T H E  P I N N A C L E
A Quarterly Publication of New Horizon School Pasadena

    January 2008

      Each year, the U.S. State Department selects a theme for its annual iftar in Ramadan.  This year’s theme was education. Our designation as a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon School made the school a natural choice to participate at the event. The Head of School, Mrs. Amira Al-Sarraf, was invited to attend.  Seated at the Secretary of State’s table, Mrs. Al-Sarraf enjoyed an enriching discussion with Secretary Rice, Ali Ibrahim, a professor from Georgetown University, Congressman Bustany of Louisiana, Ausma Khan, editor of Muslim Girl magazine, Imam Mohamed Magid of the Adams Center in Washington, D.C., and several others.  Mrs. Al-Sarraf also presented a special plaque of student art to the Secretary on behalf of the students, faculty, board, and parents of New Horizon Pasadena.
      In November, a delegation from Bordeaux, France visited the school as part of a trip to the United States to examine the role of Muslims in American society.  Jihad Turk, the Religious Director of the Islamic Center of Southern California, hosted the group and chose the school as an example of a Muslim institution that exemplifies the harmony of Muslims working within their local communities and promoting a positive American Muslim identity among its students.  The delegation was very impressed with the school and its accomplishments and efforts to forge relationships with local officials and other schools and organizations.
      Late last year, the Pakistani Consul General, the Honorable Syed Ibne Abbas came to the school for a visit.  He was very impressed with our program and facility.  At that meeting, he offered to refer several of the other Consul Generals in the L.A. area to come to visit the school.  In September, the school hosted a special tour and luncheon for the Honorable Atiquilah Atifmal, Consul General of Afghanistan, the Honorable Md. Abu Zafar, Consul General of Bangladesh, the Honorable R. Hakan Tekin, Consul General of Turkey, and representative for the Honorable Elin Suleymanov, Consul General of Azerbaijan. Among the highlights of their visit was an exchange between one of the guests and the students about what it is like to be a diplomat.

Learning through Simulation
      Research-based teaching strategies help create effective and enriching learning environments for students whether they are trying to remember the facts about the American Revolution or developing a deep understanding of the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. One such strategy is a simulation.  A simulation is a staged replication of an event through the manipulation of the classroom setting.  This strategy incorporates active learning with students tapping into their affective domain generating feelings that increase their opportunities to learn cognitively as well.  In simple terms, when students re-enact an historical event, for example, they enjoy the experience and therefore more effectively retain the information they are learning.
      While simulations are utilized throughout the school

program, two recent activities demonstrate the significant gains from this type of learning environment.  In early December, fifth and sixth graders participated in a “Walk through the Revolutionary War” and a “Walk through Ancient Egypt” respectively.  In advance of the simulation, California Weekly Explorer, Inc. provided the social studies teacher, Lenda Sater, with materials to help students prepare for the walk-through.  Students took on the identities of key historical figures such as George Washington and even dressed up in the appropriate garb for the time period. 

      During the Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) season, the

middle school students create a Hajj simulation for lower school students using the expansive middle school campus for each aspect of the journey.  The younger students don the appropriate Hajj clothing over their regular uniform and come to the middle school, passport and boarding pass in hand, prepared to simulate the rituals of Hajj and then some.  After passing through a "medical clinic" and "security" at the Mecca Airlines Terminal, students board the airplane in Adaya Auditorium. Airline attendants provide snacks on the airplane while also explaining the importance of this once-in-a-lifetime trip.  Once the plane has landed, lower schoolers are met just outside Mecca by their Hajj guides who take them through every stage of the pilgrimage on the middle school grass field. The journey ends with the purchase of toys in the marketplace in celebration of Eid ul-Adha.

       As evidence of the impact of this experience, parents often comment that their children know the steps of Hajj much better than they do due to this amazing learning opportunity.  It is our belief that learning through simulation greatly enhances the students’ understanding of this important pillar of Islam and will hopefully provide the foundation for their future journey.

