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January 15, 8:45am -
Raising Digital Natives: Technology and Navigating Phones, iPads, Laptops and Tablets for Family Harmony
MCCA - Skokie Campus
For parents and the community, open to public
No registration required, please drop-in
January 16, 10am-12pm - Empower Girls:
A Special Health Seminar
MCCA - Skokie Campus
Girls ages 9-15, please attend this seminar to learn the basic biology of menstruation, personal hygiene and the fiqh of tahara. Mothers welcome to attend with their daughters. Open to the public.
To register, please email your daughter's name, age, and parent contact information to
[email protected]
January 21, 6:30pm - Halal Investing for College and Retirement presented by Azzad Financial Management
MCCA - Morton Grove Campus
No registration required, please drop-in
January 6, 2016 - March 23, 2016 - Fiqh of Salah course for women 18+
Wednesdays from 8:30am-10am
OPEN TO THE COMMUNITY
SAVE-THE-DATE
MCC Academy Annual Dinner:
"Articulating our Faith through Education"
Saturday, March 12, 2015, at 6:30pm
White Eagle Banquet Hall in
Niles, IL
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A Note from the School Council
Assalamualaikum,
As we enter the new year, we pray for peace and blessings to all in our school community and beyond. May Allah swt's grace and mercy touch the lives of all Muslims and non-Muslims alike. May the new year bring forth better understanding and acceptance among people of all faiths, inshAllah.
We are so pleased to see MCCA part of the positive narrative about Muslims. This past month, MCCA Girl Scouts were featured in a CBS television news segment showcasing the wonderful event they put on last month honoring mothers. Our fourth-graders' participation in the Poetry Pals Interfaith program was showcased in a beautiful video uploaded to YouTube. AlhumdilAllah, it is wonderful to be able to contribute positive news about our community to help elevate the profile of Muslims in the broader community.
This year's Annual Dinner will take place on Saturday, March 12, 2016, at the White Eagle Banquet Hall. Tickets will soon be available to purchase. Please save the date and stay tuned for more information. If you are interested in advertising your business in our program booklet, please email [email protected]. We expect nearly 1,000 attendees this year, inshAllah!
Jazakallah Khayrun,
Farisa Hussain
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Parent Support Group (PSG) Update
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Key Dates:
Jan 8, 22 - PSG meetings
Jan 29 - PSG Board Meeting
Jan 13, 27 - School Store
Jan 6, 20 - Popcorn Sale
Jan 5, 12, 19, 26 - Pizza Sale at Skokie campus
Jan 6, 13, 20, 27 - Pizza Sale at Morton Grove campus
Looking forward to a great year filled with opportunities to volunteer your time and talent to your child's school.
Coupon Book:
Alhamdulillah! We have sold almost all of the coupon books and so far have generated upwards of $8000 from this fundraiser. Jazakallah to everyone who supported the school in purchasing this beneficial booklet. Hopefully, you used them during winter break and enjoyed some family time. If your child did not get a chance to finish his/her homework, they will be able to use their NO HOMEWORK pass! If you still have not had a chance to purchase your coupon book, please stop by the office. Limited number of books are still available.
Annual Chili Cook Off:
PSG social event had 9 contestants at the Morton Grove campus showing their chili cooking talent. It was a fun afternoon, and a special shout-out to Prizes were awarded to the top 2 winners. All of the contestants went home with a little gift to remember the event. Parents and teachers stopped by to sample chili and had side dishes and dessert for lunch. It was an enthusiastic contest between the contestants to see who will go home with the best recipe.
Upcoming Events:
Parent Seminar workshop: Friday January 15, 2016 at 8:45am
Location: Skokie campus Cafe. Breakfast will be provided
Those that attended the first seminar on 10/31, will vouch that it was a very informative and educating workshop. You don't want to miss the next one.
Topic: Raising Digital Natives:Technology and Navigating Phones, iPads, Laptops, and tablets for Family Harmony.
