Speech Guidance

1.    Step 1 - Understand the purpose of the speech

Look at the Title and see what it really means

2.    Step 2

Make a brief note of the matters you are going to include in the speech, in bullet points.

3.    Step 3 - Write your speech, putting the information in logical order.

a.    Start with an introduction,

b.    move to the body of the speech

c.    and end with a conclusion.

4.    Step 4 - Tell stories within your speech to illustrate your points.

Your audience's ears will perk up when you tell a story and anecdote. They will remember your points long after the speech is over if you make it interesting

5.    Step 5 - Practice, practice, practice.

Hone your speech by editing difficult words, muddy illustrations or unclear facts. Time yourself to see if the talk fits in the time frame.

6.    Step 6

Vary the tone, pitch, speed and sentence length of your speech. Speak clearly and slowly, pausing after each important point.

7.    Step 7 - Dress appropriately for the day of your speech.

Make sure your clothing doesn't gap and that you can move about freely. Sit, stand and raise your hands in your outfit in order to check the comfortable level and appropriateness of dress.

8.    Step 8 - Take a drink of water before you approach the stage or podium.

Clear your throat, breathe deeply and calm your nerves. The audience is eager to hear what you have to say and they are on your side.

9.    Step 9 - Fake confidence as you start your speech.

Don't apologize or start with a whimper. Be enthusiastic and soon you will be on a roll in your speech and before you know it, the speech will be over.

10. Step 10 - Make eye contact

Make eye contact with members of the audience, keeping the contact for at least a few seconds. Choose people on all sides of the room, in the front, back and middle. Connect with your audience.

11. Step 11 - Thank the audience

Summery of Maryam's acheivments 2017

Faith:     National Oratory Competition

National Poem Writing Competition

                National Poetry  Competition

National Qirath Competition 

National Dua  Competition 

National Qaseedah Competition 

National Young Muslim Talent competition

Sports: swimming all level completed in very early age. She had lifeguard training in swimming. Had a few years of training in Kickboxing

Arts: good at Hannah, canvas painting, sketching, Cake decorating and tailoring

Community: Spoken words for a fundraising event, do henna for fundraising, Making cupcakes and selling for fundraising for Syrian Muslims. Attended many regular radio shows in Radio Ramadan Leicester, Reading and Slough.

Academic: Had a great start in the infant school which achieved an outstanding Ofsted report, while Maryam was there. She and her two classmates appeared in the national newspaper. She becomes a Star student in the junior school (Year 3) for achieving many awards including first place in a national oratory competition for under ten year’s category. She studied in an Islamic school from year 4 to year eight. This school produced outstanding results in GCSE and GCAL for last two decades in Leicester.   She was achieved rank one or two in the exams which held twice a year. Then she had homeschooling for a year with the aim to master in many Islamic sciences and all GCSE subjects including GCSE Arabic language and Islam. In year 10 She joined Beauchamp college which is one of the leading college in the country after successful appeal which was won by the merits of Maryam’s overall achievements in the past. Now she is one of the top students in all subjects.

Maryam (RA) by Maryam Mohamed Ismail Group 4 Year 7

Bismillahhirahmaniraheem. Alhamdulillah Asalatu wasalamu alaa Rasoolillah amma bad.

Honourable judges, respected elders and my dear brothers and sisters:

Assalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi wa barakatuh!

I begin my speech by asking a few questions to my audience:

·        Whoever has been the odd-one, out put your hands up.

·        Whoever has been bullied put your hands up.

·        Whoever has to battle everyday in order to keep their modesty put your hands up.

·        Whoever wants to know a perfect role-model to overcome these situations listen to my speech attentively.

Today I’m standing in front of you to talk about one of the greatest women who lived on the face of this earth. She is the only women whose name is mentioned in the Quran, and there is a whole chapter in the Quran named on her name. Yes, she is Maryam Bint Imran the mother of Isa (AS).

She is the women described by Allah (SWT) as the purest and the chosen one.

Allah (SWT) says in Surah Ala-Imran Verse 42:

Which means:

Oh Maryam, indeed Allah has chosen you and purified you, and chosen you above the women of the worlds.

Subhanallah!