Reaching Out Through Music
      New Horizon’s Performing Arts Club is speaking the language of music as they share their singing talents with friends, families and the community. We are privileged to have a dedicated and award winning Music Director, Mrs. Lois Tucker. She works with a select group of students who perform throughout the communities of the Greater Los Angeles Area. 

      Each year, PAC begins their performance season early in October with their participation in the Daniel Pearl Music Day. Through the power of music this event is used to promote tolerance and inspire respect for our differences.  New Horizon School, St. Mark’s Episcopal School and Weismann Day School come together and sing about peace and love.
      PAC was recently invited for an unprecedented fifth year by the Valley Interfaith Council to sing at the Unique Interfaith Concert. This year’s musical experience was co-hosted by Temple Judea in November. The highlight of the performance was a beautiful song entitled, "Why We Sing." Linda Abrams, VIC board member, expressed the sentiments of herself and others in attendance when she said, "It was sensational, moving, and very appropriate for the message that we, as an organization, are trying to convey every day." Due to this impressive presentation, VIC invited PAC to perform at the Annual Spirit of VIC Awards Dinner which will be held at the Sheraton Universal Hotel Grand Ballroom on May 8, 2008.  The dinner draws an attendance of 400 from among the leadership in government, business, the media, the community, and local religious institutions.
      New Horizon's Performing Arts Club has clearly built a reputation as an outstanding Muslim children's choir in the Los Angeles area, and PAC members are setting an outstanding example in their role as young American Muslims.

Students Take the Lead on Recycling
      Did you know that recycling one ton of aluminum saves 27 cubic yards of landfill space?  Did you know that using recycled beverage cans to produce new cans allows the aluminum can industry to make up to 20 times more cans for the same amount of energy? Did you know that using recycled glass to make new glass cuts related air pollution by up to 20%?

      These and other important facts about recycling are just some of the reasons that middle school students decided to develop a recycling program at the school.  Students were also motivated by the teaching of our faith which reinforces the importance of humanity's responsibility in caring for the earth. As the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The world is green and beautiful, and God has made us stewards over it.” 
      In an elective called “Project Citizen,” seventh and eighth grade students chose a project to make a difference in their community.  Over an eight-week period, they worked together to create a plan for recycling at the school.  From making posters to surveying other middle school students to researching the feasibility of different types of recycling, the students worked out the details and announced the new program to all of the lower and middle school students.  They even came up with an idea to increase their recycling revenues by having families bring recyclables from home every Thursday.  These days are called BYOR (Bring Your Own Recyclables) days. 
      Concentrating mainly on recycling plastic bottles and aluminum cans, the students hope to make recycling a daily habit at school and even at home.

Annual Benefit Dinner Celebrates Our Children
      Most Saturday evenings are dark and quiet at New Horizon School Pasadena but not on the first Saturday in December.  On that day, over 200 guests lit up the campus at the school’s Annual Benefit Dinner. With the theme of “Celebrating Our Children,” the evening included a beautiful student art exhibit, a fabulous musical presentation by the school’s award-winning Performing Arts Club led by Music Director, Lois Tucker, and inspirational alumni reflections by Naeem Khan, Class of 2002.

      The program’s highlight was the keynote speaker, Geneive Abdo, noted journalist and author of Mecca and Main Street, a book exploring Muslim life in America after 9/11.  Other impressive aspects of the event featured a silent auction and a variety of world cuisines with spicy samosas as appetizers and a delicious Mediterranean dinner. Before concluding the evening’s activities, the school community recognized Mrs. Lina Kholaki, a veteran teacher of fourteen years, with a Teacher Appreciation Award and Mrs. Azmerelda Alfi for her tenure as the Director of Bureau of Islamic and Arabic Education.    

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New Horizon School Pasadena
651 N. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91103
Phone: (626) 795-5186   Fax: (626) 395-9519
info@newhorizonschool.org