Save the Date: February 25, 2016. International Night
PSG Meetings:
If you would like to volunteer for any event, please stop by at the PSG meetings, which are held every other Friday at Skokie campus from 8:45am to 9:30am. It is a great way to stay involved in school activities as well as make new friends. For questions and comments, please email Khadija Ahmed at
[email protected]
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MCCA Launches IXL Online Learning Program
MCCA has launched a new online learning tool called IXL in all of our classrooms, preschool through 8th grade. IXL is a comprehensive learning program offering unlimited math and language arts practice problems. Oneof the best things about IXL is that your child can access it from home, so you have a chance to see your child's progress. In addition to making practice exciting, IXL is designed to help your child learn at his or her own pace. The program is adaptive and willa djust based on your child's demonstrated understanding of the material. all of your child's results will be saved, so you can monitor his or her prgress anytime by cliciking on the Analytics tab at teh top of the page. For on-the-go practice, you can download IXL's free tablet apps for iPad, Android or Kindle and sign in with your child's username and password.
User names and passwords were sent home in a letter with your child before the break. To access the website,
click here. If you have not received this information, please email your child's teacher.
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Skokie Public Library Hosts MCCA for Family Reading Night
Our families enjoyed listening to many MCC Academy teachers and staff, including Principal Mr. Quadri and Vice Principal Mrs. Mujtaba, read their favorite books at the Skokie Public Library's MCCA Family Night. Thank you to our local library for hosting our school and providing a lovely evening of entertaining books complete with refreshments for all.
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All Girls' Hifth Program Students Recognized for Amazing Achievements
We always love to celebrate our students' achievements, especially those that bring us closer to Allah swt. AlhumdilAllah, last month all of the students in our Girls' Hifth Program were recognized for perfecting the memorization of Juz Amma, mashAllah. Additionally, two of the girls were recognized for having reached special benchmarks each student in the program aims to achieve. Safoora completed memorization of the 1st-5th juz, mashAllah. And, Haniya has completed 1st-5th, 6th-10th and 11th-15th, three benchmarks in total mashAllah. May Allah swt continue to guide and bless all of our students with ease and joy in the ability to memorize His Holy Quran.
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MCCA Girl Scouts Host High Tea Party in Honor of their Mothers Showcased by CBS2 Chicago Evening News
AlhumdilAllah, 80+ girls and their mothers from among the four MCC Academy Girl Scout troops came together in December to celebrate mothers at the first Girl Scouts High Tea Party. The girls learned about the importance of serving their mothers from a talk by Alima Shabana Nizami and actually served their mothers during the event. They presented gifts and beautiful cards created in honor of their mothers and surprised them with a Nasheed performance of songs about the special
relationship between a mother and daughter.
Dignitaries from the Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana chapter addressed our girls during the program and each of these ladies commented on how much they enjoyed meeting our girls and participating in the program. Local CBS Television News came out to cover this event and broadcast a special feature on the ten o'clock news about how many core Islamic values align with those of average, everyday Americans especially those represented by the Girl Scouts of America organization. Click here to view the news clip.
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Jr. Crescents Basketball Skills Clinic Off to an Exciting Start!
Coaches Ali Tai and Kadir Oz kicked off a jam-packed Jr. Crescents Basketball Skills Camp for boys and girls at the Skokie Campus early in December. Kids got right into learning new skills and enjoyed meeting the other coaches who will be working with each team. Kids were broken out into two separate age groups and do skill-building drills throughout the hour and a half class each week. The kids learn a lot and get a great workout! MashAllah, we are blessed to have such an amazing athletics program!
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Poetry Pals Interfaith Program Continues to Benefit MCCA Students
MCC Academy has been participating in Poetry Pals for the past six years. This interfaith community-building effort has fourth graders from MCCA, Sacred Heart Catholic school and Chicago Jewish Day School come together throughout the school year to share with one another their faith beliefs, tour one another's houses of worship, and work in groups to write poetry about their commonalities. Students enjoy meeting new friends and learning about one another. AlhumdilAllah, MCCA is blessed to participate in this amazing program!
Check out an in-depth look at the Poetry Pals program by viewing this video uploaded by the Poetry Pals organization.
