Bloom Home Education Program

The decision to homeschool is very personal and could be for anything from keeping faith at the forefront of the day, seeking more family time, accommodating special needs and interests, unsatisfied with current measures and approaches in schools, cost savings and even the exceptional circumstances happening now with school and COVID.

The Alberta Muslim homeschooling community has grown significantly over the years, Alhamdullilah.  Currently, many of the available homeschool board options are Christian/Catholic-based.  While faith-based homeschool, boards are an option for the Muslim community, we wanted to provide an option that is more aligned with our faith and values.  Bloom offers to provide unique services that Muslim families will be able to access:

• a facilitator who shares and respects your beliefs and values
• recommendations for resources and curricula that are Muslim friendly or ways to modify
• suggestions for Islamic and Arabic resources
• support and advice on how to weave the faith into all subjects
• networking and social opportunities with other Muslim families who are home educating
• specialized activities catered to Muslim homeschoolers such as Quran/Hadith competition and Arabic Spelling Competition

With home education, parents make a choice to retain the responsibility to direct and deliver the education of their children under the Home Education Regulation. Our Home Education program is open to all students who are 5 years and 8 months old as of Sept.1. The parent designs, implements and evaluates this program.  Bloom reports on the progress of the program through a minimum of two mandatory parent/student/teacher meetings conducted virtually.  Portfolio/learning samples will be required.  Your facilitator will create a summary of the meetings and an evaluation report will be provided at the end of the year. 

When choosing this form of education, parents are eligible to receive 50% of the home education funds designated towards the program for reimbursement of instructional materials and resources. Home education under the Home Education Regulation offers the greatest degree of parental control.

Bloom is a homeschooling board operating under the authority of the Edmonton Islamic Academy. 

Homeschool boards in Alberta cannot operate independently. 

Bloom is only open to families that reside in Alberta. If you are not a resident of Alberta, you will not be accepted. 

Bloom offers a home education program for students in grade 1-12.

Registration forms will be available in February. The deadline for registration is August 31, 2021. However, we have limited spots and applications will be filled as first-come, first-serve.  

There will be $50 one-time fee per student.  Future registrations will not have to pay this yearly.  If your child leaves for a year and comes back, the fee will be required again. This is the registration policy of Edmonton Islamic Academy.  

A list of recommended resources to support at-home learning will be uploaded on the Bloom Homeschool section of the Edmonton Islamic Academy website.  These will also be provided to parents once registration is complete.

A homeschool facilitator will be assigned to your child.  Bloom will only hire facilitators that are Muslim and are Alberta teachers with homeschool experience in order to serve you in the best way we can.  After your registration is accepted, you will be connected with your facilitator.  You will be meeting your facilitator virtually.  Your facilitator will be available to assist throughout the year through email, phone, or Zoom.

Your education plan will highlight what you will teach (your goals/learning outcomes), how you will teach this (activities, resources) and how student will know what they have learned (methods of assessment).  The education plan needs to be submitted prior to September 30th. If you do not meet this deadline, you will not receive your homeschool funding. Sometimes students change over the year. Plans can change too. Your education plan may change as the year progresses and that’s okay!

Students in the Home Education program have the freedom to follow the outcomes described in the Schedule of Learning Outcomes in the Home Education Regulation OR the Alberta Education outcomes. You may find it helpful to look at My Child’s Learning: A Parent Resource (Alberta).

Yes. Every family is different. Every child is unique.  What works for one, may not work for another. We welcome all methods of learning. 

Yes, your homeschool facilitator can assist you in choosing resources and materials to support your curriculum; however, it is your duty in a parent-directed program to create your home education plan. Your facilitator will provide you with a template and examples of an education plan. Home education allows the most flexibility. This means you as the parent should consider your values, lifestyle, student ability and interests when designing their program.

Yes, the two progress meetings with your facilitator are MANDATORY. This is when you will share work samples, photos, a portfolio, or some type of evidence of learning to demonstrate your child’s progress towards the goals outlined in your Home Education Plan. Phone calls can also be arranged if all samples of work are emailed prior to the phone meeting.

Report cards are not issued in the Home Ed program. Students will receive an Evaluation Report at the end of the year from their facilitator based on the two progress meetings during the year.

Yes, there is $850 available in funding in the Home Education program. You will be able to purchase resources, materials, and programs to support your education plan. A full list of items that can be purchased will be available to you after registration.  Receipts will be necessary for reimbursement.

Funding for the coming year will be disbursed twice – 50% ($425) in December and 50% ($425) in June. If $637.50 worth of receipts (75% of the grant) is submitted, the entire $850 will be disbursed.

We are planning to provide:

• The EIA school library – books (English/Arabic), Islamic titles, Alberta textbooks
• Select EIA Activities: Arabic Spelling Competition, Quran Competition, Hadith Competition, Book Fairs, Umrah Simulation
• Virtual meet-ups/classes for students
• Service/Charity activities
• Bloom Google Classroom - to keep you updated on Bloom and EIA offerings, suggested online resources, and passwords for various websites

With the help of parents, Bloom offered a variety of options to students in our first year: Arabic calligraphy course, Middle Ages History course from an Islamic perspective, Muslimah Sisters Book Club, Ramadan prep course, virtual farm field trips, Google student meets to show and share projects each month (this included a mini art lesson each class).

Bloom connects families through a Telegram group/email platform and encourages parents to connect with other homeschooling families to arrange meetups for field trips and in-person activities.

We are trying our best to make arrangements for children outside of Edmonton to participate virtually in some of our onsite activities such as Quran and Hadeeth competitions. We are also planning monthly virtual meets that students across Alberta would be able to access.  Group field trips in cities with a high number of registrants may be arranged.

At this time, we do not have this as an available option. Bloom only offers a parent-directed option.

We are happy to announce that AISCA is providing home learners with a variety of learning sessions for our parents. Some of these are in person and some are offered virtually.  Bloom parents are welcome to register for these sessions. We also have supports in place for students with special needs (consultations).

If you decide to choose parent-directed homeschooling for high school, your child will not receive any credits or a high school diploma. Please visit Alberta Homeschooling to view some of the options available to high school students.

Yes, you will be able to rent Alberta textbooks through the Edmonton Islamic Academy library.  Your facilitator will also provide you with passwords to access the T4T modules through Alberta Learning. 

Yes, you will receive a Home Education Package at the beginning of the school year. Your facilitator will provide you with a number of documents and forms to support your home education program.

Please feel free to email our Bloom Coordinator, Tasha: Tasha.dawn@islamicacademy.ca 

We look forward to supporting you and your family!

To apply, simply click here and follow the instructions.

Home Education Act

Home Education Handbook

Notification Form

Standards For Reimbursement