So when I came to know all about her status in Islam and with Allah (SWT), it really made me think:

Why Allah (SWT) has given her such a high status?

How did she attain this?

OK let’s find out;

Maryam (RA) was born into a noble family In Jerusalem. Her father was Imran Bin Mathan who was a pious scholar from the Bani Isra’eel. Her mother was Hannah Bint Faqudh who was a pious woman from the Bani Isra’eel. When her mother was pregnant, she made a promise to Allah (SWT) to dedicate her unborn child to the service of Bayt Al Maqdis. When Maryam (RA) was born, her mother didn’t break the promise, because at that time it was a role of a boy to serve in the Masjid. As the promise of her mother Maryam (RA) began to serve In the Masjid. This service included worshiping Allah (SWT) and taking care of the Masjid at all time. I just want you to think for a moment; Maryam (RA) was a child, while the rest of the children were playing outside, she (RA) was worshipping Allah (SWT) all day and night! And it was a role of a boy after all! Wasn’t she the odd one out amongst her society? But Subhanallah! Look at her devotion to Allah (SWT), she (RA) didn’t care about what other people thought of her, or being out from her society. Rather she loved the worship of Allah (SWT), as what her name meant, she was the one that worshiped, why? Because she understood that she is nothing but a slave of Allah (SWT). My dear brothers and sisters, we also need to understand that we are nothing but slaves of Allah (SWT). We should always follow the commands of Allah (SWT) even if we have to be the odd on out. Insha Allah!

Maryam (RA) was brought up under the care and guardianship of Zakariyyah (AS), because her father passed away before she was born.

Time passed by, and one day Maryam (RA) was encounted by Jibra’eel (AS) to give her the news of having a baby in a miraculous way. Jibra’eel (AS) came in a beautiful human form. As soon as she (RA) noticed that somebody was looking at her she said:

“Indeed I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, if you should be fearing of Allah.”

Subhanallah! Look at her level of haya and Taqwa. She (RA) immediately said what was in her mind, she (RA) didn’t even wait to listen to what he wanted to say and also reminded him to fear Allah (SWT).

My dear brothers and sisters, there is a greater lesson in Maryam (RA), especially where the society we live in views boys and girls relationships as normal! And not only that! Whomever stays away from this fitnah their view as abnormal! A’oodhu Billah!

I know it’s a battle, but as Muslims we should always keep in mind that Allah (SWT) has set boundaries for us. We should never ever surpass these boundaries. We should keep the two shields of Maryam (RA), which are her God conscious and Haya to battle against this fitnah. May Allah (SWT) protect all of us from this fitnah.  Aameen.

So now, we all know what happened afterwards, Maryam (RA) became pregnant, and went through all the sufferings all by herself. There wasn’t anyone to help her or console her. The only things she had was patience, Tawakkul, trust in Allah and she accepted the Qadr of Allah (SWT).

So when the baby Isa (AS) was born, Allah (SWT) ordered her to take the baby to the society, and even ordered her not to speak! The society at that time is no where near to todays… it’s totally opposite! Even if you smell like adultery you’ll be punished, bullied and abused! Now you can’t even explain that you’re innocent. And Maryam (RA) knew this very well! But she didn’t avoid the situation! She didn’t give up! Rather she faced the situation without any hesitation! How? Because she obeyed the commands of her creator, Allah (SWT), and she (RA) had a high level of Tawakkul, trust in Allah. ”If Allah is with me, then I don’t care, he (SWT) will show me a way out of it!”

And Allah (SWT) did show her a way out of it, by making the baby speak and prove the people that she was innocent! Subhanallah!

My dear brothers and sisters, remember, Maryam (RA) went through all of this only because she followed the commands of Allah (SWT)! Sometimes we also face situations, where people bully, abuse and reject us only because we follow the command of Allah (SWT). We also shouldn’t hesitate, give up or avoid the situation. Rather we should face the situation with Tawakkul. Insha Allah.

So now it made me clear, that Maryam (RA) attained her high status, not because she was a mother of a prophet, but because of who she was. Because of her high level of Haya, Taqwa, Obedience, devotion, submission, purity, e.t.c.! That’s how she (RA) attained perfection! Nabi (SAW) has said, that:

“Many amongst men attain perfection, but amongst women none attain perfection, except Maryam the daughter of Imran and Aasiyah the wife of Fir’ awn.”