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MCCA Crescents Middle School Boys Basketball Triumphs Over IFS
MCC Middle School Boys basketball team beat IFS on Saturday, December 12th (47-14). We packed the house for this exciting game. Going into the game, our confidence was sky high. A long, but productive week of practice prepared us for the challenge we were facing. Right from the tipoff we were aggressive and did not back down from the one job we came to do. Omar Abdeljabbar and Ameer Alkhatib had themselves their best game of the season. Their leadership was the reason why we won versus IFS. Our team is built off of hard work and that will never change.
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Technology Department Making Waves
The Tech Department at MCCA is doing some incredible things. When you are in the area next, stop by and visit the Tech Squad, or also known as Tech Busters by Mrs. Salma Ahmed. The Tech Department is updating the Morton Grove campus with new Mac computers. I bet if Steve Jobs was alive he would be happy that our school converted from PCs to MACs, although I am still trying to get the hang of using Apples. Other new initiatives include installing software and updates. They ordered speed-skins, silicon keyboards, which allow students to cover the keyboard as they increase their typing skills.
Whenever I take my hifth students to the computer lab they always request to play the typing game and ask "where are those orange thingy wingys!" Other times when I have stopped by the MG computer lab, I usually catch Ms. Shafiq teaching a class on how to create presentations. The lessons students learn in their computer lab class include: research on a new, innovative topics in the tech world; analyzing existing data by creating graphs/charts and working on a research project. Some days, I catch Mr. Azam Tai wiring, fixing, and/or running to different campuses and taking care of all our technical issues! Mr. Azam Tai is also working on launching iPads that will be available for all students to use.
What a blessing it is to have the Tech Squad. Every time, any teacher, either on Morton Grove or Skokie campus has a technical difficulty, we send them a text over WhatsApp, and boom they are in our room!
-- Submitted By Hiba Zakai, Hifth Academic Teacher
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MCCA Math Students Compete in Annual Math Competition
On Saturday, December 5th, 2015, MCCA Middle School math students participated in Regina Dominican's Third Annual Junior High Mathematics Competition. Adam Djoudi, Hovan Pacheco, Zahrah Ahmed, Omar Siddiqui, Wiaam Aggoun, Amina Choubkha, and Amani Laliwala all participated in a team competition and other individual competitions. Alhamdulillah, these students persevered through challenging problems and truly showed how dedicated they are to learning. Being a successful student is not about how smart you are; it's about how hard you are willing to try, what sacrifices are you willing to make, and how much you really want to succeed. Alhamdulillah, Allah (SWT) has blessed us all with the ability to learn, so it is our duty to persevere like the students in the math league did at the competition. They sacrificed their free time to learn and have fun with math. May Allah (SWT) accept their sacrifices and increase them in knowledge, grit, and perseverance! Ameen!
-- Submitted by Ms. Maria Basith
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Public Speaking Club for Kids a Beneficial Experience
Thanks to MCCA parent volunteer Mrs. Ishrat Fatima, some of our youngest students gained the beneficial experience of bolstering their skills and comfort in public speaking. Mrs. Fatima ran the club from September through December for students in 2nd-4th grades as a way to help these young students feel more comfortable to speak in front of their peers. She had the students read books to one another, talk to the group about subjects they cared about and much more. Students loved the experience and benefited greatly. JazakAllahkhair to Mrs. Fatima for donating her time to run this club for our students.
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Mad Scientists Club Completes First Semester
Students from MCCA and the broader community had a blast learning about various scientific concepts through hands-on science projects at our Mad Scientists after school club this past semester. Our thanks to the mom volunteers, Mrs. Khaula Chaudry, Mrs. Andrea Mounadi, and Mrs. Mevla Rama, who led this exciting and incredibly popular club! We look forward to another semester of mad fun! Stay tuned for registration information for the second semester.
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Hifth Students Complete Workshop on Building our Identity as Muslim Americans
Hifth students participated in a leadership workshop on understanding one's Muslim American identity with MCCA School Counselor Ms. Latifi and guest speaker Umar Ali, the Managing Director of The Institute of Islamic Information and Education.
