This summer, Mizna collaborates with teaching artists Taous Khazem and Mohammed Yabdri to offer a performing arts camp in Arabic and English for middle-school kids who are ready to hit the big screen. Takhiel! Imagine! is a place for kids of SWANA descent to build community and create art in a setting that celebrates their cultural traditions and spoken language. Campers will learn the basics of how to make a short film––including character development, prop building, storyboarding, and setting and filming scenes. Taous and Mohamed will work to include all actors, including employing techniques they have found can work to lift up learners who might be more self-conscious about acting.
The first week will be spent building ensemble and creating characters, simple costumes, and props. The second week will be spent developing storyboards, and shooting the film. The film will be edited by Mohammed and all campers and parents will be invited to a virtual celebration and premiere of the film.
The camp will take place in an outdoor, COVID-safe setting.

ترجمة عربية

REGISTER HERE

WHO

Learners ages nine to fourteen. 10 campers max. Class be taught in both English + Arabic. No fluency in either language required.

WHAT

$300 per camper. We may be able to offer some need-based scholarships. contact nailah@mizna.org for more info. Costume materials and individual camp kits included. Lunch is not provided–please pack a peanut-free lunch for your camper. Individually wrapped peanut-free snacks will be provided.

WHERE

Camp will take place at the Fridley Community Center. Activities will be held outdoor each day in the park and outdoor patio surrounding the center. Campers will have access to an indoor bathroom, running water, and a refrigerator. Rainplan TBD.

WHEN

9am to 3pm, June 14–25, M–F

DAILY SCHEDULE

8:50–9:00am DROPOFF
9:10–10:30am ACTIVITIES
10:30am SNACK TIME
10:45am–12pm ACTIVITIES
12–12:30pm LUNCH (NOT PROVIDED)
12:30–2pm ACTIVITIES
2–2:15pm SNACK TIME
3–3:10pm PICKUP

COVID PROTECTIONS

Staff and campers will be required to adhere to the COVID guidelines below.

DAILY COVID ASSESSMENT
Each camper or guardian will be required to fill out a daily COVID assessment before participating in the program. Anyone with a temperature of 100 or higher will not be allowed to participate. Campers must be fever-free for at least 72 hours without medication before returning to the program. We highly recommend campers have a negative COVID-19 test before returning to camp as well. Instructors will be in touch regarding assessment specifics closer to the camp. We may update COVID-19 safety procedures in response to shifting COVID realities and in order to comply with state and federal recommendations.

COVID SAFETY PROTOCOLS
Campers will be required to wear masks. Exceptions will be made for eating and drinking when safely distanced. We require masks that follow CDC guidelines, and we will have extra disposable masks available for necessary situations.Campers will be required to sanitize hands upon arrival and at other points throughout the day. We will provide sanitizer, and campers are encouraged to bring their own. Hand washing will be mandatory prior to all meal and snack times. FULL SAFETY GUIDELINES HERE.

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTORS

Teaching artists Taous Khazem and Mohamed Yabdri are seasoned teaching artists of Algerian origin. Taous will teach in English and Mohamed in Arabic. Each has vast experience developing theater and film projects and have done extensive work with youth throughout the Twin Cities and in Algeria. In 2018, Taous and Mohamed created a school residency in French at L’Etoile du Nord French Immersion School on the East Side of Saint Paul and expanded the program to grades 1–5 through a Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Learning Grant in the 2019–2020 school year. Taous currently serves as the Theatre Director for Blake Upper School.

SUPPORTED BY

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

The post Takhiel! Imagine! Bilingual Performing Arts Camp for Kids appeared first on Mizna.

With the rising public health concerns about the coronavirus (COVID-19) and Mizna’s office being a multi-use space, we would like our community members and students to take precautions to protect the wellness of others.

Due to COVID-19 and out of a responsibility not to contribute to the spread of transmission, we are postponing our spring Arabic language and drumming classes. We hope to begin language classes the week of April 20 and drumming classes on April 26, but will be monitoring the situation and will adjust the schedule as need be.

UPDATE: Spring Arabic classes will be conducted virtually, beginning the week of April 20. More details to come.
Spring drumming classes have been cancelled and registrants will receive full refunds.

REGISTER NOW FOR ONLINE ARABIC LANGUAGE CLASSES

Stay tuned for updates. we are asking our Arabic drumming and language students, Arabic Meetup members, and writing group members to stay home if you are feeling even a little bit sick. Regardless of any potential exposure to COVID-19, the best way not to spread any illnesses including the flu and cold, is to stay home, cover your coughs, and wash your hands. We will have try hand sanitizer on-site at all times, and we will be disinfecting our classroom thoroughly and regularly.

The post COVID-19 Precautions appeared first on Mizna.

June 2019, Mizna is offering 2 intensive classes in spoken and written Arabic taught by Dunia Khouri. Classes will take place in Mizna’s office in St. Paul, 2446 University Ave W, Ste 115, St. Paul, MN 55114.

Beginning Arabic I & II classes focus on developing basic communication skills in Arabic. Students will learn Classical Arabic, standard vocabulary and grammar, and colloquial dialect. The courses will center on developing speaking and listening abilities so that students can engage in a basic conversation in Arabic. By the end of each course students will have the confidence to greet people, describe and discuss their environment, communicate emotions and feelings, and talk about general situations. 

Both of these courses will use the textbook Alif Baa: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds Third Edition by Kristen Brustad, Mahmoud Al-Batal, and Abbas Al-Tonsi.Beginning I will cover units 1-5 and Beginning II will cover Units 6-10.

Intensive Beginning I
Monday and Wednesday, June 3 to 26
$200, 6pm to 8pm
REGISTER

The registration fee is the same as our 10 week classes, but it will be a total of 16 hours instead of the regular 15 hours. The first hour of the class will focus on reading and writing.
PLEASE NOTE: This class will overlap with Intensive Beginning II Arabic by one hour. Students from both intensive classes will work together on vocabulary and speaking exercises led by Dunia.

Intensive Beginning II
Monday and Wednesday, June 4 to 27
$200, 7pm to 9pm
REGISTER

The registration fee is the same as our 10 week classes, but it will be a total of 16 hours instead of the regular 15 hours. The first hour of the class will focus on reading and writing.
PLEASE NOTE: This class will overlap with Intensive Beginning I by one hour. Students from both intensive classes will work together on vocabulary and speaking exercises led by Dunia.

BUNDLE Intensive Beginning I and Beginning Arabic II 
Mondays and Wednesdays, June 4 to 27
$375, 6pm to 9pm
REGISTER

By bundling these classes, you save! Taking both of our intensive classes will total to 24 hours of intensive Arabic classes during the month of June. If any of these items appear out of stock on the website, please email mizna@mizna.org.

About the instructor

DUNIA KHOURI is a native Arabic speaker from Lebanon. She has lived in in Minneapolis, Minnesota for 19 years and has had many years of experience teaching Arabic to elementary through high school students. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in Lebanese legal studies from the University of Lebanon, Beirut, Lebanon. Also she holds a masters degree in law from the University of Minnesota’s Law School. She has studied ESL: Literacy and LEP Education and Effectively Advocating ESL at Hamline University, St. Paul. 

The post June Intensive Arabic Classes appeared first on Mizna.