March Newsletter - Madina Monthly

As the blessed days of Ramadan come to a close, the joy and celebration of Eid begins.

Throughout Ramadan we had many events and even competition winners. First, we had our very first Ramadan decoration competition. Classrooms were assigned to different grades, and they all worked so hard to decorate them in a beautiful and creative way. They put in so much effort and they all worked as a team to bring the spirit of Ramadan to the school. There were crescent moons, lanterns, banners, and creative displays all over the hallways and classrooms. We wanted to give a big congratulations to the winning classes: Kindergarten, 3rd Grade, 7th Grade, and 11th Grade. They all did an amazing job making their classes the most festive.

Then comes our National History Day winners who worked extremely hard researching, preparing, and presenting their projects to the judges. They dedicated their time to put in so much effort and they also deserve a big congratulations:

Salma Hassan and Sohyla Hassan – 1st Place, Junior Group Website

Noor Hassan – 2nd Place, Senior Individual Website

Sarmad Raja – 3rd Place, Junior Individual Paper

Jurie Kabatilo – 3rd Place, Junior Individual Documentary

Afsa Raja – 4th Place, Junior Individual Website

Next, we had the Connecticut State Science and Engineering Fair winners. They showed their problem solving skills and curiosity through their projects. Congratulations to two groups:

First, Salma Hassan, Sohyla Hassan, and Tajriyan Khan, and next Enaaya Mohammed, Nabaad Abdulkadir, and Musfira Bhuiyan.

Lastly, the winner of the Hassan Hathout Essay Competition Afsa Raja! Mashallah she wrote a well-written essay and it showed with the results. Congratulations to everyone else who participated.

This really showed how the barakah of Ramadan and making dua can shine through in competitions. Winning is never guaranteed, but with sincere effort and trust in Allah, the results become meaningful no matter the outcome. And as we say goodbye to Ramadan and prepare to welcome Eid, we all hope everyone has a happy and blessed time with family and friends.

*Stay tuned for the Quran competition*

Narrated `Aisha: The Prophet (ﷺ) was asked, "What deeds are loved most by Allah?" He said, "The most regular constant deeds even though they may be few." He added, "Don't take upon yourselves, except the deeds which are within your ability."

~ Sahih al-Bukhari 6465

Over the past few years that I have been a student at Madina Academy, I began to question the “Islamic-ness” of it all. I still remember my time in elementary school quite clearly. We participated in Hajj simulations, listened to meaningful khutbahs from guest speakers, and learned to love our religion in Islamic Studies classes. My classmates remember this as well: “I remember when we did the Hajj simulations in the Eid ul-Adha celebration and Ms. Hanan would tell us the story behind sacrificing the sheep and we would all crowd around her to listen. We were building a love for Islam. That feeling got lost later on, mainly because of the schoolwork overload as we got older, but now I’m coming to see it again with these new activities!” Experiences like these shaped the way we grew up, with a center focus of Islam.

Unfortunately as time went on, that feeling slowly faded. School started to feel more focused on rushing through Math and English curriculums and participating in extracurriculars like UCMUN and Mock Legislation. These are important opportunities, but sometimes it feels like we forgot what makes our school different. We are not a public school. We are an Islamic school, and that identity should be at the center of everything we do.

To me, it felt like the school was so focused on accreditation and academic success that the religious environment was pushed to the side. Some of the teachers who made Islamic Studies and Quran classes enjoyable and truly valued the betterment of their students left, and the classes that replaced them did not always create the same excitement.

Last year’s attempt to reintegrate the Mishkah University program showed how important it is to think carefully about how we teach our religion. The topics themselves were important: the Seerah and Good Manners. However, the material was taught in a way that was too advanced and disconnected from our students. “The text we were reading was so long that I felt like I was always behind. Just thinking about reviewing all that material for the test made me want to give up,” one student commented. Instead of learning about our Prophet’s life and coming to love him, or learning how we should act as representatives of Islam and actually implement those lessons in our lives, the class felt like it was just about preparing for the final exam.

While that program is no longer part of the curriculum, it showed that the goal of an Islamic school should not be to offer impressive programs, but to foster students who love their deen and represent Islam with good character.

