NEWS FROM THE NEST April 2013-Edition 8

May Events 1-9 CTP Testing: Please see Ed-Line 2-Tuesday: IPTA Meeting @8:30am 3-Friday: NO SCHOOL/Teacher Work Day 6-Monday: Tuition Due 9-Thursday: 8th Grade Field Trip 10-Friday: Islamic Day 10-Friday: Student Council Bake Sale 14-Tuesday: Parent Appreciation Breakfast/ Meet the Admin 14-Tuesday: PreK Visits K5 15-Wednesday: K5 Visits 1st Grade, 5th Grade Visits 6th Grade 17-Friday: Technology Bake Sale 17-Friday: Tarbiyah Program 18-Saturday: Open House @ 5:30pm 20-22: Senior Exams 22-24: Early Exams 23-Thursday: Pre-K SOTM Assembly 24-Friday: SOTM/ End of the Year Assemblies 24-Friday: IPTA Bake Sale 26-Sunday: Seniors’ Graduation at Embassy Suites 27-Monday: NO SCHOOL/Memorial Day 28-30: Semester II Exams 28-30: Early Dismissal-12:30pm 30-Thursday: Elementary Field Day

30-Thursday: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! 31-Friday: K5, 5th Grade and 8th Grade Graduations

Look inside... Spotlights 2

Student Submisions 3

Honor Roll 4

Student of Month/Quarter 5

Fun Pages 6-7

Arabic Page 8

Newsletter Submission

DEADLINE: May 21, 2013

Please email submissions to

ayanewsletter@ayatampa.com

5905 E. 130

TH AVE. ●TAMPA, FLORIDA 33617

www.ayatampa.org ● (813) 987-9282

We would like to congratulate Sr. Narjes Herbawi and her family on the birth of her newest granddaughter, Salwa, and grandson, Omar. Sr. Narjes is a member of the cafeteria staff at AYA. Her sons, Ahmed, Mutasem, and Khader, are all students at AYA.

We would also like to congratulate Br. Khaled and Sr. Nawal Khaled on the birth of their new baby girl, Ayah. Their children Musa, Maysa, Muhammed, and Iyad, are all students at AYA.

Congratulations to Br. Mohammad Hamdan and Sr. Heba Atiyeh on the birth of their new baby girl, Kareema. Sr. Heba is a middle and high school Social Studies teacher at AYA, and their sons Akram and Abdelhamid are students at AYA.

We would like to extend a giant THANK YOU to Publix Supermarkets for their

generous support. Our students are sure to do well on their upcoming CTP

standardized tests after having a healthy snack like the Nutri-Grain bars that

were donated.

Message from Sr. Magda… Dear Community Members,

Assalamu Alaikum wa rahmatullah.

It is hard to believe, but the end of the year is clearly in sight. Masha'Allah, we have

done so much this year, and we have had fun doing all of it.

The month of May is loaded with activities and events, and we hope that you will all be able to join us for at least a few of them.

At the Tarbiyah Program on May 17, we will be discussing activities and ideas for you and your children over the summer months, and we hope to have the program translated into Arabic, by request of several members of the community.

At the Open House on May 18, we will be giving you an overview of this year's accomplishments and will be introducing to you new programs and ideas for the coming year (IB Program; Gifted; etc.). You will have the opportunity to meet AYA's Administrators, Staff and Teachers, and you will be able to register for the upcoming year, if you have not done so already.

Of course, the Graduations are always a wonderful culmination to the year. The Seniors will be graduating May 26 at Embassy Suites USF; students in K5, Gr. 5 & Gr. 8 will graduate May 31 at AYA in the ICT Hall, insha'Allah.

News from the Nest

Summer is on its way!

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 2

Running through the streets the sun blazing. The floor is hot, my feet burning. Cracked glass, bloody feet, a red path behind me.

I can't feel my toes as it snows,

the frost spreads. Shoes,

where would I be without my shoes?

They keep me warm like a mother's hugs in a cozy room.

They keep me safe from harm, and protect my feet.

It’s really neat how something so

insignificant can be so great.

I never really cared about my shoes,

until I lost both pairs. Now the blood of my feet

stains the snow and I don't know

where to go. Be grateful for things

no matter how small because even a pair of shoes

is more important than you think.

The blanket That covers me, Shields me from

The cold, From the world.

As I rest, It remains awake.

Preserving my comfort, With your feathers

Of down. I won’t frown.

