Principal's Message

Dear Parents,

Assalam Alaikum.

Have you already purchased your tickets for our annual fundraising dinner?

· The event is scheduled on Saturday, February 27^th.

· The theme of the fundraising is, “It Takes a Village …” the Community’s Responsibility in shaping our Youth.

· Two prominent speakers have been invited: Imam Zaid Shakir and Shaikh Alaeddin El Bakri.

· Funds raised will be used to improve the playground and upgrade technology at Granada.

You may purchase tickets online (www.granadaschool.org).

The earthquakes that took place last month in California and Haiti heightened everybody’s awareness of the importance of being prepared for such an event. I would like to inform Granada parents about the steps that the school has been taking for the last couple of years to be prepared for an earthquake:

1. We receive regular mailings about emergency preparedness and resources. We keep ourselves educated about what needs to be done.

2. We regularly revise our emergency preparedness plan to ensure that we are ready in case of an earthquake.

3. We include earthquake drills on a regular basis for our students, so they know where to assemble once we leave the building. This year we participated in the California Shake Out.

4. Every time we evacuate the building, school personnel have with them emergency forms for all the students. We also have parents' contact information and of course cell phones.

5. We purchased emergency supplies that are stored in every room of our school. We are also exploring purchasing emergency supplies to be stored outside.

Reading for pleasure is strongly correlated with success in school. Reading aloud to your child is one method you may use to instill the love of reading in your child and develop their language skills. This year GIS preschool to 2^nd grade teachers had a professional development program about read alouds and how to use them for comprehension. Doha Brauer, the Language Arts Program Director, shared with parents some tips on reading alouds at home during the February Parent-Admin tea. These tips are included in the February Newsletter.

An important upcoming event for Granadians is the annual Quran competition. Each grade level is assigned one sura to memorize and then recite to the Quran teacher in April. Judges will decide on the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place winners for each grade level. Enrollment forms with all the competition rules and the assigned suras are available on the Granada website. Participation forms are due back to the Quran teachers on February 26^th.

By now you probably have received registration material for the 2010-11 school year. All forms and documents are available online. The due date for registration of continuing students is Friday, February 19^th. Registration hours are from 8:00 to 9:30 am and 12:30 to 2:30 pm. Please note that the school office will be closed on February 15 and 16.

Nihad M. Mourad

Principal

(nihadm@granadaschool.org)

Welcome to Granada Islamic School