Kids around me...

Since this is my only Diary book these days, here I am, talking about the kids I see around, deal with and teach here in San Jose.
Last January I got the first phone call from a Bengali mother asking me to teach her two kids, Tausif & Afra reading Quran. She only wants them to finish reading the Quran while they're young, and it's no problem at all if they understand NOTHING of what they are reading...Now Tausif is way ahead of Afra, he completed reading the 30th chapter, and now we are in the middle of the 29th! Afra is still learning how to connect 3 Arabic letters together making simple words to read. She is a very smart confident 6 year old girl. Her friend Naheel is joining her on her classes these days, she is from Pakistan...I love her! she is a very small 4 year old girl...my youngest student so far...and she impresses me with her neat Arabic hand writing! She keeps interrupting the class telling me stories of her life...

Later on, another Bengali mother called me and asked me if I can make her son finish reading the Quran too...Now this boy -I still don't know his name:p- I call him "Shamim's son"! doesn't know the Arabic alphabets!! his mom wants me to read the whole Quran WORD BY WORD so he can repeat after me, until he finishes it!

My new students from Bangladesh too, Raeek & Arini, their parents are determined that their kids finish reading the Quran too while they are young...

All these parents say that it's their duty to make sure their kids finish reading the Holy book before they grow up...and later on, it's up to the kids whether they want to read it again and try to understand it, and maybe memorize it...

I was impressed by their determination. They keep their kids busy all through the week...math classes, music, swimming and soccer games. I talk to the kids about it, some of them enjoy part of what they are doing, but some other activities they are just forced to do by their parents...

I have a student from India, her name is "Hanya", her both parents are Indians, but each one speaks a totally different language so they communicate in English. But Hanya speaks her mother's language, her father's, English and now she is learning Arabic...she can write and read Arabic, she can read the Quran, but she reached to the point of wanting to understand it. She is 6 years old, the smartest student I have so far. Her smartness scares me sometimes...She gets bored quick so I have to keep her focused by using different teaching methods. Our last class was teaching her how to count from one to ten in Arabic.

I have 3 students from Somalia, "Najma & Samya" and their brother "Zakareya", they are the funniest and the most hyper students I have ever seen...First they were coming to my place to teach them, but after we got the new furniture I told the mother that I can't do it at my home any more, it's so scary! Now I drive to their house every single Saturday, at 10 am:)

the three sleepy girls from Somalia too "Hanan, Hamdi and Fardosa", yes, Hamdi is a girl. I help them memorize the Quran. they are 5, 6 & 9 Years old girls...For some reason their mom doesn't like strong lights, it's almost dim at their house...We all start falling asleep at the end of the 2 hour class twice a week! These 3 sisters keep yawning the WHOLE time!! it's crazy there...and they cry a lot during the class, and they tell their mom that I scare them...hehehehe...I don't know what to do with them! hehehehe, they are just so sleeepy!!
and Hamdi has the sleepiest face ever!!

I have a student, a 5 year old Egyptian boy, a very smart kid, he memorizes many Suras in the Quran! he speaks Arabic really well, but his parents need someone to keep talking to him in Arabic, non stop, for he doesn't accept to speak Arabic with them. So I go to his house, talk to him for a whole hour twice a week!! it's always fun there!

my last student, Nadia, from Pakistan...a smart 6 year old girl, who has finished the 30th part of the Quran, and about to finish the 29th part. Reading only...she understands nothing of it, but again, this is what her parents want!

As I said, I was impressed by the idea of reading the whole Quran at a young age, even though they understand none of it, but later on, dealing with kids at the Islamic school, -I'm back by the way, they changed my manager and asked me to go back:D- makes me believe that kids can really learn it all...I mean reading and understanding the Quran,,,If not the details, then at least in general!

I enjoy what I'm doing, Il Hamdolillah, I thank God every single time I give a class for being able to do so:)

Some kids - Arabs or non-Arabs- at the school, are really lost. When I meet and talk to their parents, or when I see how they treat their kids, I know why they are lost! on the other hand, some boys and girls really shine there, happy, healthy, smart and polite. When I talk to their parents in the school's hall way, or during the lunch break, I realize that most of these kids get their education at home...home schooling!


Should I consider this method one day, with my kids to be "God's willing"?! I really don't know...