The horrors of my life, are no more.

As I sleep, And rest and snore.

During the day, You sit and wait.

As I live with Fear and hate.

But when I arrive, You are there.

A blanket woven To perfection,

Has never earned So much affection.

To be made of gold, I love my blanket.

Protecting me from the cold.

A blanket fit To be made of gold,

I love my blanket.

By

Ab

rah

am Ir

shai

d, 1

0B

Sr. Rosaylah, 3A Lead Teacher: What made you

decide to come to AYA? I finally graduated from college

in December 2012, and I wanted to teach in a good

environment. What do you think about AYA? I think AYA is a family and a healthy environment and I feel like

it’s home. What do you enjoy most about teaching

here? I enjoy that at the end of the day my students hug

me and say,'I love you, Sr. Rosaylah!'

Nofan, K4: What is your favorite subject?

I love Math! Who are your best friends? Rady and Adam

are my best friends.

Layalee, 2B: How do you like your new school?

I like it because of the Arabic and the Qur’an classes.

What school did you go to before you came to

AYA? I went to Walsingham Elementary.

What do you miss most about AYA? “I mostly miss the Islamic environment, the teachers, admin, and basically the family of AYA.” What have you been doing since you graduated AYA? “I started going to USF, and was recently accepted into the Honors College.” We have noticed that you volunteer at AYA, what do you like most about it? “I love seeing the kids and spending time with them. You learn something new every day.” What were your goals before you graduated AYA? “I wanted to go to Medical School.” What are you studying? “I am currently studying Biomedical Sciences and Psychology preparing for Medical School.” What do you want to become after graduating college? “I want to become a Pediatrician.” What advice would you give to students at AYA? “Take advantage of the small atmosphere and dual enrollment, and never underestimate the Islamic environment. And remember, YOU have a voice here!”

By Samer Sarsour, 10B

The AYA H.S. Girls’ Basketball Team

participated in the 2013 MAS Olympics. The team is

pictured here celebrating their 1st Place trophy!

Masha’Allah! Go Eagles!

By: Bayane Elhayboubi, 8A

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 3

Let’s Clean up our Earth, by Maysa Khaled, 9A

Do you think there is a problem in the environment? Well, I do. I believe that there are many problems with pollution and deforestation, and that people are only making the environment worse. There is air pollution, water pollution, and litter on the ground. We need to come together to save the ENVIRONMENT. There are simple ways to fix the conditions or at least improve it. Everyone has the power to make a difference.

Besides writing to the President of the U.S. and coordinating the AYA Shoe Drive (See below), the 2A class recently started a butterfly garden. Two caterpillars have hatched, and the students witnessed the life cycle of a butterfly! Finally, in April, Sr. Regina encouraged everyone at AYA to participate in Earth Day by decorating grocery bags about Earth Day. The bags were returned to Publix and distributed on Earth Day to the general public.

Letter to the President

Periwinkles are blue Roses are red

I love to smell them before bed I love to wake up to the sound of

Red robins or beautiful bluebirds

Daffodils are yellow

Their stems are green They smell sweet Like a vanilla bean

Trees have dark bark that is colored brown, the same color as the hard and smooth ground

I love the morning air It is crisp and cool

When you’re with nature you can never be cruel

I love soft and fuzzy animals and colorful flowers, too

Treat them with gentleness and care so,

when the wind breezes by you’ll know love is in the air.

Have you ever wanted to send a letter to the president?

The 2A Class did, and they got a reply! I had some

questions for them, and this is what some of them said.

“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."~ Dr. Seuss

How did you feel when you wrote

the letter? Iyad Khaled- I felt a little shy.

What was the letter about?

Abeir Obeid- How the president can

use money to help teachers and students.

How long did it take for him to

respond? Amjad Soukieh - We sent it in January and he responded

in March, so about two months.

What did the president reply

back? Fatima Mohammad - He said

that we are good students, good

writers, and that we were the first

class to send a letter about this topic

One morning, a girl was sleeping in her bed. All of a

sudden a loud voice popped out saying, “Breakfast is

ready, breakfast time!” It was her mother. “Get up.

Stop dreaming. Get yourself ready to go to school!” “It’s only

7:00.” “Come on stop being lazy!” She got up, and got herself

ready. Then she couldn't find her socks. All of them were

missing!!! “AHHH! Mom, where are all my socks!?” “Aren't you

responsible for your own socks?” I have a little brother, but his

socks wouldn’t fit me, so I didn't wear socks to school.

