East-West Sylvan

September 6, 2011

Dear 6^th grade families,

Welcome to the world of middle school! What an exciting step in your child’s development! I remember my own first week of the sixth grade as being a mostly fascinating yet slightly terrifying week.  It’s quite a change to have to keep track of your own schedule and to make sure that you are in the right place at the right time. Have no fear though as it is my priority to help your child feel safe and comfortable as he/she sets out to discover the opportunities here at East/West Sylvan.

As most of you know, I too am new and happy to be a part of East/West Sylvan Middle School! As the daughter of a Saudi Arabian father and a native Oregonian mother who met in the seventies at the University of Oregon, I grew up in a bilingual/bicultural English-Arabic household. Other than a brief year spent here in Oregon during the first grade, I lived between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain until I was eighteen years old, attending both Arabic and American schools.  Since then I have lived in various regions of this country, completing an undergraduate degree in Art History from the Savannah College of Art and Design and a masters degree in teaching from Lewis and Clark.  While I have lived in the United States for over eight years now, my parents and my extensive Saudi family still live between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. As such, the Arab world continues to be a huge part of my identity and I try to visit the region once every one or two years.

As an Arab-American educator, seeking out the bridge that connects the art, culture, and language from my Middle Eastern upbringing with that of my American side has been my greatest passion. East/West Sylvan is one of very few middle schools in this country that allows my dream of exploring Arabic language and culture with American students, to become a reality. Throughout this semester I look forward to not only teaching your child about the similarities between customary and cultural practices in the Arab world, but I also intend to expose them to the intricacies of the Arabic alphabet and language. We will approach each of these subjects in an exploratory way, reenacting daily routines and notable celebrations, reading and discussing culturally relevant literature and pop culture, creating original art pieces, and much more.

My door is always open, but if you would like to communicate with me via email, my address is malsuhaimi@pps.edu. I also look forward to meeting you all and chatting with you during Back to School Night at East Sylvan on September 27^th. During that time, I will be able to go into more detail about the content that will be covered throughout this semester in this class.

I can’t wait to connect with and get to know your children. We have so much exciting growth ahead of us as we set out to explore the Arab world that I know and love.

Thanks,

Mimi AlSuhaimi

Arabic

MS. AlSuhaimi’s Arabic Class

Please tear off this page and have your child return it to me.

I have read and understand the Welcome back letter and Rules/Procedures H.O.

Student’s Name

Your Name (s)

Relationship to Student

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Please share anything about your child that may help me understand his/her learning needs.

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