Academy. news. Message from the Principal. Calendar of Events. Sr. Magda Bismillahi-r-Rahamani-r-Raheem REMINDER INSIDE THIS

Transcription

1 AMERICAN Academy YOUTH Monthly New sle tte r Publica tio n Dece mbe r 2007/ Dhu al -Hijjah 1428 Message from the Principal Dear Parents, Staff, Students and Community Members: Assalamu Alaikum & Eid Mubarak! Subhan Allah, Ramadan is behind us, and Hajj and Eid ul-adha are just around the corner. The days have been flying by! I see, from the smiles on everyone s faces, that everyone feels the excitement. And, oh, have we ever been busy! The school is abuzz with construction and with talk of accreditation, both of which should be accomplished before the end of this school year. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but, insha Allah, with everyone working for the sake of Allah and our children, it will all come together. In the past three and a half years, I sincerely believe that AYA has found a spot in everyone s heart and mind. Masha Allah, there seems to be an infinite number of happy hearts, optimistic minds and energetic spirits working together to take us to the greatest heights, bi ithn-illah. Our sincere thanks go to Allah, our Board, our faculty, our staff, our parents and the community for their continued support. Please continue to support us as we strive to make AYA, its staff and its students the best they can possibly be. Wassalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu, Sr. Magda ayaprincipal@yahoo.com REMINDER Please join us for the Hajj Simulation on Monday, December 17 th followed by refreshments & Eid Parties. Bismillahi-r-Rahamani-r-Raheem INSIDE THIS ISSUE news 5909 E. 130 th Ave., Tampa, Florida (813) Message from the Principal 1 Message from the Board 2 Student Achievement 3 Student Council 4 Around AYA 5 AYA s Fun Corner 6 Calendar of Events December 12/17 Hajj Simulation 12/17 Class Eid Parties 12/18-12/21 Eid-Ul-Adha Break 12/24-1/2 Winter Break/NO SCHOOL Every Friday IPTA Sandwich Sale Every Afternoon IPTA Store January 1/3 Return to School 1/4 Next General IPTA Meeting 1/15 CiCi s Pizza Tuesday 1/11 Student of the Month Assembly 1/15-1/17 Semester 1 Exam Week 1/15-1/17 Early Dismissal (12:35) 1/18 No School/Staff Workday 1/31 Box Tops Deadline Every Friday IPTA Sandwich Sale Yusuf Albarami, a Kindergarten student, helps prepare a piñata for K-5 s Eid-Ul-Adha Celebration.

2 Page 2 Message from the Board Dear Parents, Community-members, Faculty, Staff and Students: Asalaamu Alaikum and Eid Mubarak, Alhamdulillah, this school year has gotten off to a great start, and we are looking forward to a wonderful rest of the year, Insha Allah. We, as a Board, are so proud of all of you, the faculty, staff, students and parents for all of your hard work and dedication. The success of AYA depends on all of us working together as one especially now that AYA is on the road to accreditation. It is so exiting to see our dream of a new building become a reality right before our eyes. Yet, none of this could be possible without the grace of Allah (SWT) and all of your involvement. Keep in mind that Allah (SWT) gave us all many talents and commands us not to waste these talents, but to use them for good works. There is so much to be done with regards to accreditation and the new building. So, ask what you can do to help, and you will be rewarded in this life and the hereafter, Insha Allah. We wish you all a blessed Eid and a safe and relaxing break. Jazakumallahu Khairan. Wassalaamu Alaikum, AYA Board of Trustees Education Begins from Within By: Br. Mahmoud Gomaa I am thankful to my first principal, whose evaluation of me said I needed better Classroom Management Skills. I thank him for telling me that I needed to improve my skills. I did. It worked! Allah (S.W.T) says in Surat El-Ra d Aya #11: Verily never will God change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls). Dear AYA Society; Most of our world problems ultimately rest on one important word: EDUCATION. Societies that succeed respect their teachers, and the teachers respect themselves and their students. We must begin with ourselves. Wa Jazakumullahu Khairan. AYA IPTA Activities To help promote healthy eating habits in our AYA families, last Saturday, Dec. 8 th, the AYA IPTA sponsored a Nutrition Family Workshop. Amjad Saad, a 2 nd Grade student, makes a wish for AYA at the Nutrition Workshop. Ms. Eman Nakshabendi, MS, RD, LD/N spoke to students and parents about the importance of healthy diets and the risks of poor nutrition. In addition, students ages three to six enjoyed a Nutrition Celebration of their own with parent volunteer Sr. Halima Chefchaouni. CLASS COMPETITION In preparation of the event, grades K-3 though 5 th tracked their fruit and veggie intake to see which class could eat the most. Eating a whopping 812 servings in two and a half weeks, Sr. Manal s 3 rd Grade Class WON! Thanks! to all who came. If you missed it, make sure to join us for future IPTA sponsored workshops/activities. They are beneficial & fun! Reminder: The next general IPTA meeting will be Friday, January 4 at 8:30 am-10:30am in the Da wah center. See you all there!!!

