Our goals for our students include fostering a greater sense of self-worth, self-respect and responsibility, and making meaningful connections in the local, national, and global communities.
Al-Hijra School follows the educational standards outlined in the Ontario Curriculum guidelines using provincially adopted textbooks in addition to specialized Islamic Studies, Qur’an, and Arabic curricula and texts. Our elementary curriculum provides young learners with a solid educational foundation in the above listed locally developed courses as well as language arts, mathematics, science, social studies/ history/ geography, and French. Physical education, nasheed (Islamic music), art, and drama are also important aspects of the program. A strong emphasis is placed on the importance of critical thinking in all of the above areas. All classes are delivered through an Islamic perspective and students are encouraged to develop an Islamic world-view.
Beginning in kindergarten, students learn about the world through reading and observing, and express themselves through oral and written work. The nature of Al-Hijra primary years is geared towards building a strong Islamic foundation.
Numeracy in kindergarten involves counting and identifying numbers. As students progress through the grades, they learn all of the mathematics required for high school level work. Teachers work hard to integrate mathematics into other subject areas, so that students understand how mathematics is not only theoretical, but also practical.
Second and third language instruction is important for the Al-Hijra Academy program. Students are introduced to Arabic language in kindergarten, and French is added in Grade 4. At all levels, specialists teach our second and third languages.
Scientific discovery is important from kindergarten, where students begin their learning by understanding their senses. Science topics are discussed in the context of big ideas in the primary years program, and through subject area study from Grades 5 to 8. The school has an excellent track record in the subject of science, and many teachers have science backgrounds. Every year the children prepare science projects to participate in our school’s Science & Technology Fair competition. The winners from this fair qualify to participate in the Windsor Regional Science, Technology, and Engineering Fair (WRSTEF) held by the University of Windsor. Our students win medals at this competition consistently each year. Some of our students have even succeeded at the regional level, and moved on to the Canada Wide Science Fair (CWSF) national competition, alhamdulillaah.
Al-Hijra Academy looks at the roles of the individual in society through religious study, right from kindergarten. Social studies topics often connect to Islam, science, and mathematics. Students engage in research that leads to report-writing, debates, and speech competitions. Often, the content is related to real issues that are occurring in the world at the time. In all cases, academic subjects encourage critical thinking. Often this is accomplished through inquiry – asking questions of increasing complexity.