HARLEM ACADEMY

Fields competitive cross-country and track teams that train and compete against other independent schools at Van Cortlandt Park, with events including sprints, distance runs, hurdles, shot put, and long jump.

Offers daily physical education for primary students and extended weekly sessions for elementary and middle school students, with seasonal emphasis on tennis, fencing, and soccer.

Provides weekly chess instruction and independent play time for students in kindergarten through fifth grade, supported by ChessKid subscriptions. Offers after-school clubs, a school-wide chess team, and participation in weekend and state-wide tournaments.

Provides over two hours daily of literacy instruction for elementary and middle school students, including independent reading, small group work, library visits, writing, listening, and speaking. The curriculum includes at least one poetry and one Shakespeare unit per middle school grade.

Holds daily morning meetings and closing circles, weekly community meetings, and student-led discussions to reinforce the School Creed, mindfulness, peer connection, and reflection on learning and personal growth.

Holds recurring celebrations of learning, end-of-year commendations, Blazer Ceremony for eighth graders, book donation ceremonies, Dinner & Alumni Homecoming, and public graduation speeches where students reflect on peers’ growth and community contributions.

Delivers a Singapore math curriculum using a concrete-pictorial-abstract approach with manipulatives and visual models, supported by the IXL personalized learning platform. Offers pullout math labs for advanced students, including a full Algebra 1 sequence.

Provides full-time educational programming for students in grades K-8 focused on high academic achievement, character development, and long-term societal impact. The school serves 212 students at full capacity as of the 2025 school year.

Runs a literary magazine club, yearbook club, and Primary Press—a monthly student-created newsletter distributed to families—providing opportunities in writing, editing, photography, graphic design, and journalism.

Hosts annual events including Renaissance Day (celebrating Black History Month), Thanksgiving gatherings, Field Day, and Moving Up Day. Also runs High School Week to simulate high school expectations and leadership trips to Washington, D.C., and the Princeton-Blairstown Center for team-building and civic engagement.

Offers visual arts, theater, music, and dance instruction twice weekly for primary and elementary students and weekly for middle school students through a partnership with Harlem School of the Arts. Middle school students study and perform a different Shakespeare play annually.

Delivers hands-on science instruction using the FOSS curriculum across earth, physical, and life sciences for all grades. Includes in-house developed courses in human biology and applied science, with units in emergency medicine, chemistry, architecture, and sustainability via a hydroponics lab.

Organizes annual fall outdoor learning experiences, multi-day wilderness trips, and partners with sleepaway camps across the Northeast to provide summer enrichment for students.

Disseminates signature programs, practical tools, and published insights to support educators and families in advancing academic excellence and equity in education.

Provides two weekly periods of Spanish instruction using interactive methods to build language proficiency and cultural understanding of Hispanic and Latinx communities.

Engages students in writing annual letters to their future selves, returned at graduation. Conducts graduate and family surveys, in-person interviews with freshmen, and distributes biweekly newsletters to support continuity and partnership across transitions.

Provides a sequential history curriculum with sixth grade focused on world history, seventh grade on American history through 1865, and eighth grade on American history from 1865 to the present.