That’s why Allah has mentioned her name in the Quran, and telling me and you to take her as our role models.

Finally, I conclude my speech by sharing this advice with you: Maryam (RA) gained all these qualities through knowing about Allah (SWT) and having a close relationship with him. So in order for us to gain these qualities, first of all we should get to know Allah (SWT), learn our deen and put it into practice. Insha Allah.

“May we all take Maryam (RA) as our role-models in every aspect of our lives.” Aameen!

Wa Aakhiru Da’wana Anilhamdulillahi rabbil Alameen.

Jazakallah Khairan.

Wasalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakaatuh.  

 

  

Akhlaaq and the Ibaadath of the Prophat SAW through the eyes of a child

Assalathu wassalamu ala rasoolillah.Amma baad.

Honourable judges, respected elders and my dear brothers and sisters, Assalamu Alaikum warahmathullahi wabrakathuhu

Today I am standing in front of you to deliver a speech on the topic of Akhlaaq and the Ibaadath of the Prophat SAW through the eyes of a child. Insha Allah.

I have divided my speech in to three parts. In the first part I will talk about the Akhlaaq of the prophet SAW. In the second   about  the Ibaadath of the Prophet SAW and in the third part about the lessons we can learn from  the Prophet SAW, Insha Allah.

I would like to begin the first part of my speech by discussing what is meant by akhlaaq.

The word Ahlaaq literally means morals, charactor, maners.

In terms of Islam there are so many definitions for akhlaaq but I would like to start by quoting Imam Ibnul Qayyim Rahimahullah’s definition. He said.

Doing good by word and action and not doing harm by word and action which is based on Islam.

Let’s see what  our creator, the One who created the prophet SAW,  told us about  the Prophet SAW’s Akhlaaq.  In Surah Qalam verse 4 it says,

وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ

Indeed You are of the highest noble character.

Subahanallah,

Here Allah SWT gives the certificate of his character. Who knows well about his creations except the creator himself.

Lets put this into context. Imagine in our school,  if our head teacher   praised one us for having good manners in front of the whole school in assembly. In order to be praised like that,  we would truly  have to be the best. Here Allah SWT is not just saying the Prophet SAW has the best manners out of 200 sudents but out of  all of His creations.

Subahanallah,

I think this one Ayath is sufficient for us to understand the quality of our beloved Prophet SAW’s Akhlaq .

Now lets turn our attention to the hadees  to see what what our prophet SAW said about himself. It is reported in the Bukhari, The Prophet SAW said ‘I was sent to complete the best of morals.’

When I look at this hadees even as a child it truly makes sense to me. When a person is chosen for a job, obviously the best candidate is picked.

So here Allah chose our beloved Prophet SAW why? Because he is the best in his morals.

When we look at our reality, most of the world leaders say something and do the opposite of it.for eg; we can say  the global warming campaign, these are for the  ordinary people just like us but not for the leaders.

But when we look at our Prophet SAW sayings they are not merely slogans, but they were best demonstrated throughout the life of the prophet SAW.

 I could talk endlessly about the  Akhlaaq of our beloved prophet SAW I could talk about his modesty or gentleness or kindness or honesty or cheerful face or patience or .... the list goes on and on. Whatever you name it our prophet SAW is the best out of all the creations.

Now  lets  move to the 2^nd part of my speech which is the ibadath of our prophet SAW. The term ibadath literally  means  worship. Interms of islam  Ibadhah is the obedience,submission and devotion to Allah SWT  along eith the ultimate love for him.

 I really want to mention that some of us have the misunderstanding that ibadath means only 5 pillars. Thats  not the only thing. The whole life should be ibadath.

Allah SWT says the purpose why he created in  sura  ad-dhariath verse 56

وَمَا خَلَقۡتُ ٱلۡجِنَّ وَٱلۡإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعۡبُدُونِ

Which means,

“I did not create Jinn and Mankind except for My worship.

Now lets look at our beloved prophet SAW ibadhath,

There is a hadee

·         It was reported that the Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) stayed up all night, standing (in prayer) until his feet became swollen. When he was asked, “Why are you doing this, when Allah has forgiven all your past and future wrong actions?” he replied, “Should I not be a grateful slave?” [Sahih Bukhari]

Subhanallah!

