Our Philosophy
In accordance with the methods of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s) and the Ahlul Bayt (a), Hadi Montessori strives to create learning environments that allow the child’s fitrah to breathe and gifts to unfold. Our learning communities also foster the development of the Islamic worldview and lifestyle. We view this as an essential prerequisite to everything else we do. Rather than suffice with teaching Islamic concepts during school hours, we commit ourselves, our students, and their families to living the noble teachings of Islam at all times.
The Montessori method respects the child’s need for freedom (within limits) and self-directed learning and inquiry. As such, teachers are trained to facilitate this process by offering lessons and preparing beautiful and developmentally appropriate learning environments in which children are able to develop at their own pace, and according to their needs and interests.
Primary
“The child is the master for the first seven years.”
Prophet Muhammad (s)
The Islamic philosophy for child-rearing encourages freedom before the age of seven. Dr. Maria Montessori, who developed her method over the course of 50 years, echoed this prophetic wisdom when she spoke about the role of guides in the Primary classroom: “We teachers can only help the work going on, as servants wait upon the master.”
Children under the age of seven are driven to develop and perfect their abilities. They learn best through open-ended, real-life activities and exploration. In the Montessori classroom, children are provided three-hour blocks of uninterrupted work time in which they are free to choose their activities. As they engage at their own pace, their sensory perceptions, concentration, movements, and language develop, and their powers of reason, imagination, and sociability begin to emerge. They exhibit an increased sense of joy and wonder. They become part of a classroom ecosystem wherein they begin to develop cooperation and other positive, prosocial behaviors and attitudes.
Madinatul ‘Ilm, our Primary (or Early Childhood) classroom, is comprised of children aged 3-6 and has a teacher-to-child ratio of 1:10.
Lower Elementary
Elementary Program Overview
Elementary-aged children are marked by their curious minds, growing ability to think abstractly, strong sense of morality and justice, and boundless energy for exploration and discovery. At this stage, children thrive in small, mixed-age groups, collaborating on a variety of projects that spark the imagination, engage the intellect, and strengthen reasoning skills.
Madinatul Quds (our Boys’ Lower and Upper Elementary Community) and Madinatul Zahraa (our Girls’ Lower and Upper Elementary Community) serve children ages 6–11. The elementary program builds knowledge through deep, integrated studies of the world and how it works.
Subjects are woven together across disciplines, including Qur’an, Islamic studies, geography, biology, history, language, mathematics, science, art, and practical life. Learning extends beyond the classroom as children organize field visits to places such as libraries, planetariums, botanical gardens, science centers, factories, and hospitals. These experiences foster a sense of connectedness to humanity and support the children's natural desire to make meaningful contributions to the world around them.
“When I am with children, I am a nobody, and the greatest privilege I have when I approach them is to be able to forget that I even exist, for this has enabled me to see things that one would miss if one were somebody.”