Horizon Leadership Academy I Junior High Islamic School I Calgary

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL(7to9)

Horizon Junior High Grades 7-9

Horizon’s Educational Model

The intent of Horizon Leadership Academy (HLA) programming is to prepare students for post-graduate education and a happy, spiritual and ethical life. We offer students a challenging curriculum that has a “dual-track” (academics, Islamic, Arabic) that prepares adolescent’s well for future studies. Our academy allows students to develop an Islamic identity while enjoying a safe and cohesive community.

The core program includes English, Math, Science, History, and Physical Education. Students take Arabic as a second language.

Join us on a journey to build ethical future leaders

The world is changing rapidly and with more complexity than ever before. Muslim Adolescents today are vulnerable to the effect of the huge flux of information, ideas and values through TV, social media, global community issues, and peer pressure. Today's Muslim youth are trying to manoeuvre a vast array of uncertainty and possibility for their future. Understanding this reality is critical in helping to shape the learning landscape necessary for them to acquire leadership qualities and personal growth.

At Horizon Leadership Academy we have adopted Master’s Academy & College Imaginal educational system as an early adopter. Imaginal states that “adolescents can ascend to a new level of thinking and learning through rigour, relevance, and relationship. Rigorous standards ensure high-quality skill development and knowledge acquisition. Relevant learning experiences connect students to a growing body of knowledge and perspectives in the world. Relationships that are meaningful, positive and professional allow for successful collaborative, networking, and personal growth experiences.

Shaping Canadian and Islamic identities

At Horizon we work with adolescents to help them discover their own purpose and voice. We help them manoeuvre their journey of spirituality, ethically encored life, and academic excellence. This is realized and shaped in a variety of settings including the classroom, Islamic program, self and peer assessments, personal tracking, and reflective activities. Students are encouraged to articulate and to fine-tune their perspectives about themselves, others, and the world.

Allowing dreams to happen

At Horizon we work with our students to design their lives through the process of building a satisfying, meaningful life. This is approached the way a designer would by experimentation, wayfinding, prototyping, and constant iteration.

Future Leaders

Horizon Leadership Academy Junior High provides leadership development that leads to University-ready preparation for students. Exposing them to rigorous and relevant content and allowing them to apply knowledge to their lives and personal goals. Following the Imaginal Model, Horizon offers not only a well-rounded academic program for students from grades 7 to 9 but also a model of learning that goes beyond the reaches of a traditional classroom. Teaching methods engage students in learning to reason, write, and use information in complex ways as well as to provide opportunities for personalizing their pathway through school, depending on individual talents, interests, and goals.

Students will engage in authentic design-based projects where they become designers and creators of the future. Students will explore:

how to envision the future
come up with their own personal mission statement
learn and practice design thinking
figure out their spiritual journey
develop a critical thinking mindset
making a difference in their world
adoption of an ethical road to change themselves, their community, and the world

Computer Programming

HLA junior high students are given the option to partake in Computer Programming classes.

Other activities students can choose from include:

Robotics
Photography & Graphic Design
Business & Marketing
Social Media

Fine Art

Drama: HLA students have the option to participate in drama. They will explore movement, speech, improvisation, and theatre studies, through various exercises, projects and activities. Students will examine the roles of rehearsal processes, cooperation, concentration and commitment as applied to dramatic work. Video projects are a part of this course, which provides a valuable opportunity to develop technical skill and allow students to showcase their work.

Ethical Art: At Horizon we introduce students to ethical art (not Islamic art), where students engage in different forms of art in both its classical and contemporary forms. An underlying assumption of ethical art is that art should not be practised simply for its own sake. Art should serve a purpose, be it to promote values like justice, as a medium of self-expression or simply as a vessel of beauty and aesthetics. At Horizon we believe in fostering a lifelong love, or at least an appreciation of the arts in all our students.

Foreign Languages

At Horizon, we encourage our students to partake in community and global affairs to be world changers. All students are required to take Arabic and are encouraged to undertake an optional third language course in French.

Athletics

Besides a rigorous academic experience, Horizon students are encouraged to enrol in regular physical activities by leveraging our indoor and outdoor facilities. We want our students to grow, not only in terms of their athleticism but to advance valuable skills such as teamwork, sportsmanship and leadership, which are all a strong focus of our athletics program.

Retreats and Nature Excursions

Students at Horizon are encouraged to partake in outdoor education in the form of retreats and nature excursions to connect them to Alberta’s natural environment. As Albertans, we have a wide variety of activities available to us, and students will be given the opportunity to gain experience in many, or all, of the following: