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In Berita Harian: storytelling to teach children
In December 2016, Berita Harian wrote about our storytelling sessions, with six ways to link Islamic learning to what children study at school.
On Friday 23 December 2016, Berita Harian ran a feature about IqraSaurus in its Gah! lifestyle section, on page 16. The headline was "Didik anak menerusi sesi bercerita", which means "Educating children through storytelling sessions". It was written by Nur Dhuha Esoof.
The photo was taken at our Surah An-Nas book camp. The children are holding the shields they made there, each with "An-Naas" written across the top. Ummi stands on the left and Daddy on the right, and the caption describes IqraSaurus as run by a husband-and-wife pair.
The feature came about through the journalist, who was looking for stories, asked around through contacts and found out about some of the things we do.
Six ways to link Islamic learning to school
The sidebar starts from one idea: learning the Quran need not stop at reading and memorising. It describes IqraSaurus as running workshops on understanding the Quran and the sirah through storytelling, games and songs. Then it sets out six ways Ummi, named in the article as Nur Ziehan Jalil, linked Islamic learning to what young children already study. In short:
- Themes in school subjects: working with time in maths, linked to the times of prayer.
- Themes in the Quran: bees and the honey they make, spiders and the webs they build.
- Themes in the sirah: getting to know the Companions of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, such as Abu Bakar, Umar, Usman and Ali.
- Surahs: the phases of the moon and the feel of the night, through Surah Al-Layl and Surah Al-Qadr.
- Stories from the Quran: patience, and good manners when learning, from the story of Prophet Musa (peace be upon him) and al-Khidr.
- Stories from the sirah: Khadijah, the first woman to embrace Islam.
Each one begins with something a child meets anyway, at school or in daily life, and connects it to the Quran or the life of the Prophet ﷺ. A parent can do the same at home with whatever a child is learning this week.
Why we keep it
The clipping also helps us date our own archive. It places the An-Nas book camp, and the shields the children made there, in December 2016 or just before.
Credit: Berita Harian, 23 December 2016, page 16. Article by Nur Dhuha Esoof.
