News

06/12/2020

MADINAT ZAYED CELEBRATES NATIONAL DAY WITH REPLICA OF THE GRAND MOSQUE CREATED BY RECYCLED MATERIALS

To commemorate the UAE’s 49th National Day, ADNOC School, Madinat Zayed, managed by Aldar Education has created a large-scale replica of Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque consisting of 111 components and separate pieces bearing students’ names, created with recycled products available within the school.

The model was created as a memorable way to both celebrate the UAE National Day and serve as a reminder of how precious life is, that we must come together cohesively, especially during such unprecedented times as experienced this year. The model is a symbol for harmony and hard work within the school.

Students from grade 1 to grade 5 all helped construct the Mosque, which took 11 days to build, ensuring that social distancing was maintained at all times. The Mosque was finalised on 29 November over a span of almost five hours, placing it piece-by-piece at the school’s main entrance.

Wendy Birch, Principal at ADNOC School, Madinat Zayed, Al Dhafra, said: “The reason behind the idea was so very simple for me; living in Abu Dhabi and working in Madinat Zayed allows me to see the beauty of the Capital along with the tranquillity of the desert sands of the Western Region. Whenever I drive around to Abu Dhabi I always try to drive past the Grand Mosque, I love its beauty, it’s the sense of calm and the feeling of peace I get every time I see it. I wanted to recreate that in our school here in Madinat Zayed, so we can all have the joys of seeing this beautiful creation every day as staff and students walk into school.

“The Grand Mosque project, co-ordinated by our Art Teacher, Mr Samer Issa Ali Nusairat is a testament to the skills we teach at ADNOC School, Madinat Zayed as part of our STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) programme”.

Grade 5 student at ADNOC School, Madinat Zayed, Meera Khalil Al Hammadi, said: “It felt so exciting to take my piece and build the Mosque. We only used recycled materials to build it, which was great for sustainability. The Mosque is a replica of the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and it is amazing. Seeing this being constructed provided me with inner peace.”

Grade 4 student at ADNOC School, Madinat Zayed, Khalfan Saleh Al Mazrouei, also commented; “I was so happy to see the final result. We have a Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Madinat Zayed at ADNOC School. I want to be an architect when I grow up and maybe I could build a Mosque like this in the future. This was teamwork at its best, we all worked together. It was amazing that we got it finished in time for our 49th National Day, seeing this Mosque makes my heart happy.”

The Mosque will reside outside of the school during the National Day celebrations until it is moved to its permanent home of the reception area, encased in Perspex.