An accredited private school
WHY CHOOSE US
Your child’s mind fills with more and more wonder each day. At ILM Academy, we propel that intellectual curiosity and ensure that your child grows academically, emotionally, and spiritually. Our intimately scaled classrooms provide your child with a hands-on learning environment suited for discovery, discourse, and intellectual debate. Our main goal is to ensure your child’s success by focusing on their character development, academic performance, and Islamic values.
Watch your child grow throughout their years at ILM Academy. Our curriculum is geared to strengthen skills that are essential to real-world problem solving and social interaction. Whether it’s through the Singapore Math method to teach not only the “how” of math, but the “why”, or the practical application of public speaking skills by emceeing our annual gala or giving a khutba or khatira, our students learn that academics are integral to life and have meaning beyond just doing well on tests. While they may learn about the prophets in Islamic Studies class, they will learn how their teachings connect to the development of civilizations in History class. Whatever is taught has a purpose and a connection and, ultimately, that connection is with the Creator and how best to serve His creation.
Early Childcare Center
Age: infants to 3 years old
He may have just begun walking or she may have just articulated her first sentence or have begun to make block towers. They could already be running! ILM Academy’s Early Childcare Center (ECC) will nurture them through these first steps. The ECC will help them to love learning, in a playful, deen-centered environment, where ‘A is for Allah’ is sung alongside ‘The Itsy Bitsy Spider’
The ECC adopts a Montessori approach, so the pace of learning is determined by each child, which makes every learning odyssey unique. These young children will also be fully prepared to advance into ILM Academy’s primary Montessori classrooms by age 3. In addition to engaging in endless indoor activities, they enjoy the safe and shaded playground of ILM Academy and benefit often from the proximity of older siblings in the Montessori, elementary, and middle school grades
While professionalism is a hallmark at the ILM Academy ECC, a state licensed childcare center, there is a strong family feeling and staff care for children with great tenderness and dedication. Children are encouraged to develop intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually–a trademark of the school through middle school as well
Our instructors are trained in early childhood development and the Montessori philosophy, which means they are committed to bringing out the best in your children.
Montessori
Age: 3 to 5 years old
Three year-olds are not to be underestimated. They walk, run, and talk, but they can also count by 100s, accurately determine the weather outside, and recite the Holy Quran. They can understand the concepts of honesty, compassion, and every other characteristic ILM Academy aims to instill in its students. And what about our four-year-olds? Do you know everything they can do and how they may be different from their five year-old peers? This is our business at ILM Academy. We specialize in understanding children and bringing out the very best in each one of them at their diverse ages and stages.
Our method is Montessori–an educational practice and philosophy with a 100 year-old track record to its name. Over 20,000 schools worldwide have adopted a similar approach. An accredited private school, ILM Academy is also a member of the American Montessori Society, and we take our job of developing the whole child very seriously. We seek to inculcate, from the earliest age, a love and appreciation for learning, along with a deep respect for humanity.
How do we do this? We mix our academic subjects, such as math and English, with real life applications. We take our students into the kitchen so they can experience measuring, touching and, yes, tasting their lessons. Apart from recess, we frequently head outside to explore and understand the great outdoors. In addition to teaching Quran and Sunnah at school, the nearby masjid is also a retreat for us, as we aspire to cultivate a love, respect, and familiarity with Islam. Our students are actively involved in charity projects, locally and internationally, as we all strive to live our deen, on a day-to-day basis, inside and outside of the classroom.
ILM Academy Montessori students are growing up to be academically astute and intellectually curious, with a real sense of values and love for Islam.
Elementary
Discover our Elementary program, where we nurture independence and confidence, while inculcating superior academics in a deen-centered environment. As your child transitions from Montessori to elementary education, we reinforce the skills and responsibilities your child will carry throughout their education. Each week, specific time is dedicated to Islamic Studies, Arabic, and Qur’an alongside Math, English, Social Studies, Art, etc. Independent reading skills are further enhanced, and Math becomes much more interactive. The academic instructional approach is hands-on and activity-based with an emphasis on critical thinking skills.
Families and communities are also an integral part of the learning process, which is not limited to the classroom walls. Throughout the year, apart from completing all the requisite traditional subjects, ILM Academy elementary students may visit the science museum, participate in an interactive theater presentation, write original poetry for their poetry cafe, or participate in a mock election, as well as participate in several inter-scholastic competitions, such as PSIA or Odyssey of the Mind.
This is learning in action, and it makes every day an educational journey for ILM Academy students.
Middle School
ILM Academy’s Middle School cultivates leaders. Throughout these years of transition, your child will expand on his or her analytical skills, artistic ability, and Islamic values. Middle School students are challenged with high reading and writing levels, and relating topics to current events and their personal lives. Sensitive topics are also discussed within an Islamic context to help students make sense of difficult issues. As is natural for middle school students, your child will become more independent and responsible for their own academic performance.
All our programs help to foster independence among the students by taking ownership of their academics, belongings, and behavior. To do so, we teach our students to be introspective and also to understand the world around them. Our weekly advisory classes help tackle difficult socio-emotional aspects of development as well as other issues unique to this age group or to current events.
In order to create leaders, our middle school program builds upon skills culminating in the 8th grade Capstone class. This class focuses on integrating analytical and social skills in real world situations. Students are tasked with selecting a societal problem for which they will research and propose a solution. These projects are all conducted individually and students must present their final Capstone project as a requirement for graduation from ILM Academy. Prior to that, students take Public Speaking in 6th grade and Model UN in 7th grade to develop skills of presentation, confidence, research, and formulating effective arguments.
Arabic and Islamic Studies
Islamic Studies is taught as an integral part of the child’s everyday life. By teaching Islamic knowledge (aqeedah), worship (ibadah), behavior (akhlaq), and history (seerah) in a way that is relevant to the children and makes it enjoyable for them to learn, we aim to inspire a love for Islam and pride in being a Muslim.
We focus on one Islamic value each month, bringing new ways of understanding and applying these values to the everyday lives of the children. Storybooks about the prophets (peace be upon them) and Muslim characters help to introduce Islam in an enjoyable and captivating manner. Ibadat, such as salat, wudu, sawm, zakat, and Hajj, is taught in a manner that is appropriate for the child’s age and level of understanding. Memorization of the Quran is an integral part of the Islamic Studies and Arabic curriculum and every day begins with learning and reciting suras.
Current research on language learning states that the most effective way to learn a second language is to learn vocabulary first, which is reinforced through conversation, and then focus on reading and grammar. We all learn to speak our native tongues in infancy and then learn reading and writing later. This approach leads to a more concrete and longer lasting retention of the language and greater fluency. Our Arabic curriculum for the younger grades was the first of its kind designed specifically to teach Arabic as a second language and we have had great success with this approach.
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Contact us
Our hours of operation are from 7:55 am to 3:30 pm on all school days other than breaks and holidays, such as, but not limited to, Labor Day, Eid ul-Adha, Thanksgiving break, and winter break.
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