Talk on Vulture conservation

Al Qamar Elementary students heard an informative and interesting lecture on Vulture Conservation in India from Mr. Raghunath Krishna of PencilsRock Academy, a children's corner for Conservation and Art.

Mr. Raghunath talked abou the different kinds of vultures in India, their importance to the eco system and how pollution, urbanization and human technology is systematically eliminating these vital scavengers.  As usual, the children asked a bunch of questions.

Journalism workshop

Al Qamar Middle school students were privileged to have Ms. Maryam Ismail conduct a lecture and workshop on journalism. Ms. Ismail first spoke to the children about the importance of journalism especially in a democracy. She then explained the key information - who , what, where, how and when, that a journalist seeks when writing a news article. Ms. Ismail divided the students into groups who had to produce an article for one section of a newspaper - Crime, Sports, Lifestyle, Current events etc.

The children scrambled to do the research and then write 2 paras on their topic in groups. The groups then presented their articles - and had their work critiqued for engagement, interest, brevity etc by Ms. Ismail.

Ms. Ismail is a graduate from Rutgers University, USA and a Masters from New School for Social Research in New York. After a teaching career spanning from Kindergarten to University, Ms. Ismail is now engaged in journalistic writing. She resides in Sharjah.

JazakAllah Sr for taking valuable time off during your visit to India to come to Al Qamar

Workshop on Organic Terrace Gardening

From flying high, to getting grounded - a whirlwind set of workshops and lectures for Al Qamar kids!

Mr. Ismail Mehmood, an engineer/ entrepreneur turned Organic Terrace Gardener conducted a workshop for Al Qamar children.

He started off with a slide show on what is organic gardening, what substitutes are used for fertilizers and as pest repellents. He then had a slideshow on the various plants he is growing on his terrace - gourds, grapes, herbs, ornamental plants et al.

He then demonstrated how to plant - by making  potting mix, putting in the seeds and spraying lightly.

The end - an organic gardening club has been formed and children signed up with enthusiasm.

Senior Aeronautical Desiger speaks to children

"Dr. Habeeb Hasseem, B.E., M.E., PhD, a very senior retired Aircraft Designer and Aeronautical Engineer, kindly took time out of his holiday to India, to visit Al Qamar. Dr. Hasseem and his wife toured Montessori and saw how the students learn.

Later, he spoke to the older children about his experience in the aircraft industry and NASA projects in designing planes and rockets. He spoke about how planes are designed, how they fly, the use of the tail wings, the storage spaces for fuel etc. The children were enthralled and asked a volley of questions. "What happens when both engines catch fire?" "Why does a plane need to land on water?" "How do you test for bird hits?" "How long does it take to design a plane?" He patiently answered all their questions in a simple and clear manner which made a complicated topic like Aeronautics comprehensible for children. It was with great difficulty that the children let him go at the end of the session.

"The kids are smart and very intelligent. They were very curious and asked good questions and I enjoyed talking to them" said Dr. Haseem. JazakAllah Dr. Hasseem