Tasneem Zoghol: Chief Editor

Marriam Khan: Upper School/Events

Maryam Akbar & Ahella Bedir: Entertainment Page

Salma Mahmoud: Advice Column

Zainah Khaliq: Interviews

Dear Madina Academy Parents,

I hope this letter finds you in good health and spirits. I am writing to you on behalf of Madina

Academy to provide an update on the progress of our students during this mid-school year.

Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude for your continued support and partnership in

ensuring that our students receive the best education possible. I announce that our students

continue to progress with the NWEA Map benchmark assessment and perform well in many

curriculum areas.

Moreover, I would like to remind you that mid-school year assessments have taken place and

will finalize in the upcoming week. These assessments provide us with valuable insights into the

academic performance of our students, and we encourage you to support your student in

continued academic pursuits.

I want to take this opportunity to remind you of a few things that are important:

Safety on Campus: Please remember to follow road signs and drive at a safe speed while on

campus.

Dismissal: Please remember to display your student(s) number to allow for an efficient

dismissal process

Safety Drills: We have successfully completed 2 rounds of safety drills such as Lockdowns, Fire

Drills, and Shelter in Places. We will continue to practice drills in case of an emergency.

Visitor Parking: When visiting the school, we ask parents to park in the visitor’s parking. We

have two in front of the school, two in front of the PreK entrance, and one near the playground

area. Please do not park in the Fire Lane in front of the school.

Important Date reminders:

• 2/9- Professional Development (No school for students)

• 2/10- Muslimah Night

• 2/15- Coffee with the Principal (Parent/Family Engagement at Madina Academy)

• 2/17- Science Fair

• 2/20-2/24- President’s Day and February Break

In conclusion, I would like to assure you that we are continuously committed to providing a

safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environment for all Madina Academy students. If you

have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership.

Sincerely,

Dr. Ray Cooper

Principal, Madina Academy

To get the kids pumped for testing, Principal Ray Cooper threw the school a “prep” rally. There were games, goodie bags, gift cards, and more! For the middle and high school students, Dr. Cooper and Mrs. Masuda motivated the crowd with their inspirational words. Ms. Dana and Ms. Alaa organized educational activities and games to get the students excited! The kids left the rally chanting:

“I CAN, I WILL, I MUST, DO MY BEST!”

Interviewer: What are your thoughts on this school?

Hadi Ghabag 7th Grade: MashaAllah this school is so--

Adam Barakat 7th Grade: I think this school is very nice..um..and I buy all the food ‘cause I’m hungry.

Interviewer: How do you like the school?

Tahir Bey 10th grade: It's pretty decent

Interviewer: Are there any changes you would like to see?

Tahir: Yeah...um, some people need to stop screaming in the hallways and um ...and our art needs to be extended, we only have 30 minutes for art and that's crazy. And actually we have a double period for every single class besides gym and art, so ima need that, and ima need my gym time to stop being taken, that's crazy, take away math. Oh yeah, we need an intervention, we need an intervention for high school. I’m not gonna work in it but I still need it. And, and, why is SAT a class?

Interviewer: is there anything positive you would like to talk about?

[Laughter]

Tahir: You see, there’s a lot of positive, I don't think I need to talk about it. Tahir Bey for student president!

Interviewer: How do you like this school?

Sarah Abuteen 7th grade: I have enjoyed it very much. It was actually a very nice experience. I will soon be leaving. Sadly. I will miss everyone here.

[Inaudible]

Sarah: ...that’s it.

In the name of Allah, the most Gracious, the most Merciful

We send our peace and blessings on Muhammad, the truthful

***

Allah gave the prophet ﷺ a lot of wisdom

Everywhere the prophet went, he would smile at everyone

***

He was merciful, gentle, and very brave

And for this world, he did not crave

***

He always had hayaa, which means being modest

And to anyone he spoke to, he would always be honest

***

He was also very kind, generous, and considerate

He was very loving and compassionate

***

Everything the prophet ﷺ did was for the sake of Allah

He was also very devoted in his salah

***

He was just with everyone, and also very trustworthy

Whenever he had guests, he treated them with hospitality

***

When he turned towards you, he wouldn’t turn just his head,

He would turn his whole body, to show his respect

***

He was very humble, and had a lot of sincerity

He also treated everybody with equality

***

He was very polite, strong, and also very faithful

And to Allah he was always thankful

And when the prophet ﷺ pointed he’d do it with his whole hand,

Just in case you misunderstand

***

If the prophets hand you shake,

He won’t take his hand back until you take

***

The prophet ﷺ only talked if,

It was necessary or if you finished

***

When the prophet ﷺ sat to eat,

He would sit straight up instead of lounging on his feet

***

And when the prophet ﷺ would speak,

He’d only need to say it once, for you to understand his speech

***

The prophet ﷺ is our best example

Following his way is very simple

***

Oh Allah! We ask you to guide us to his way,

And to be with him in Jannah we always pray!