Students participated in a lively discussion about how we can positively shape our identity as Muslim Americans. The kids also created their own profile that included their aspirations, goals, and how they identify themselves on construction paper and with photographs they brought.
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School Counselor Update
Assalamualaikum MCC students and parents!
I hope everyone is having a fantastic school year. We are already almost halfway through the year. Our middle school students have accomplished a lot so far and we have so much more planned for the rest of the year.
Positivity challenges:
This past month students were challenged to:
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Earn character points and/or maintain their 100%s. Students were given opportunities to earn character points for positive and productive behavior in class. We want students to be recognized when they put in that extra effort and try in class!
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Charity challenge: Students were challenged to do one charitable act every day, both at home and in school. Every action, big or small, can go a long way.
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Assalamualaikum challenge: greeting our Muslim brothers and sisters creates love, unity, and is a huge source of ajar. Students were challenged to greet one another, their families, teachers, and other Muslims they see in the community with Salaam.
Care kits:
We are still collecting items for care kits. We will be putting these together in February. Students have been assigned specific items to bring in. We need everyone to participate in this project so we can make as many care kits as possible.
Coin jars:
Alhamdulillah, the overwhelming participation for coin jars from all of our students has been amazing! We will continue to collect coins throughout the year; all the money will be donated towards building a well. This project is a perfect opportunity for our students to gain thawaab, learn the value of giving, and recognize the impact of teamwork!
Character grades:
This year the character grade system was launched at the middle school. This is a new program that has been, and will continue to be, revised throughout the school year. Parents and students can now see updated character grades weekly on the Mazik parent portal. The purpose of this program is to create opportunities for students to build skills and characteristics necessary for academic and personal success.
If anyone has any questions, suggestions, or feedback please feel free to email me at
[email protected]
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Ms. Barkat - 5B
Ms. Barkat's reading class has been creating their own mini-plays! Students had to write their story as a play, using all of the elements they have been learning about such as dialogue and stage direction. The focus was on showing the importance of cooperation; last month's value of the month. Students had a blast presenting their plays to the class this week! They let their acting skills shine.
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Mrs. Gomaa - 5A
Earlier in the semester, our 5th graders wrote to famous people who inspire them around the globe. We have finally been receiving letters back and are excited to share them with you all! So far, we have heard back from the First Lady, Michelle Obama, famous author's JK Rowling and Suzanne Selfors, the Seatle Seahawks football team
, and more!
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Mrs. Sheikh - 2A
My second graders participated in a lot fun activities this past month. They went to see a play at Niles West High School: "Lily's Purple Plastic Purse". In reading, they did a fun book report on an Informational Text. Students made scrolls of this book report.
In science, they are learning about animal habitats and how animals adapt to their environment.
They did a fun project on different habitats.
In math, they played a dice game with partners to see if the number are greater than or less than, or equal to their partner's numbers.
I would like to thank my parent volunteer Mrs. Rubina Mohammed for doing an art project with my class.
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Ms. Umar - Physical Education
Students have been working on their fitness throughout December with various activities such as circuits, obstacle course games, and fitness relay races! Also, the P.E. Hall of Fame has been on display in the gym the last couple of weeks and is in the process of being worked on - many of the students have already been recognized for their achievements in winning for the various exercise categories that were a part of their beginning of the quarter fitness assessment. Students have been very excited about this competition and practicing these exercises so that they can increase their repetitions and develop their cardiovascular and muscular endurance. The next part of our fitness unit has been learning about nutrition and good eating habits, which students now understand is a significant part of being fit and healthy. Students are currently working on a weekly food log to get them in the habit of thinking about what they eat and how much!
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Mrs. Nabeel - 1C
In reading class, students enjoyed an in-class partner "Cupcake Party" where they got to work together with a partner to figure out the story elements of the lesson. We also read "At Home in the Ocean". We learned a lot about reading informational text. Students enjoyed learning about animals and plants that live in the ocean. We did various activities to compare and contrast the different animals and plants in the ocean. In writing, students got to create and write their own unique and delicious recipes of how to cook a yummy turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. Students had fun coming up with the different steps they would take to cook the turkey for their families. Our recipes are on display in the library.