Think about ourselves. Let’s leave the nafl prayer one side for a moment , lets talk about the fard prayer.

How many of us pray by ourselves without any reminder from their parents?

How many times do our parents need to remind us for one single  prayer?

Look at our prophet SAW , his previous sins were forgiven, yet He SAW willingly did all of these. So how much  we have to do my dear brothers and sisters?

If you allow me to talk about the ibadath of our beloved prophet SAW I can go on and on, but time doesn’t permit me. So in a nut shell He SAW whole life was ibadat, his hajj his umrah his salah the way he treated his family the way he judged in societal affairs the way he ran the government  etc... etc...

Now lets move to my last part of my speech which is about the  lessons we can take for ourselves. Insha allah.

When  I learned about our beloved prophet SAW as a child there are so many questions that came to my mind. How  could our prophet SAW manage to do all of this? I mean having good akhlaq and doing the ibadath in the best manner    in his whole life no matter what the situation was whether he was happy, sad rich poor or.

When we look at the society he was in, it was full of bad practice such cheating, killing, oppression , violence ect. Our  prophet SAW had to go against the society. it is very easy to get lost in the crowd. Yet our beloved prophet SAW was always best in his morals and ibadhath. Some people might say thats because He is the prophet . we are just ordinary human beings, we can’t change our nature. If  this statement is true, then how could prophet  SAW change the sahabas RA  into excellent people. Some of them were the most horrible people before they became muslim.

When we look at our society’s  values  is not very different to theirs. It is also full of with bad , non Islamic  values and practices  such as individualism, freedom, seeking benefit out of everything, living the life to the max, bullying, cheating, oppression, worshipping money and pop stars and ect..

How can we overcome these values and become true muslims.    Because the values of the world we live today and our Islamic akhlaq and ibadat are totally opposite

If  I want to change myself which which concept should I leave first? If I want to follow our prophet SAW which one should I adopt first?

I thought and thought but I couldn’t find an answer. Finally I approached  my parents and they gave me an answer which  convinced me. Alhamdulillah.

My dear brothers and sisters  I think as a child you might have the same questions as me. So please listen attentively of this.

First of all our belief in Allah SWT should be firm. There shouldn’t be any  doubt. This should be based on rational thinking. we shouldn’t be a muslim because we are born to a muslim  parent. Rather we should be a muslim after the clear conviction of the following 3 things.

1.clear proof that Allah SWT exist.

2.quran is the word of Allah.

3.Prophet Muhammad SAW is the prophet of Allah.

After the true conviction of these 3 things we should accept all of Allah SWT command. Whether it  be Ibadat or muamalat or akhlaq. We sholdn’t differentiate between Allah SWT’s command. We can’t take part of islam and leave the rest. We should practice comprehensively. For example there are some people they are very good in their ibadath to the extend that they don’t even miss their tahajjud, but when it comes to ahlaaqthey don’t even smile at their neighbours. Or vice versa..Auoothubillah.

Finally we shouldn’t charactorise by good ahlaaq for sake of good ahlaaq in itself or to gain a wordly benefit out of it. In the same way  we shouldn’t do our ibaadhath for the sake of becoming  a good aabid in itself or to gain a worldly  benefit out of it. Some times we pray to please our parents so that they will allow us to have Friday favourites.  But now I understand that we should do our ibadath,ahlaaq or muamalat b’cos Allah SWT commanded us to do so. That’s how the sahaba RA became excellent  people.

As a conclusion I ask Allah SWT to   forgive our sins and make each one of us who gathered here into excellent people who have good morals and a good aabid.Aameen.

Jazakallahu khair for listening to my speech.

Wahiru da’wana anilhamdulillahi rabbil aalameen.

Wassalamu alaikum, warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu.