***

Peace Be Upon The Prophet Muhammad

صلى الله عليه وسلم!

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) that was his name

People were misguided and that's when he came

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was a very disciplined prophet

His productive schedule was very composite

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was very shy

Although he kept his smile high

He was very polite,

And would never fight

When someone was talking, he would give full attention

While everything else was under suspension

He treated everyone respectfully

Unlike others that treated him resentfully

At most times he kept quiet

To Allah he was always reliant

Whenever he would point, he would do it with his full hand

When we hear this we should understand

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was very honest

And would always remain the calmest

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) liked to be unselfish, and shared

Because he always cared

He would always walk with a purpose

For everybody he was in service

Also when he talked once it was so clear

There was no use to repeat because everyone could hear

When someone got attention, he turned his full body

And never got distracted with anybody

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was very strong

He would never give up even when the disbelievers would treat him wrong

The Prophet (SAW) was very wise

And would wake up for Fajr before sunrise

He would always eat the closest thing in his plate

When we follow sunnah we can relate

Oh Allah increase us in knowledge

So we can strive to be like the Prophet (SAW)

Q: How do I cope with feeling stressed over schoolwork?

A: School definitely does not get easier as we get older - more and more responsibilities pile up on us until we don’t know where to start. Big tasks can feel unapproachable, and we procrastinate, leading to an endless cycle of unfinished work and stress.

Many people see procrastination as laziness, and although this can sometimes be true, it is often a coping mechanism against the fear of failure. When faced with impossible-seeming tasks, we put them off in hopes of avoiding any repercussions that can come with messing up. You can’t fail something if you never do it!

Unfortunately, ignoring the reality of something does not make it go away, and can make us feel worse about it. The nagging feeling of always having work to do can affect us even in non-school related situations. This feeling is immensely stressful, and can take a toll on our mental health.

So how should we deal with the inevitable stress that comes with school? It may seem like a cliche and overrated solution, but the best way is to complete work as soon as it is assigned. By doing this, you minimize the amount of assignments to worry about at any given time. This prevents any last minute breakdowns that come with leaving responsibilities to the last minute. Breaking down large tasks and spreading them out lessens the feelings of heavy burdens that we might struggle with when faced with too much work and not enough time.

The reality is that school is difficult. It’s hard to maintain strong self discipline all the time, and falling behind can come with overwhelming negative emotions, stress being one of the most burdensome. While dealing with stress isn’t easy, it is manageable -- but only you can help yourself. By cutting your work into bite-sized assignments, it won’t feel as though you are drowning in work.

Good luck!

Entering high school doesn’t just mean an extra load of homework or intensive studying, it presents a variety of new opportunities for students and a chance to submerge themselves in a new educational setting. This can be accomplished through participating in workshops, visiting different universities, and interacting with others in programs and competitions.

This past year, Madina Academy has broadened its preparations and information about college to high school students by pushing them to engage in various activities throughout their four years. Each activity(or mini field trip if you will) has given students a new set of skills and one more educational experience to add to their college resume. As someone who has participated in many of these activities, I can attest to the benefits that come with it and how they have aided in my arduous college application journey as I talk about some of the events Madina Academy students have participated in.

These are just some of the many activities that took place this past year, with more to add on for next year inshallah. As someone who is graduating this year, I would encourage students, especially freshmen and sophomores, to take advantage of the many opportunities to learn about what fields interest you and build up your skills and resume so that when the time comes, the burden of the college process may not be so overwhelming. High school is a time where students should be experimenting with their interests and persistent in achieving their future goals by using the opportunities around them to propel them towards success.

Model UN was one of the highlights of my year, and for many other high schoolers as well. Each person is assigned a country or person and placed in committees where they must argue for the topic they are given. Students traveled to the University of Connecticut, where the event was held, over the course of three days in which debate sessions took place. Through these sessions, I was able to strengthen my public speaking skills, research about topics I had little to no knowledge of, and interact with students from different schools and places. For three days, I would debate against people who held opposing views from me while simultaneously forming alliances with people who shared my perspective. I gained valuable knowledge of what it takes to put your ideas and yourself forward and fight for what stance you are given.

