion Fundraiser Event this year In sha Allah on next Friday, December 15th at Holiday Inn Convention Center, 6161 W.Grand Avenue, Gurnee, IL. We look forward to seeing all our Sunday School parents in sha Allah! We are very thankful for Sr Asma Fazal who is parent at Sunday School and has volunteered to help students prepare for the Nasheed. She is an experienced Nasheed Reciter herself and is great at working with students. We truly appreciate her time and commitment to help our students in the preparation of Nasheed.
Please NOTE that this is a Fundraiser Event and ALL families will have to buy tickets to attend. The ticket prices for the Fundraiser are given below:
$ 100 per person
$ 250 for family of 4 ($50 for each additional person)
$ 50 for seniors and students
$ 1000 for table of 10
Join Our Parent Announcements WhatsApp Group to Stay Informed!!
Opportunities for Parent Involvement at IFNSS
Parent involvement is essential for students development, leads to increased student achievement and success and offers many benefits. We highly encourage our parents to get involved at IFN Sunday School which is why we are offering several opportunities for parent involvement this year. These include the following:
1. Join Parent Support Group (PSG)
2. Become a Teaching Assistant
3. Become a Lunch/Recess Supervisor
4. Lead a Morning Assembly at Sunday School
5. Be a Substitute Teacher or TA
Please FILL OUT THIS FORM if you are interested in any of the above opportunities and we will contact you regarding next steps. Learn more about the above opportunities on THIS Document.
IFNSS PROCEDURES
Google Classrooms: Our teachers use Google Classrooms as the home to school connection to post announcements related to homework or classwork. All registered students have been invited to join their google classrooms. Please note that students have to be logged into their own IFN domain email accounts to access google classroom. I have attached Step by Step directions HERE on how to 1) access your child's IFN email account and then 2) use that to access their google classrooms. All returning students continue to use their existing IFN email accounts. We are try our best to create IFN email accounts for any NEW students who join us within 1 week of their start date. If you are having difficulty with your child's IFN email or Google Classroom, please reach out to your child's teacher and he/she will be able to help in sha'Allah.
PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR CHILDREN HAVE JOINED THEIR GOOGLE CLASSROOMS FOR ALL THREE SUBJECT AREAS i.e 1) Quran/Arabic, 2) Islamic Studies, 3) Islamic History. (Please note that KG through 8th graders have 3 google classrooms for each student. Pre-K students have 2 google classrooms for each student)
Morning Drop off begins at 9:30 and assembly starts at 9:45 in sha'Allah. Parents are requested to drop off their children at the front of the building and our staff will guide students to the Musallah area for assembly in sha'Allah. Parents can drive the car to the front of the building to drop off. Parents do not have to come inside the building for drop off as our staff will be at the front door to supervise students.
Tardy Procedures: We encourage all parents to drop their children between 9:30 - 9:45 as Assembly starts at 9:45 sharp. Classes start at 10:00 AM and any students who arrive after 10:10, need to check in at the office to get a Tardy pass. Parents are requested to bring their child to the office and NOT go straight to the classroom because it disrupts the learning of other students. If your child is late, they need to check in at the office to get a Tardy pass and one of our office staff will make sure they join their class.
Report Student Absence: If your child is going to be absent, please fill out THIS FORM to report their absence. Our office staff will check this form every week.
Morning Assembly. Every Sunday, we have our morning Assembly from 9:45 - 9:55 AM which is a great way to start the day. We begin with playing "99 Names of Allah SWT audio" which students love to listen to as they gather in the Men's Mussala and get seated in rows by their grade level and wait for the Assembly to begin promptly at 9:45. Our first Assembly of every month is run by Br. Imam Azfar which is a great opportunity for the students to get to know our Imam and benefit from his wisdom and knowledge. We also welcome parents and leaders from our own community to be the speakers for our Assembly. If you want to lead a morning assembly, please fill out the form linked above in the Parent Involvement Opportunities Section.
Lunch Procedures: All students get lunch at Sunday School (pizza and juice) and it is included in the Sunday School fee. Students can bring lunch from home if they want to but there will be no reduction in fee.
Bathroom Procedures: Students in grades 4th - 8th use a bathroom pass for bathroom break during any class period. Only 1 student at a time is allowed from a class to go for bathroom break. Students use a sign in and sign out sheet for bathroom break during class time and return to class promptly.
Cell Phone Policy: At IFN Sunday school, students are NOT allowed to use cell phone in the classroom during instructional time and all cell phones (if any) will be stored in “Cell Phone Boxes” for the duration of the class time and can only be used during breaks with teacher permission, at the end of class and during lunch/recess.
Salah Procedures: Dhuhr Salah is part of the Sunday School curriculum. We teach all students to respectfully pray behind the Imam and participate in "tasbeeh" and "dua" at the end. Parents who are in the upstairs musalla are requested to please go downstairs and wait in the lobby after Salah is done. TA's will bring all students down when they are done. We do not want the upstairs or lobby area to get too crowded. We appreciate your cooperation as we try to make the dismissal process safe for everyone.
Dismissal is after Dhuhr Salah at 1:30. Cones are placed in the front of the building to block the area for safety. Parents are requested to park their car in the parking lot and come to the front lobby to pick up their children. 4th through 8th grade students stand outside under staff supervision in designated areas and can leave when parents come to pick. Younger students in grades Pre-K through 3rd grade line up inside the lobby area and are escorted to parents as they come to pick up from the lobby. Please make sure to pick your children on time before 1:40 as our staff leave after 1:45 and we do not have enough staff to supervise students after 1:45. For any students who are not picked on time, parents have to come to the office and pick them from the office. We appreciate your cooperation in making sure dismissal is completed efficiently and safely for all students.
Early Dismissal: Please inform the class teacher and contact the Sunday School administration at ifnss.office@ifnonline.com for early dismissal requests. IF you are planning to pick up your child/children early please fill out an “Early Release Permission” slip at the office.
Lost & Found!Teachers try their best to remind students to take their belongings. However, some students forget their belongings. We have a Lost and Found Box in the Sunday School Office. If your child has lost some of their belongings, please be sure to check the Lost and Found Box which is kept in the Lobby at Dismissal Time. We dispose off/donate items that are not claimed. JazakAllah for your cooperation.
IFNSS Behavior Expectations
Resources for Parents
Other Helpful Links for Parents to Keep Handy
IMPORTANT CONTACTS FOR EASY REFERENCE!!
You can call the IFN main phone number 847-406-3730 and then Dial Extension 222 for Sunday School Office
Principal - Sr. Saddaf Raheel - ifnss.principal@ifnonline.com
Co-Vice Principal - Sr. Samina Anwar - samina.t.anwar@ifnonline.com
- Co-Vice Principal - Sr. Muizza Suglatwala - muizza.suglatwala@ifnonline.com
Office Manager - Sr. Saba Fuad - ifnss.office@ifnonline.com
Registrar - ifnss.registrar@ifnonline.com
Education Committee Chair - Dr. Zafeer Ahmad zafeer.ahmad@ifnonline.com
IFN President - Br Ahmed Nader - ahmed.nader@ifnonline.com
IFN Vice President - Br. Mohamed Eslam meslam.mohamed@ifnonline.com
MUHSEN Facilitators, Sr. Sadia Thiryayi sadia.thiryayi@ifnonline.com & Br. Shaaz Adeel shaaz.adeel@ifnonline.com
Sunday School After School Arabic Program Coordinator - Sister Eman Enaya 312-813-0526 emanenaya@yahoo.com.
Tarbiyah Circle Program Lead: Taha Tayyabi : tarbiyah.circle@ifnonline.com Phone: 3128045206