Challenges we Face! Target date to respond: October 29, 2011

Students, from the moment we wake up to the time we go to bed, we face challenges. The question is, who is causibg all this trouble. Is this our nafs (our soul) or the Shaitan? It's very easy to blame, but really is it the shaitan.
PLease read the following explanation before responding to the blog.

The 3 types of Nafs (Souls) are:
1. An-Nafs al-Ammaarah this is when one inclines towards evil:"And I free not myself (from the blame). Verily, the (human) self is inclined to evil, except when my Lord bestows His Mercy (upon whom He wills). Verily, my Lord is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (12:53)
2. An-Nafs al-Mut'aminnah is complete rest and satisfaction:(It will be said to the pious): "O (you) the one in (complete) rest and satisfaction!" (89:27)"Come back to your Lord, Well-pleased (yourself) and well-pleasing unto Him!" (89:28)"And enter you My Paradise!" (89:30)
3. An-Nafs al-Lawaamah is when one complains and incites good:"And I swear by the self-reproaching person (a believer)." (75:2)It is called al-Lawaamah because it is never in a constant state and at the time of death it blames other than itself or because it recognises its own short comings and will try to correct itself, thus, it incites good.

1. I want you to list the challenges a teenager faces everyday at school, with friends, at home or.

2. Try to find the source(s) of the challenges and discuss in detail about who enables those sources to affect us negatively.

The Great Depression (Due on Sunday November 1, 2009)

Are there any similarities between this image and the images of jobless people the current jobs crisis is causing. Discuss the problems faced by the regular population then and now. (You may refer to the novel for the problems in the past and refer to the news channels, news paper and magazine articles for the current economical issues.)

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor (Due on Saturday October 17, 2009)

This is a prereading activity, so it is important that you respond before we start reading the novel. I want you to respond to the title of the novel, and the illustration on the cover page. Please answer to the following questions in a paragraph or two:
1. What do you think the title Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry is alluding (refering)to?
2. Pick any illustration and discuss it in relation to the title and the theme of our unit 2 (Energy, Forces and Factors).
3. What do you think the story is about?
4. Comment on the expressions you see on the characters' faces.

Tuck Everlasting (Due on September 12, 2009) Happy First Blogging of the Year!

If you had the chance to stay young forever, would you take it? Why or why not? Please discuss giving examples from the text.

Dualities-Lessons from the Life of Bilal (RAW) [Due on November 16, 2008]

Remember to make connections with our class discussions:
1. What does being a slave to Allah mean to you and what does freedom from Allah mean to you?
2. Analyze the life of Bilal (RA) and list the reasons why Mohammed (SAW) did not follow the suggestions of ringing the bell or other suggestions and instead followed what Abdullah ibn Zayd and Umar dreamed of. How does this event relate to fit-in and not fitting in?
3.How do you explain freedom in the light of Tawheed?

Communication (Social Studies: Due on Tuesday September 23, 2008)

"The colossal misunderstanding of our time is the assumption that insight will work with people who are unmotivated to change. Communication does not depend on syntax, or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation, but on the emotional context in which message is being heard. People can only hear you when they are moving toward you, and they are not likely to when your words are pursuing them. Even the choices words lose their power when they are used to over power. Attitudes are the real figures of speech".~ Edwin H. Friedman
Respond to the quote follwing the three steps mentioned below:1. Initial response (paraphrase in your cown words)
2. Agree/Disagree
3. Explain why you agree or disagree with the quote. Remember to elaborate using the strategies of making connections [text-self, text-text, and text-world]and also relate to the intelleginet behaviors.

Tuck Everlasting (Due on Sunday, September 7, 2008)

Compare Mae and Angus Tuck giving proofs from the text. Remember to use the Intelligent Behaviors to analyze the characters.

Happy first blogging!