Enrichment Programme
The enrichment programme enables students to realise their potential in a variety of settings beyond the classroom. Students develop a sense of self-awareness and an understanding of school and community needs and opportunities. They also learn how to apply their gifts and skills to make a positive impact.
At the Academy, we believe in a balanced, rounded, comprehensive school experience. As this includes both academic and enrichment experiences, we encourage our students to do their best both in and outside the classroom.
We offer outstanding sports facilities that include:
- swimming and diving pools
- cricket pitch
- sports fields, for soccer, hockey and athletics
- tennis and squash courts
- athletics track.
Children with special sporting gifts are encouraged to develop their talents in every way. Children with special gifts in music, art or drama are similarly encouraged through opportunities to practise and perform while at the Academy.
Our enrichment programmes for both day and residential students are clustered into three main streams, each with a different focus:
Creativity and culture
Whether through visual or performing arts, this cluster engages students to think creatively and express their identities and thoughts aesthetically. Through theatre, art, music and drama, students learn to work together and infuse their projects with values and lessons from other parts of their schooling. Individual and collaborative creative projects emphasise growth and development through personal challenge, ultimately resulting in achievable personal goals.
Programmes are currently offered in contemporary dance, arts and crafts, animation, robotics, science, software, photography, chess, drama and music.
Physical
The student as a reflective practitioner is a basic tenet of the physical cluster. Through physical sport, both competitive and non-competitive, students are challenged in their physical growth, and learn values such as good sportsmanship, teamwork and ethical behaviour. We encourage them to extend themselves by trying different activities and working with teammates to pass on their knowledge. In line with developing the student as a whole, a healthy lifestyle complements and enhances academic achievement.
Programmes are currently offered in football, squash, basketball, cricket, swimming, table tennis, tennis and yoga/gym.
Language and service
At the Academy, we encourage knowledge and understanding of humanity and civil society. Through their involvement in citizenship activities, students gain an understanding of the practical implications of their work and study. By collaborating with community groups on sustainable projects, they develop an appreciation for human rights and human dignity, and of how their actions impact the world around them.
Programmes are currently offered in Model United Nations, Reflections (school publication), yearbook, organic farm, film making, book club, foreign language and mother tongue, and environment club.
To learn more about the Academy's programme, please visit the Academic Programme page.
Ruhi Kamal Manek (Class of 2016): Advocating for Africa
Ruhi Kamal Manek, an alumnus of the Aga Khan Academies in Mombasa and now a sophomore at Yale University in the United States, took away one enduring lesson from the Academy: the importance of engaging in thoughtful and careful consideration of diverse opinions. She explains that it was her time at the Academy that forced her to reexamine her old-world views and believes that her new way of thinking as a citizen of the world was borne of her stay in residence at the school:
“Living with people from so many diverse backgrounds helped me appreciate differences in people. This experience further helped me feel comfortable interacting with people from diverse backgrounds and diverse cultures at Yale.”
Ruhi was born in Nairobi, Kenya and grew up in the small town of Eldoret. It was her desire to learn and challenge herself more that made her apply to the Academy.
“I could not think of a better place to do that than at the Academy,” Ruhi states. “Being admitted to the school was the beginning of a transformative journey for me - a defining moment in my academic and personal life.”
The Academy places immense importance on meaningful public service. Ruhi participated in numerous voluntary undertakings but it was involvement in the annual school-based deworming program in the impoverished Bombolulu area of Mombasa that had a lasting impact on her. Under this program, school children receive an oral dose of deworming medicine designed to lower their risk of infection by worms and thus enhance their health and school productivity.
“The experience opened my eyes,” Ruhi says. “The thought that something so trivial as administering a few drops of medicine in a child’s mouth can transform that child’s future was inspiring to me.”