3 Page 3 Student of the Month Winners The following students received recognition for their academic excellence and achievement for the month of: November K4A: Janna Rahim and Shaam Daboul K4B: Mohammad Hijaz and Nadeen Hassan K5A: Abeer Hassan and Nafisa Uddin K5B: Aliya Hack Gr.1: Leya Rum and Ahmad Nofal Gr.2: Mohammad Ghnaim, Amro Hijaz, and Arian Rafhat Gr.3: Maytham Fahda, Amera Allaithy and Nermeen Qasem Gr.4: Zaineb Benkhaled, Dina Awshah, and Sarah Gomaa Gr.5: Hiba Syed, Samer Sarsour, and Abraham Irshaid Gr.6: Shaden Yousef and Faris Hawari Gr.7: Noamen Ali and Hussein Qassem Gr.8: Haneen Saad and Taymeya Altoubah Gr.9: Suzan Ashour Gr.10: Maram Yousef Gr.11: Saja Rum and Muhammad Alashker Gr.12: Omaya Zeineding Special Recognition Awards Honor Roll Gr.1: Zainab Jamal, Hala Kataline, Akram Mohammad, and Raja Twam Gr.2: Sumayyah Benkhaled, Amine Benkirane, Hussein Harake, Amro Hijaz, Bissan Mustafa, Esraa Nofal and Raghad Soboh Gr.3: Yasmeen Hassan, Tamara Irshaid, and Amira Zeinelabdin Gr.4: Zaineb Benkhaled, Hamza Bouarfa, Lara Mattar, Sewar Quneibi, and Elyana Zayed Gr.5: Hanadi Abraham, Razia Fayiz, Nesreen Ghnaim, Safah Gurwala, Mariah Hamil, Area Rafhat, Sarah Rifaie, and Yara Twam Gr.6: Nadine Al-Ashker, Omar Altoubah, and Musa Khaled Gr.7: Noaman Ali, A la Faria, Rula Hijaz, and Lama Mattar Gr.8: Shuruk Halim, Atef Rum, and Yasmeen Yousef Gr.9: Nancy Alshalabi, Suzan Ashour and Hany Naif Gr.10: Ashraf Tirhi an Zade Yousef Gr.11: Kevin Hamil and Hakeem Yousef Gr.12: Hashem Abraham and Wael Hijaz High Honor Roll Gr.1: Laith Hijaz, Ahmed Nofal, and Leya Rum Gr.2: Mohammad Ghnaim, Zara Khan, and Arian Rafhat Gr.3: Reham Ali Gr.4: Sarah Gomaa and Zakariyyah Sorathia Gr.5: Abraham Irshaid, Samer Sarsour, and Hibah Syed Gr.6: Obaidah Fariz, Serene Mostafa, Nael Rifaie, and Wael Rifaie Gr.7: Sarah Quneibi Gr.8: Halimeh Benkhaled Gr.9: Shada Ghnaim, Ja afar Harake, and Mohammad Harake Gr.10: Safa Ibrahim and Noor Tamari Gr.11: Sarah Ashour and Zaki Tirhi Gr.12: Yousef Abufreijeh, Lubna Ali, Sarah Chehab, Noah Mostafa, and Omaya Zeineding Principal s Honor Roll Gr.1: Layal Barakat, Jihad Gomaa, Zena Omer, Laith, Sawalha, Omar Sawalha, and Mostafa Zayed Gr.2: Ahmad Ali, Zaid Chefchaouni, Osama Gurwala, Amin Nasr, Hebah Nassar, and Khaled Yousef Gr.3: Abdullah Nassar and Subhi Quneibi Gr.4: Tasneem Ahmad, Dina Awshah, Lana Sarsour and Suha Zeinelabdin Gr.5: Sabrina Awshah and Fatima Beydoun Gr.6: Shaden Yousef Gr.7: Sarah Quneibi Gr.8: Taymeyah Altoubah Gr.9: Maryam Fahda Gr.10: Maram Yousef Gr.11: Khadija Bouarfa, Nour Harake, Nadeen Jamal, and Saja Rum

4 Page 4 Student Council Updates Support your AYA Student Council! As of Thursday Dec. 6 we are officially the: AYA Eagles! The students in grades 6 th thru 12 th voted during assembly on the mascot of their choice. The majority of their votes were eagles. Congratulations! To buy an AYA sweatshirt, you must have your form turned into the office with the right amount of money by Friday the 14 th. AYA s sports team needs your help!! If you or anyone you know would like to volunteer to be a coach for the senior girls (ages 16 18) in Basket Ball, Soccer, and Volley Ball, please let the office know if you are interested. Clean up day at AYA will be held once a month to keep our school clean and safe for everyone. Parents are more than welcome to come and give the school a hand. It will count as volunteer hours. Ice cream Wednesdays!!! Every Wednesday student council students will be selling chocolate and vanilla ice cream for the price of $1.50 in the courtyard next to the elementary dismissal area. Don t forget to send money with your child. An Eid decoration competition for the students of grades 1 st thru 12 th will be held next week. Students must bring their own decorations to decorate their class. They will be competing against each other for a party. The competition will take place in each of their homerooms. The judging will be on Monday Dec. 17. On all three days of Eid, the Student Council members will be selling snacks at a table by the carnival. We will be selling boiled peanuts, candy, popcorn, nachos, coffee, tea, etc. Please stop by and support the student council. Women s Eid Party will be held in the Wood Mont Club house on Friday, January 4, There will be lots of food, games etc. Tickets are $7 for all students (including USF and HCC) and $10 for adults. No boys over the age of four years allowed. The 4 th grade girls, smile brightly at Student the of the Month Awards in Assembly.