Later at school and sockless, I was walking with my BFF, “Maybe

your brother took them?” “No, I don't think so,” I said. After

school that day, I went straight home. I found my mom, “Hi Mom,

could you buy me some socks?” “No, I am sorry. I am very busy.

Go get some rest.” “Ok, mom.” I went upstairs, I put my brother

to nap, and went straight to bed. While I was resting, I heard a

strange noise. I opened my eyes and saw my brother taking my

shoes. Then, I ran to my brother’s room. I saw him playing with a

pile of socks. “What are you doing with my socks?” “Nothing.”

“Give me back my socks now before I tell Mom!” He gave me back

my socks. Finally, mystery solved!

By: Layal Barakat, 6B

Sr. Regina, 2A organized a

school wide shoe drive. In just one

week, they collected 378 pairs of shoes.

The shoes were donated to

orphanages in Africa and Ecuador.

During earth days at AYA, students and teachers pledged to work in the dark during our “TURN YOUR LIGHTS OFF” activity. Masha'Allah, AYA students and teachers

conserved 52 hours and 25 mins of electricity. Students and teachers also wore green and blue to show their “Earth Day” spirit! Winners of the earth day drawing were:

Elementary: Dana Barakat, 4A, Yzen El-Shaafi, 2B, Fatima Mohammad, 2A, Adem

Kostic, 3B, Nader Sarsour, 4A, Abrar Hamdan, 3A, Dina Irshaid, 5B, Sofian Faria, 5B, Muhammad

Mustafa, 2A, and Otman Filali, 2B. Secondary: Zena Omer, 6B, Amer Fariz, 8B, Sewar Qunabi, 9B, and

Najwa Rhoulam, 9B. Staff: Sr. Aisha Zafar and

Sr. Rafeena Khan

Poem by Mariam Elsayed, 5A Flower drawing by Zainab Mohamed, 3A

Earth

draw

n b

y Sh

ahd

Ismail, 3B

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 4

By: Reham Ali, 8B and Iman Ahmad, 8B

Noel Tanoukhi, Lara Twam, Abdulhakim Chefchaouni, Wasif Mahtab, Zainab Mohamed, Samah Quneibi,

Yosef Safiah, Banah Swar, Amina Ahmed, Sabrina Atiq, Muhammad Falah, Samya Soukieh, Meryam Tazi,

Karimah Ahmad,Rahma Elmekabbati, Mariam Elsayed, Sofia Mekouar, Iness Morabi, Eman Mustafa,

Minahil Cheema, Jihad Gomaa, Hanan Hasan, Akram Mohammad, Ahmed Nofal, Zena Omer, Leya Rum,

Sarim Akram, Mariam Al-Asfour, Sarah Elbasheer, Omar Elmekabbati, Osama Gurwala, Iman Ahmad, Bayane Elhayboubi, Naeila Mohammad, Dina Awshah, Hamza Bouarfa, Sarah Gomaa, Samirah Khan,

Nawal Khawaja, Lara Mattar, Ahmad Museitef, Shihab Mustafa, Sewar Quneibi, Lana Sarsour, Elnaz

Taherkalateh, Safa Gurwala, Abraham Irshaid, Samer Sarsour, Nadine Al-Ashker, Omar Altoubah, Faris

Hawari, ussien Qasem, Dania Rum, and Shaden Yousef

Tanoukhi, Layalee Ahmad, Moustafa Ismail, Belal Mansour, Ridha Mohamed, Muhammad Maarij Mustafa,

Shahed-fatima Aisheh, Nagam Saleh, Lana Shada, Malik Shalabi, Abdul-Malik Zekri, Yazen Alkhyyat, Dana

Barakat, Adam Mansour, Hedaia Mohammad, Abdullah Omer, Saji Rum, Azeeza Sarour, Rama Abdulmagid,

Khawlah Altoubah, Danya Awshah, Hasan Benbourenane, Rita Benkirane, Dina Irshaid, Omar Omer, Salam

Twam, Danya Yousef, Abdul-Hakim Zekri, Ahmad Abdulmagid, Layal Barakat, Ayah Bensaid, Samarah Mohammad, Amine Benkirane, Esraa Nofal, Khaled Yousef, Mariam Mekouar, Tasneem Al-Asfour, Sabrina