I also know that many of our students genuinely want to learn more about their religion. A tenth grader mentioned she loves “going to the masjid and listening to their halaqahs because they always get the point across by telling engaging stories and teaching the wisdom behind them.” A lot of students look forward to attending YM group activities and halaqahs at local masjids to learn new and valuable knowledge, but unfortunately that same eagerness is not matched when it comes to Islamic Studies class.

At the same time, I do want to recognize that our new principal, Dr. Salami, has already been trying to bring more Islamic spirit into the school. New activities like the Ramadan decoration competition, weekly Islamic jokes, and the upcoming Performing Arts Showcase show that there is an effort to make our school culture more positive and connected to Islam. “The Ramadan decoration competition really made the school feel connected as an Islamic community. It reminded me that Madina Academy is more than just academics. It is a place that is meant to make us feel comfortable and able to do fun Islamic things in our daily life,” another tenth grader added.

I hope that this effort continues and spreads throughout the school. Madina Academy has the potential to be more than just a private school full of Muslim students. With the support of teachers and the community, it can truly be an Islamic school again.

The Mishkah program was introduced because I strongly believe that Islamic Studies is the backbone of our school. Our goal is for students to graduate not only with a love for their deen, but with a solid foundation of knowledge as well. These two are not in conflict—they go hand in hand, and together they define what makes our school unique.

We already strive for academic excellence in every other area—AP classes, calculus based math, college/university courses, and years of preparation for exams like the SAT through tools like Khan Academy and multiple years of PSATs. So it’s worth asking: why shouldn’t Islamic Studies be held to the same rigorous, high academic standard?

Mishkah is specifically designed for high school students. It is a college-level course, complete with challenging material and assessments. By engaging with topics such as the Seerah, Fiqh, Tazkiyah, and classical scholarship—drawing from both primary and secondary sources—students gain not only knowledge but a deeper, more meaningful connection to their faith. However, like every other program, Mishkah has room for improvement, but it is through continuous engagement & commitment that we achieve excellence.

In our tradition, knowledge is central. As the saying goes, the scholar is superior to the worshiper just as the moon is superior to the stars. Allah reminds us, “Say, ‘Are those who know equal to those who do not know?’” (Surah Az-Zumar 39:9). Just as fun activities build a strong foundation, deep knowledge of the Islamic sciences is incumbent upon every Muslim.

But if not in the only Islamic School, then where?

When we live in a world where information is easily accessible and can be served to us with just a click, misinformation can spread just as quickly. As a result, media literacy has become an essential skill to develop and hone, yet many young people lack it. This issue is particularly important given the rise of short-form content, where information is condensed into summaries and shared without the full picture. When people believe what they see online without question or further research into sources and evidence, we begin to live with the consequences. This can be seen when you scroll through social media, such as Tiktok or Instagram, where people are fed immense information in a quick video. Without having strong media literacy skills, viewers often struggle to comprehend these ideas or question the reliability of the video. Another contributing factor to this issue is AI summaries. When you search for a topic, instead of seeing multiple articles that you can look through to find a reliable source, you are first presented with an AI-generated summary. Because of this, people may only look at the condensed version and stop putting in the effort to analyze the sources for themselves. Our ability to understand and evaluate information starts to weaken when we depend on our screens to do the work for us. We are swimming in a pool of misinformation and to not drown, we must improve our media literacy skills and learn to question and evaluate the media we consume.

