Doing its work in secret!

If someone is drinking tea, and you ask him what he has in his cup, he will simply reply, “tea.” There is sugar in it, but he will not mention the sugar or say he is drinking tea and sugar. The sweetness of the sugar permeates the tea, but the man says nothing about it.

Education for man must be like the sugar in tea — doing its work in secret. While on the surface, it is only apparent to us that a man’s ears are listening and his tongue is talking, his inner soul also hears and talks. But like sugar sweetens the tea, a good education changes man and shapes him. Thus, we place before you the best education we can offer our children, the memorization of the Holy Qur’an. By “doing its work in secret” our souls benefit from it and our children earn the pleasure of Allah, Insha’Allah.

The Mission

From its inception, Dar-us-Salaam’s mission has been to establish a strong community of believers that strives to establish Islam in all aspects of life. Our goal is to nourish the Muslims’ minds, bodies, and souls with the knowledge of Islam, as well as to assist people in applying and benefiting from this knowledge.

The mission of the Hifzh School is to prepare Huffazh who would carry the Book of Allah in their hearts, understand it and share it with others, Muslims and non-Muslims.

As part of this mission, many of the Hifzh School students and graduates are currently teachers in the Qur’an Programs at Dar-us-Salaam and at other Masjids.

Importance of Memorizing Qur’an

Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala says: “Nay, but they, the clear ayat, are preserved in the chests of those who have been given knowledge…” [al-‘Ankabut 29:49]

And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “It will be said to the companions of the Qur’an, ‘Read and increase in status, recite as you used to recite in the world, for your status will be at the last ayah you recite.’” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 2838. He said, this is a sahih hasan hadith).

What do students do at the Hifzh School?

The Hifzh School primarily focuses on the recitation, memorization and review of the Qur’an. Students spend most of their day at school reading Qur’an: memorizing new verses, reviewing what they have previously memorized, and reciting it.

Students who enter the Hifzh School with fluent reading abilities start memorizing the Qur’an immediately. Students who need improvement in their reading proficiency have to go through a 3-6 months intensive reading program before they can start memorizing.

In addition to studying Qur’an, students also have the following activities during the week:

1. Translation / Tafseer: This class is held once a week for about 45-minutes. Students go over the word-to-word translation of the Qur’an, and a brief interpretation of the verses covered.

2. Aqeedah: This class is held once a week for about 30 minutes. Students are taught the various articles of our faith, and their implementation in our daily lives.

3. Physical Education: Students have P.E. twice a week for about 30 minutes.

Teachers

The teachers of the Hifzh School are qualified individuals, who are very well-versed in the Qur’an and its rules of recitation. Our teachers are dedicated to providing our students with an environment that nurtures their souls, and helps them achieve their goal of memorizing the Qur’an. Our teachers exhibit genuine love and care for their students, while at the same time maintaining the desired seriousness and discipline in their classes in a way that best suits the students in the United States.

Expected Completion Time

The expected completion time varies with the proficiency level of the student at the time of admission into the Hifzh School. During its 6 years of operation, 21 students have completed the memorization of the entire Qur’an. Based on the reading proficiency level at the time of admission, the completion time may be anywhere from 2 years to 4 years.

Timings

The Hifzh School operates Monday through Thursday, from 8 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 2.30 p.m.

Daily Schedule

There is about five hours of Qur’an class on a daily basis. Students are given a 10 minute snack break in the morning, a 50-minute lunch and recess break around noon, and a 5-minute snack break in the afternoon. There is also a 25-minute break for Salaat Adh-Dhuhr.

What About Secular Subjects Like Math, Science, Etc.?

At this point we are unable to offer classes for other subjects. Parents of the Hifzh School students are responsible for arranging appropriate home schooling for their children.

However, in the future, we do plan to offer homeschooling classes for our students in order to make it easier on the parents, Insha Allah. Please contact us for any updates on this topic.

Number of Students

In order to maximize the amount of time that a teacher spends with each student, our class size is limited to only ten (10) students per class. Once classes are full, students are placed on the waitlist and contacted once a space becomes available. If there is a dire need to increase the class size, then we provide our teachers with a Teacher’s Assistant (TA) in order to maintain the quality of our education.

Transportation

At this point we are not able to offer transportation to our students. However, we can assist parents in making carpooling arrangements by sharing contact information of such interested parents.

Fee Structure

There is a $40 non-refundable application fee (please note that your application will not be processed until we receive your $40 application fee). For the monthly tuition, please contact us.

Application information

You may stop by the front office of Dar-us-Salaam/Al-Huda School during office hours (Monday through Friday 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.) The application forms and the Behavior Assessment Questionnaires can also be downloaded from our website, www.darussalaam.org.

Contact Information

If you have any questions about the Hifzh School, please contact us using one of the following ways:

Telephone: 301-982-2402

Fax: 301-982-2325

Web: www.darussalaam.org

E-mail: CLOAKING