Awshah, Hasna Elhayboubi, Diana Mustafa, Juwairiah Mohammad, Serene Mostafa, A’la Faria, Subrine

Hijaz, Mizba Khan, Lama Mattar, and Sarah Quneibi

Tannoukhi, Shireen Abdelhafes, Seham Ali, Bara’a Alrousan, Raghad Bayyari, Ahmad Dibo, Seham Elbooz, Yazen El-shaafi, Bnan Hamdan, Abdullah Husain, Su’ad Macedonio, Mariam Mustafa, Mohamad

Soukieh, Raghad Swar, Mahamed Abdel, Seif Abduljaber, Lydia Ben Bourennane, Suhaib Fariz, Farah

Ghanem, Ibrahim Hamdan, Shuhd Ismail, Adem Kostic, Hiba Othman, Dalia Qdeih, Yaseen Qureshi ,Alla

Taha, Selma Bensaid, Noor Elfaouatih, Nader Sarsour, Sofian Faria, Omar Obeid, Suhaib El-dahla, Hussein Harake, Aya Mari, Bissan Mustafa, Nadene Hijaz, Ayah Elfaouatih, Yasmine Sekkat, Adam

Shehata, Om-Kalthoom Ahmad, Amer Abdelaziz, Rola Ashour, Shireen Hussien, Area Rafhat, Yara Twam,

Isra Aisheh, Emre Arslan, Obaidah Fariz, Musa Khaled, Osamah Nofal, Ahmad Qasem, Nael Rifaie, and

Wael Rifaie

Awwab Azam, Yasmina Belkherroubi, Aamna

Cheema, Yusuf Elmenayer, Aminah Khan, Nevin

Vaniza Atiq, Mustafa Elsayed, Asif Mohid, Zackaria Motrib,

Muhammad Washah, Waleed Yousef, Baker Atiyeh, Otman Filali,

Jawad Alhadidi, Butti Alremeithi, Ali Fetais, Alya Hamdan, Omer Ismail,

Hamza Kamel, Haadiya Khan, Zackaria Mekouar, Al-harith Sullaiman, Rony

K4: Fahad Abdullah and Eyad Al-hasan

K4B: Hamza Al-Dualimi and Hiyah Shihadeh K5A: Mekdad Abdelaziz, Rashed Qasem,

and Dareen El-shaafi

K5B: Waad Ibrahim and Ewan Elbooz

Grade 1A: Alya Hamdan and Jawad Alhadidi

Grade 1B: Nevin Tanoukhi and Butti Alremeithi Grade 2A: Malek Abdelaziz, Iyad Khaled,

and Belal Mansour

Grade 2B: Seham Ali and Baker Atiyeh

Grade 3A: Samah Quneibi and Bilal Qasem

Grade 3B: Seif Abduljaber and Ibrahim Hamdan

Grade 4A: Samya Soukieh and Dana Barakat Grade 4B: Muhammad Falah and Muhammed Khaled

Grade 5A: Abdul-Hakim Zekri and Sofia Mekouar

Grade 5B: Iness Morabi and Omar Omer

Grade 6:

Zena Omer and Ahmad Abdulmagid

Grade 7:

Mariam Al-Asfour, Hussein Harake, Khaled

Yousef, and Sarah Elbasheer

Grade 8: Bayane Elhayboubi, Fatima Bouarfa,

and Iman Ahmad

Grade 9: Elnaz Taherkalateh,

Samirah Khan, and Lara Mattar

Grade 10:

Tasneem Al-Asfour, Aria Rafhat, Amer

Abdelaziz, and Sabrina Awshah

Grade 11: Shaden Yousef, Sarah Elfaouatih,

Islam Ahmad, and Serene Mostafa

Grade 12: Sarah Quneibi

By: Al-Dana Fetais, 8B and Tamara Irshaid, 8B

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 5

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 6

Straight From the Students

What will you miss most about

Elementary? Sofian Faria, 5B: I’ll miss my friends and my teachers.

What are you looking forward to in

Middle School? Jasmine Abdel, 5B: I hope that I’ll have really nice

teachers and friends and I am looking

forward to not having to walk in line

and having a fun time.

What are you going to miss most

about Elementary? Ayman Zouafi, 5A: I will miss my 4th Grade friends.

What are you looking forward to in

Middle School? Sofia Mekouar, 5A: I hope I get really good grades, and I

hope to try my best.

