14
Mar
2011
PAAIA Chapters Bring Nowruz to their Local Community Schools
By PAAIA Staff
March 14, 2011, Washington, D.C. – In 2009, PAAIA helped draft and build bipartisan support for the Nowruz Resolution, which passed both chambers of Congress in March 2010. Building on that theme, PAAIA Washington, D.C. Chapter Leader, Saghi Agha-Khan, in collaboration with Nahal Iravani-Sani, are spearheading efforts to spread Iranian culture and heritage to their communities by bringing Nowruz to their local elementary schools.
“With Nowruz’s approach, many schools ask their Iranian American parents to provide information on this Persian custom,” Agha-Khan explains. “Similarly, many Iranian American parents are eager to share this unique tradition with their children’s classmates, teachers, and school.”
To assist parents in providing comprehensive, yet easy to understand information about Nowruz in a child-friendly manner, PAAIA has developed a set of resources aimed at elementary school children that are now available on the PAAIA Web site. These include:
Presentation providing information on Iran and Nowruz – this pdf presentation provides an overview of Iran, the country, including its location, geography, and people. It also provides information on Iranian language and religion. Additionally, it includes numerous pages on Nowruz, including materials on charshanbeh-soori, the Haft seen, and sidzeh bedar. This presentation can be provided to students as a handout or displayed on an overhead projector.
Five activity pages that are aimed to further enhance a child’s understanding and retention of the information about Nowruz.
Nowruz is a happy and joyous celebration in our heritage. PAAIA urges Iranian American parents to reach out to elementary schools and ascertain their interest in learning more about Iran and Nowruz. In a simple way, you will be helping build our presence and image in the communities in which you live and in the next generation of Iranian Americans and Americans, alike.
For more information on PAAIA’s Nowruz Presentation, please contact saghi@45.33.40.89.