Let Me Discover Myself By Maryam Mohamed Ismail Year 8

Let Me Discover Myself

By Maryam Mohamed Ismail  Year 8

Maryam is my name

And I’ve been called that since the first day

That’s what my parents named me

Ever since I was a baby

Years passed by

And time flew aside

As I started school that day

Here I was still called by my name

But a student was what they say

And then came school’s culture week

Where we shared the language that we speak

We learnt about Modern Greek

And I was part of the Asian streak

And then as I grew up

It was the British Government

Who called me the British Empowerment

And now that was the new acknowledgement

Now came the issue in Secondary School

Where the school folks were those who rule

Am I smart, or short, or am I cool

But I cannot let them ridicule

And some may just class me as a girl of 12 years of age

Or close to a teenage

Studying in year eight

With many school mates

So Maryam was what they first used

And then to a student it moved

To crazy names that folks used

But am I British or Asian? Coz I’m confused

“So who are you?” You may ask

But that is the unsolved task

Because what you see on the outside

It’s simply just a mask

So what I believe

Is that all these names will come to an end one day

And will not forever stay

As Maryam is simply just my name

Like the paint on a window frame

And without it everything will still be the same

And I wouldn’t have been British

If I were born in another village

And I wouldn’t have been Asian

If I were born to different Parents

I could have been Polish, Syrian or American

Therefore this is just due to inheritance

And what they say at school

Is obviously not true

As one day they may call you a toadstool, and the next they call you cool

You cannot let them overrule

So if a student is what depends

Am I still a student in the weekend

But what about when I do not attend?

Not as a student is my life most spent

And as for my age,

It’s always gonna change

As every year comes my birthday

And I definitely can’t be identified this way

So now I know that all these identities only last for a while

Or it’s due to your lifestyle

You may be someone and someone else meanwhile

These are just to fill your profile

So my true self is something which will last forever

Something that would still be there if I were born to whomever

Something that wouldn’t change if I lived wherever

Something which isn’t just for pleasure,

but something which is there to treasure

And the Prophet (saw) says in a Hadith,

That,” The one who finds themselves, Finds there lord”

And now I fell empty and numb

Confused and dumb

My soul screaming out to me

Because it’s true self is what it wants to see

And that’s also what I want to believe

I’ll search for myself everywhere

High up in the mountains and elsewhere

In between all the branches and under all the leaves

If success is what it means

And now I’ve finally discovered who I really am

I found it in the middle of a traffic jam

Trying it’s best to hold tight on the rope

Because dying with me was its ultimate hope

This identity was simply my own choice

Wherever I am this will always be my voice

Whatever be my age

This will never, ever change

This identity wasn’t given to me by somebody else

Nor was it due to inheritance

It’s not something temporary

But something entirely necessary

So now I’ve found myself, and I’ve found my lord

And to please him is all I can afford

I only submit to him and to others my soul is not sold

And I’m not the slave of trends and money, but my ultimate goal is to please my lord

My entire life is a challenging task

And before every action I have to ask

What is the consequence of this task?

And will God be happy with this task?

My Lord is Allah

And my Eternal home is Jannah

My enemy is Shaytan

And this world is not where I truly belong

My Actions should not be sins

And my ultimate goal is to please him

Finally...

I am part of a 1.6 billion membered family,

And I am proud to say

That I have discovered myself as a MUSLIM

 Gold Winner (First)

NCC

2016

SEEKING KNOWLEDGE IS FARD TO ALL MUSLIMS by Haajar Mohamed Ismail Year 5

Bismillahirahmanirahim, Alhamdulillah. Assalathu wasalamu alaa rasul lillah. Amah bad.

Honourable judges, respected elders and my dear brothers and sisters, assalamu Alaikum warahmatul lahi wabarakathu.

Before I begin my speech, let me check whether I am speeking to the right audience. Among the audience, raise your hand if you are Muslim. Now raise your hand if you want to live as a Muslim. One last time raise your hand if you want to die as a Muslim.

ALHAMDULILLAH I am talking to the right audience!!!

Today I am standing infront of you to deliver a speech on the topic of “SEEKING KNOWLEDGE IS FARD TO ALL MUSLIMS”.

I have divided my speech into 2 parts, in the 1^st part I will be sharing the evidence from the Quran and Sunnah, and in the 2^nd part I will be speaking about the reality in this world. In sha Allah.

First of all let’s understand the meaning of the term knowledge. According to the oxford dictionary it means “facts, information and skills aquirred through experience or education; theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.