Madina Academy prides itself on being one of the only Muslim schools in the area. It offers Islamic Studies, Arabic, and the focus of discussion: Quran class. Quran class consists mainly of four parts, which I’m going to list in order from most to least emphasized: memorization, the translation of what we memorized, learning the tajweed rules, and lastly reading. Reading is practiced rarely, often only once a quarter as a way to assess level rather than building the skill. Ideally, students would already have learned how to read Arabic in earlier years such as elementary school. However, the reality is that students come from different backgrounds. Some attended programs like Saturday school or had outside support where they learned to read Arabic early on. Others, especially those coming from public schools or joined later, may not have had those same opportunities. When the class assumes everyone already has this foundation, those students are put at an immediate disadvantage. Don’t get me wrong, there are three levels of Quran classes in middle school (levels that are determined by the students reading ability), but even in those classes, the main difference is simply the bulk of the memorization. For example, students in the lowest level may memorize a few ayahs a week, while those in the highest level could be memorizing up to two pages weekly. While I understand that memorizing the Quran is vital is Islam, but memorization without comprehension or reading ability feels mechanical, and while I understand that this is why we write the translation it simply cannot make up for it. Students repeat sounds again and again until they stick, but many of them don’t actually know what they’re reading. It turns the process into something closer to copying audio than truly engaging or building a relationship with the Quran. Instead of building confidence like schools, it can create frustration.

If students were given more time to regularly practice reading, working through verses slowly, applying tajweed as they go, and building fluency, memorization would become far more meaningful. Once you can read comfortably, memorizing becomes easier, and more importantly it becomes more connected to understanding the holy book.

This isn’t an argument against memorizing the Quran. Memorization is an important part of our religion. But the order matters. Reading should come first, then tajweed, then memorization. When the foundation is strong, everything built on top of it becomes stronger as well. If you try building a house on shaky ground the house is going to collapse. Our goal as an Muslims shouldn’t to memorize as much as they can, it should be to want to memorize. When everything is connected to a grade, students stop associating the Quran with doing it for Allah and they start connecting it to the grade. What can we do so people aren't just memorizing to recite and then eventually forgetting it.

Ramadan always feels different when you’re a student. You’re fasting, trying to focus in class, doing homework, and at the same time, you’re supposed to be increasing your worship and getting closer to Allah. Some days it feels peaceful, and other days you’re just tired and counting the hours until iftar. And honestly, that's normal. Ramadan isn't about being perfect the entire month. It's about trying, even on the days when your energy is low or when school is making everything feel heavier than usual.

One thing that I think is really nice and helps us students is that our school gives us the last ten days of Ramadan off so we can focus on our worship. These nights are some of the most important of the whole year, so having that time really matters. And Alhamdulillah, we also had a lot of snow days this Ramadan, which honestly helped many of us get some extra rest and catch up on things. Sometimes small things like that make a big difference when you're fasting and trying to balance school at the same time.

At the end of the day, Ramadan is a reminder that effort matters more than perfection. Maybe you can’t do everything you planned, but even small things count. Praying one extra prayer, reading a few pages of the Quran, making dua, or just trying to be a little bit more patient with people around you. Those things all add up. So don't stress about doing Ramadan “perfectly.” Just try your best, keep your intentions for Allah, and trust that the effort you put in is never wasted.

Fasting during the month of Ramadan is a command from Allah (swt) so that we can become closer to Him. He says, “O believers! Fasting is prescribed for you—as it was for those before you—so perhaps you will become mindful ˹of Allah˺” (Quran 2:183). It is one of the five pillars of Islam, emphasizing the importance of fasting. One reason why we fast is to experience how the needy live everyday. But that isn’t the main reason; during Ramadan, we should work towards gaining taqwa of Allah and focus on strengthening our relationship with Him. Not only do we fast from food and water, but also abstain from sins that we might be prone to outside of Ramadan. This teaches us patience and self control over our desires. This time is where we should maximize our ibada and try our best to continue it after Ramadan; make more dua, read more Quran, pray more (ex: nafl prayers, taraweeh, tahajjud, etc).

Forming a habit takes around thirty days, so don’t let go of your Ramadan habits even after the month ends. Most people read more Quran, but just because Ramadan is over doesn’t mean you no longer need to read it. You don’t need to read a juz a day, every day, but try to start/end your days with the Quran. During Ramadan, we also go to the masjid more often to pray, eat iftar, and meet our friends. We should try to maintain regular masjid visits, such as attending the weekly halaqah or praying Jummah. Most importantly, during Ramadan not only do we form new habits, we also get rid of old ones. Just because the month is over doesn’t mean you should go back to old bad habits, such as listening to music. If you can do it for one month, you can do it for twelve!