In science/art, we learned all about plants. Students worked on their "Tear Project" to help learn and practice the different parts of plants such as flower, stem, leaves and roots. We also completed interactive notebook pages to practice the different parts of the flower as well as plant needs.
We had a frog-tastic time on our field trip to Niles West High School, where we watched a short play. In math, students have been working very hard practicing and learning about "Ways to Add, Ways to Subtract and story problems." We implemented various activities. On Tuesdays, we would have center games where students are enjoying and are challenging themselves to come up with a way to grasp a better understanding of the skill that is being taught. During centers, students used spinners, dice and created their own stories to make an addition or subtraction problem. Students really enjoyed having center time to help with their learning. In addition, for extra practice, students practiced using their creative minds to write down a story on their own using an addition or subtraction problem to help teach their classmates.
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Mrs. Elmassry - Middle School Language Arts
For the unit on narrative writing, the sixth and seventh graders wrote letters to anyone who they chose. Some wrote to their family, others wrote to friends, and some selected to write to famous people and celebrities. A lot of students wrote to President Barack Obama, thanking him for his dedication to Muslims in America. We recently got a response back from President Obama that included some pictures to share.
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Ms. Bozai - 2C
2C wishes everyone a great winter break! Thank you to all of our awesome parents who came in for art and mystery reader this month! Our room wouldn't be nearly as much fun without you!
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Ms. Adhami - 1B
I'm so proud of my students for continuing to work hard and grow together as a team. We look forward to continuing this great effort into the new year!
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Ms Iram - Islamic Studies
As Muslims, we have always been taught about prophets, but what about their strong female counterparts? For the past two quarters, 7th graders have been learning and expanding their knowledge of women in Islam in our Islamic History class. Students have been working in groups and individually breaking down readings, watching various Ted talks focusing on gender equality and Qur'an Weekly video clips highlighting notable women in Islam to understand that everyone, male or female, has the ability to reach Allah (Swt) equally.
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Fourth grade enjoyed their field trip to the Shed Aquarium right before Thanksgiving Break. This field trip tied in with our animal adaptations unit we had just concluded. Students had a chance to see exotic fish, watch a 4D movie about sea monsters, and enjoy the aquatic show. In
math, students have been learning about mean, median, mode, and range. Students measured a few items they had such as folders, books, supply boxes, etc, and found the mean, median, mode, and range for those items. They had a great time with this.
Since winter is here students had a great time enjoying new board games!
Finally, for art, students started on the preliminary stages of their first name initial paper mache. We are excited to see how the final product turns out!
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We enjoyed our field trip to Niles West to watch a collection of Kevin Henkes plays.
Ahmad brought in his pet parrot for the class to see. Emerald can do some pretty amazing tricks.
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Fourth grade has been reading non-fiction and historical fiction texts about hurricanes and earthquakes. This past month, students watched videos about earthquakes, studied vocabulary, and took notes on relevant information. Using marshmallows and toothpicks, students constructed tower
structures and used jello as a base to examine what happens to structures during an earthquake. Students had a lot of fun during this activity, which led to a rich discussion about engineering techniques and human safety during natural disasters.
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Mrs. Saleh - Middle School Science
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In preparation for the Regional Science Fair Competition in March 2016 held at Niles North High School, students submitted all of their project proposals. Both 7th and 8th grade classes are working diligently on their projects. May Allah s.w.t. give them success.
Alhamdulillah, our middle school students are once again participating in the annual Science Olympiad Competition. Our team of students meet every Friday to prepare for the competition in March 2016 at Oakton Community College. May Allah s.w.t. give them success.
6th grade students were learning to differentiate between acids and bases using litmus paper.
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Second graders had fun using math manipulatives this week. They used tangrams to make a square and other creative shapes. They used geoboards to make geometric shapes with rubber bands. Students also played math dice games revisiting the concept of greater and less than. After break we are excited to challenge ourselves with multiplication of 4 and 5. Have a beautiful winter break!
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