Involvement in this program inspired Ruhi in many ways. Watching the children joyfully engage with life forced her to reflect on values of humility, modesty and gratification:
“As I stood among the children, I felt as though my heart had grown twice as large, making space for these beautiful souls. I was filled with an inexplicable amount of joy as I marveled at the contentment and optimism around me. Despite the conditions in which the children lived and learned, they were radiating with happiness. I was in awe. The whole experience reminded me of a quote by the Buddha: ‘The cessation of desire is the cessation of suffering.’”
After this experience at the Academy, Ruhi continued her volunteer work at Yale. She is part of the TEDxYale team and helps to organize seminars and conferences. She is a member of Yale UNICEF and is involved in fund-raising efforts to make a difference in children’s lives globally. Committed to women’s rights regarding education and leadership roles, Ruhi also joined the Yale chapter of the Circle of Women, a non-profit organization “that educates, inspires and empowers women to become leaders and peacemakers.”
Additionally, Ruhi is involved in developing a wellness curriculum for a girls’ secondary school in Orkeeswa, Tanzania, which promotes the ideas that healthy students are better learners and that focusing on wellness now can produce huge intergenerational benefits.
“My first year at Yale has undoubtedly been enhanced through my participation in activities that I have long been passionate about,” states Ruhi. She unequivocally credits the Academy’s International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum and the residential program for her growth and personal development. “My journey at the Academy was one of the most intense yet fulfilling growth periods of my life. I think it is safe to say that it played a key role in helping me develop the person I am today.”
When asked what her aspirations are for the country of her birth, Ruhi radiates determination. “I want to help redefine the way in which the rest of the world views my country, and more particularly the African continent. I want to be an active agent in ensuring that our stories are no longer told for us but by us.”
She is also determined to promote education in her country. “I want to tackle the issue of the lack of education. I value nothing more than the education I have been so privileged to receive and the many opportunities that have come my way because of it. I wish to help provide the same for as many people as I possibly can in my country of origin and beyond.”
By Perviz Walji
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Children Dare to Dream Big
Video by AFD – Agence Française de Développement about how children at the Aga Khan Academy Maputo "Dare to Dream Big" in their new school facilities. The Aga Khan Academy in Maputo, Mozambique has been growing since it opened its doors in 2013. The second phase extension was completed in early 2018 and included bigger classrooms, extended outdoor play areas, a library, an art room and a science lab.
PYP students back on campus
AKA Maputo's Primary Years Programme students will resume weekly in-person learning from Monday-Friday on Monday, 22 March 2021, and the Middle Years Programme students will continue in-person learning for three days a week. Our Early Years students will continue doing online learning.
Early Years Celebration of Learning
The Early Years programme students will have a Celebration of Learning on Friday, 3 June at the Aga Khan Academy Maputo. KG1 and 2 students will have their ceremony from 11 am-12 pm and KG3 students will have theirs from 1.30-2.30 pm. Additional information will be shared with parents of Early Years students.
Holistic and pluricultural educational approach
The Aga Khan Academy Maputo has been featured in Mozambique's Xonguila magazine. The 11 page spread discussed everything from the Academy's educational approach, the role of media in instruction and importance of community service within the curriculum.
Enrichment programmes
All enrichment programmes held at the Aga Khan Academy Maputo, every Tuesday and Thursday, will end on Friday, 1 December 2023. Pick-up time for the aforementioned days will be at 2:45 pm. Roller skating and robotics lessons will continue until 8 and 11 of December, respectively. For more information, please contact the school secretaries.
The Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa Newsletter - March 2012
Academy Welcome for 2016-17!
The Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad warmly welcomes all students, teachers and staff – new and continuing - to a fresh academic year. We look forward to greeting boarding students and families on 7th August and day students on 8th August for an exciting and enriching year ahead!
2016-17 Academy Junior School Orientation
New parents are invited to attend an orientation & information session from 1:15pm on Saturday, 20th August 2016. An introductory session will be followed by classroom visits and teacher interactions. We hope to see you!