Who or what inspires you?

My inspiration is Sr. Magda. She is such a loving and caring person. She does so many

great things for the school for the sake of

Allah and out of the kindness of her heart. I

aspire to be as pious and as kindhearted as

she is. -Nadine Al-Ashker, 11B

Vincent Van Gogh inspires me, because he

was a very remarkable painter.

Serene Mostafa, 11B

What advice do you give to upcoming 6th

Grade students? There are a lot of twists

and turns when you are in Middle School, but by the end of the year, you'll always

smile. -Adam Ismail, 6A

What are you looking forward to in high

school? I'm looking forward to not having

quarter exams, more opportunities, and more

extra-curricular activities. Heba Shihadeh, 8A

Can money buy you happiness? Why or

why not? There are some things money can

buy that can make you happy, however it

cannot buy you everything you want for

example love or friends. -Emre Arslan, 11B

By: Leya Rum, 6B and Zena Omer, 6B

This month the 5th and 6th graders from AYA and UAF went on a field trip to JA Biztown. This field trip taught us about businesses and how to run one. It was really fun, because we worked together and ran successful business practices. We had to use checks and deposit slips and even go to the bank. It is a student adventure place that taught us about responsibility and the real world.

Editorial from the Tampa Tribune

at Biz Town BY: ZENA OMER, 6B

The greatest experience I learned during my time at JA Biztown was about how to work with others and have a better understanding when my parents come home saying they are tired. It is hard working! It is a great responsibility, because every time you turn around there are loads of people and lots of papers to sign. It is really fun, though. There were adults to help your business and were there for you, but each student was responsible to get their job done! I loved working at Tampa Tribune, because I had to know what was going on around world, and I was first to know the news. BizTown was a great learning experience for AYA students, because it taught us a lot about what to look forward to in the future, insha’Allah.

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 7

By Sarah Elbasheer, 7B and Minahil Cheema 6B

Kamal Taha-1 Hussien Qasem-2 Jasmine Gutierrez-3 Sarah Quniebi-4 Mizba Khan-5 Subrine Hijaz-6 Lama Mattar-7 Yasmine Kiswani-8 Alanoud Fetais-9 Shaden Yousef-10 Ala Faria-11

CoMiCs

NEWS FROM THE NEST | APRIL 2013 8

By Bissan Mustafa, 7B

Arabic Class Winners 1st Grade: 1 - Mustafa Elsayed, 2 - Awwab Azam,

3 - Aamna Cheema and Yusuf Elmenayer

2nd Grade: 1 - Fatima Mohammad, 2 - Belal Mansour and Ridha Mohamed, 3 - Muhammad Maarij Mustafa

3rd Grade: 1 - Lana Shada, 2 - Shahed-fatima Aisheh, 3 - Abdul-Malik Zekri

4th Grade: 1 - Saji Rum, 2 - Hedaia Mohammad,

3 -Salma Bensaid and Amina Ahmed

5th Grade: 1 - Danya Awshah, 2 - Rama Abdulmagid, 3 - Omar Omer

6th Grade: 1 - Leya Rum, 2 - Ahmed Nofal, 3 - Zena Omer

7th Grade: 1 - Khaled Yousef, 2 - Ahmad Ali, 3 - Omar Elmekabbati

8th Grade: 1 - Ouase Alkhyyat, 2 - Yasmine Sekkat, 3 - Yousef Hasan 9th Grade: 1- Dina Awshah, 2 - Abdulrahman Aboukoura

10th Grade: 1 - Sabrina Awshah, 2 - Safa Gurwala, 3 - Samer Sarsour 11th Grade: 1 - Serene Mostafa, 2 - Musa Khaled, 3 - Osamah Nofal

1st Place Overall Winners Lana Shada, Gr. 3

Danya Awshah, Gr. 5 Leya Rum, Gr. 6

Sabrina Awshah, Gr. 10

2nd Place Overall Winners Shahed-Fatima Aisheh, Gr. 3

Rama Abdulmagid, Gr. 5 Ahmed Nofal, Gr. 6 Dina Awshah, Gr. 9

3rd Place Overall Winners Abdul-Malik Zekri, Gr. 3

Omar Omer, Gr. 5 Zena Omer, Gr. 6 & Khaled Yousef, Gr. 7

Safa Gurwala, Gr. 10

ARABIC SPELLING BEE