When you open the Quran you can see numerous ayahs which Allah (SWT) is ordering us to seek knowledge in various forms .Let me quote some of these ayahs for you. The first verse revealed to prophet Mohamed (SAW) is :                                     

Which means?

Recite in the name of your Lord                                       ٱقۡرَأۡ بِٱسۡمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ   (Surah Alaq verse 1)

The word ‘iqra’ also means learning, knowledge as well. We can see how it is important that the first word revealed is ordering us to seek knowledge. Allah (SWT) didn’t order us to pray or give zakkah or do hajj. He (SWT) just ordered us to seek knowledge because it is the key to everything.

Let me share another evident with you. We all know how important Jihad in Islam. It is compulsory and highly reward able act in Islam. Right. Even for Jihad Allah (SWT) prohibited to the people to go out altogether, no other purpose except to seek knowledge. You can clearly see that Allah (SWT)says in surah Tawbah verse 122

And it is not for the believers to go forth [to battle] all at once. For there should separate from every division of them a group [remaining] to obtain understanding in the religion and warn their people when they return to them that they might be cautious.

And also Allah (SWT)says in Surah Fatir verse 28.

And among people and moving creatures and grazing livestock are various colors similarly. Only those fear Allah, from among His servants, who have knowledge. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Forgiving.

The most important thing for a Muslim is first of all we must fear Allah, without knowledge how can we fear Allah (SWT)? If we don’t fear Him(SWT)then we won’t care about obeying HIM(SWT). Isn’t it my dear brothers and sisters? That’s why Prophet (SAW) said in a hadees

“Seeking knowledge is compulsory for every Muslim” reported in Bukhari. It’s very clear in this hadis that it is not optional but compulsory.

And also there are so many verses in the Quran were Allah (SAW) told us to think, ponder, scrutinize, learn, so on and so forth. 

I can give you evidence after evidence of Quran ayahs and many hadeeths which prove that it is fard to seek knowledge but time doesn’t permit me

So  let’s move to the second part of my speech, I will only point out some of the facts from our reality of this world and you can come to the conclusion. In sha Allah

First of all, everybody who is here knows the purpose of why we were created, it is nothing but to worship Allah (SAW). How do we worship without knowledge? How do we know what’s right and what’s wrong? How do we know what’s halal and what’s haram? How do we know how to pray, or make wudhu, or clean our self? How do we know how to fast, give zakah, or do hajj? How do we know how to dress, what to eat?

How do we know what to do or how to do anything? How? How? Tell me my brothers and sisters. How?

Furthermore, look at the reality we live in today, our economy is run with interest, most of the products contain alcohol or pork even in medicine, the schools we go to is mixed gender, the history we learn is changed, the science we learn is teaching us that everything was created by nothing, the fashion is showing us ‘dress less to impress’, the society is telling us to be individualistic, the media is bombarding with false narrations, the world is ruled by human minds, one day it is legal to do something and the next day it is illegal, and forcing us to give up our deen little by little, and the list goes on and on. But my point is in this reality how can we live as Muslims? My dear brothers and sisters, if we don’t have the knowledge people can easily manipulate us. We would be enslaved to others. My dear brothers and sisters, there is only one solution, let me tell you the solution very clearly: “seeking knowledge is fard to all Muslims.

Not only that my dear brothers and sisters we Muslims should be in the forefront of every single field.

Whether it could be medicine, technology, astronomy, business, banking, history, economic, education, invention, computing, management, hadees fiqh, mathematics, science, agriculture, construction, military power, ruling...

You name it we should be in the top of every single field. We can. And our fore father once leading the world in every single field. How? Because they understood that seeking knowledge is compulsory upon every single Muslim and they would act up on it. They didn’t  seek knowledge in order to get the most payed job or have the most luxurious life or get the title after their name. They sincerely seeked knowledge. My dear brothers and sisters, now it’s our time, and we are the future leaders, it is compulsory upon us to seek knowledge, in order to live as a perfect Muslim.

Finally I conclude my speech by summarising it in a nutshell, we will never ever be a Muslim or live as a Muslim or die as a Muslim without knowledge.

Jazakkallah for listening to my, wa ahiru da’awah......

Wassalamu Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh

Gold Winner (first)

NCC

2018