5 Page 5 AYA English Department By: Sr. Djamila Abdelijaleel Honors English: Grade Students are currently working on the classic novel Dracula. Many people may not know that this work, by Bram Stoker, is a highly acclaimed literary work. The students chose this novel themselves and I think were quite surprised at the vocabulary, length, and style of it. Due to the challenging vocabulary we recently had a Dracula vocabulary competition. Many students won prizes for their grasp of the new vocabulary. Khadija Bouarfa excelled in understanding dialect, and not just reading past vocabulary that she didn't understand. This astute skill earned her a Dracula doll, bat, ant, spider ring, essay pass and a few points on a future assignment. Honorable mention goes to Abdul-Hakim Hijaz who earned the same for displaying similar vocabulary comprehension. The entire class has worked diligently on this assignment and have survived the rigors of writing three essays weekly. English: 8-9 Grade Students are currently working on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain. The students are being entertained by many of the main characters' pranks. The language of this unabridged novel has proven to be challenging. Mahmoud Ali and Nureldeen Tirhi aced their test on this subject. This class is also working on their cursive writing skills. The entire class is striving to understand each character and the plot of this story. English: 6-7 Grade Alhumdullilah, students have almost completed their second novel! They learned to write collectively and revise during a group writing project, which is displayed in room 8. Around AYA Elementary By: Sr. June Page SEE YOU ALL NEXT YEAR, INSHA ALLAH! Fourth and Fifth Grade students went on a field trip to Lowry Park Zoo because they are currently studying the animal kingdom. Fourth Grade is planning a favorite book character day. Students will dress as their favorite character. The class also published a very nice newsletter! WAY TO GO 4 th GRADE! Second Grade is learning ways to save the earth, and will hang conservation posters around AYA. The K-5 Classes took a trip to the Temple Terrace Library to see the play The Shoemaker and the Elves. Everyone had an enjoyable time, and wrote a class narrative about it for English. Students are very busy learning to read, and are using some words they know to write about their journal pictures. Also, they are learning about numbers, jobs, and animals. The classes also decorated two piñatas for their upcoming Eid party under the guidance of Sr. Samira Elsayed. ALL Science Projects were submitted and judged. K-5 students will hand theirs in after Eid Break. UPCOMING EVENTS The Geography Bee is coming up soon, and students are busy preparing for it. K-5 through Fifth Grade will soon be working on class books that will be published by Studentreasures in February, Insha Allah.

6 Page 6 What AYA students think? Answered by 1 st graders: Why did Allah make moms? 1. So the moms can take care of kids and don t be orphans. (by Mostafa Zayed) 2. So they can help us and feed us. (by Nadene Hijaz) 3. Because to save their children and to cook. (by Musa Abdelrazzaq) 4. Because Allah just makes people. (by Ala a Kataline) 5. To clean. (by Laith Hijaz) What is the difference between moms and dads? 1. Moms cook food and go shopping, and dads work and fix cars. (by Layal Barakat) 2. Moms are girls, they work a lot and have long hair. Dads are boys and have short hair. (by Zena Omer) 3. Dad is a boy and mom is a girl and is better. (by Rund) 4. Moms are young and dads are old. (by Laith Swalha) 5. Moms are mama and dads are baba. (by Summer Hamdan) Fun Facts: Did You Know Certain frogs can be frozen solid then thawed and continue living. A snail can sleep for three years. A cockroach can live up to 9 days without a head. The average human dream lasts 2-3 seconds. AYA s Fun Corner Quotes: You can not take the elevator of success, you have to take the stairs. Feed a man a fish.he will eat today, Teach a man to fish he will eat forever. Say What? (Teachers most famous phrases)..isn t it? Sr. Shamima Knock it off! Sr. Manal Ramadan Erfa3y Munkharech (pick up your nose) Br. Ziad Taha This is an educational institution. Br. Mostapha No, no.it s okay Sr. Iffath Shu? A3deenly bel ahwae? Sr. Kariman Yallah!...Assalamu Alaikum Yallah! Br. Mahmoud Monthly Winners For the month of November, AYA collected a total of 800 Box Tops, which is equal to $80! November s Top Class Collector: Sr. Alicia and Sr. Farah s K-4 Classes!! The human brain cell can hold five times as much information as the Encyclopedia Britannica. Remember to KEEP COLLECTING!! This month s deadline: January 31, 2008!