Those who are interested in the field of biomedical engineering will be pleased to know that there are programs for high school students at colleges to take a closer look at exactly what this field entails. For this specific program, students joined a four hour zoom meeting hosted by UCONN in which they sketched and designed prosthetic legs after learning how exactly they are engineered and what they are used for. The designs were presented to UCONN staff and students were able to see the different designs they had come up with and present what they had learned. A guest speaker appeared at the end of the meeting and spoke in depth of the evolution and engineering aspects of prosthetic legs. UCONN and other universities offer similar engineering activities that increase a student’s knowledge on the different fields of engineering as well as provide hands-on experience for students.

Southern Connecticut State University hosted a leadership program dedicated to inspiring future leaders and building students’ leadership skills by inviting several schools to partake in workshops. Throughout the day, students were given a schedule where they visited different workshops tailored to different subjects with expert speakers for each topic, ranging from leadership to sports to engineering. Each workshop spoke about the different skills required for different aspects of student life and how those skills may be honed to inspire leadership. The university provided lunch, entertainment, as well as guest speakers. The event proved to be a useful experience that provided high schoolers with a can-do mindset to approach any challenge they may face, whether it be college or a problem they wish to overcome.

Khalid was sitting in his fifth grade classroom staring down at an empty piece of paper. Written at the top was “NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS.” As he sat down staring at the empty boxes that he was supposed to fill out, nothing came to mind. Except for maybe the fact that he had decided he would never get on Yahya’s nerves. That one little kid that he always saw at the masjid. He was half his size and two years younger than him, but when he got mad, he got mad. Khalid’s mind went to one of the times that helped him decide the single most important resolution for the year.

Khalid was running across the masjid as he was being chased by angry Yahya. His fists were clenched and he was fuming. His face was tomato red as a blood curdling scream escaped his giant mouth. Khalid ran and ran because he knew if he ever stopped his head would probably be bitten off.

“KHALID! I. HATE. YOUUUUUUUUUU”

Yahya jumped towards Khalid tackling him down to the ground, as he fought for his life. But that wasn’t the only time he felt that he made a big mistake angering the tiny monster.

There was also that time where the little monster went over to his house, and all his friends were playing catch with a ball. They were having a whole lot of fun together, until chaos struck. Khalid accidentally threw the ball at Yahya's face, causing the little monster to unravel. He swung his arms down next to his legs, and clenched them tight. His face was turning red, and his veins began to show. His entire body was shaking. Once again, he let out a blood curdling scream as he dashed over to grab the ball that had hit his face. Khalid stood there, knowing quite well what would happen next. He watched as he quickly turned his head around to face him. His eyes were filled with rage as he began to run towards Khalid, ball gripped tight in his tiny hands. Khalid began to run as fast as his legs could carry him. He could hear him yelling behind him.

“KHALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIID!”

Thankfully, this time he managed to escape the wrath of the tiny monster. As he looked around his hiding place, he saw an empty box of ice cream. Seeing this, he was reminded of the time they went to the park. They had seen an ice cream truck drive by and they stopped it. Khalid and Yahya, along with many other kids at the park bought some ice cream from the truck. As they were happily eating their ice cream, Khalid suddenly bumped into Yahya causing him to trip. He fell to the ground causing his ice cream to break. He got up with tears in his eyes and his face red with anger, he was breathing hard as he focused his eyes on Khalid. Before Khalid could react, the tiny monster chucked the rest of the ice cream in his hand right at Khalid's face.

His thoughts came to an end as he stared back down at the paper his teacher had given him. He immediately picked up the pencil and began to write in one of the empty boxes. Once he was done he had scribbled down three simple words: “Don’t anger Yahya”. He put the pencil down, picked up the paper, and handed it in to his teacher.

1. I’m where yesterday follows today and tomorrow is in the middle. What am I?

2. Forwards I am heavy, but backwards I am not. What am I?

3. What has one eye but cannot see?

4. What has 4 eyes but can’t see?

5. Everyone has me but nobody can lose me. What am I?

6. What is a Mummy’s favorite type of music?

7. What has to be broken before you can use it?

8. There was a plane crash and every single person died. Who survived?

9. When my father was 31 I was 8. Now he is twice as old as me. How old am I?

10. An apple is 40 cents, a banana is 60 cents and a grapefruit is 80 cents. How much is a pear?
    

The longest English word is 189,819 letters long.

The circulatory system is more than 60,000 miles long.

The Philippines consists of 7,641 islands.

There’s enough gold inside Earth to coat the planet.

It takes a drop of water 90 days to travel the entire Mississippi River.

Japan has one vending machine for every 40 people.

Scotland has 421 words for “snow”.

Armadillo shells are bulletproof.

1. Dictionary

2. Ton

3. Needle

4. Mississippi

5. Shadow

6. Wrap

7. Egg

8. Married couples

9. I must be 23 if my father is twice as old as me.

10. 40 cents. The price of each fruit. is calculated by multiplying the number of vowels by 20c.