The night before Eid is exciting! Different families have their own special way of preparing. Everyone is eager to have everything ready in time for their joyous celebrations. This ranges from clothes prep to making special food to decorating homes and businesses.

Watch ليلة العيد to share the experience with this family. Listen carefully to the words they use in describing their tasks and what they love about the festivities of Eid. What foods do they enjoy and what are your special Eid dishes? What phrase do they use to greet one another? Does it differ to how you greet your family and friends?

Eid Mubarak from the team at Arabic Workshop! Wishing you a fun-filled day with plenty of ‘eediyyah, no matter your age!

CEFR and ACTFL

This unit matches the reference points for CEFR Basic User A2 and ACTFL Novice High for Listening.

There are a number of things to consider when booking an airline ticket.

Ticket prices can vary depending on when you are travelling. The young lady in this story soon finds out there are also significant differences between Business and Economy Class, relating to more than just the price!

In this unit, you will hear conversation on these things and more, including one-way tickets and flight baggage allowances. Listen carefully to pick out any new words so you can use them on your travels.

CEFR and ACTFL

This unit matches the reference points for CEFR Basic User A2 and ACTFL Novice High for Listening.

There are many things in life which are fun and rewarding but can also present a challenge. Mountaineering is one of those things!
Here we have two friends treading a long and difficult path, but does it bring them happiness at the end?

In this unit you will hear new vocabulary related to the task of climbing a mountain. You will also learn how the boys described and pointed to things along their journey.

See how many words you recognise from before and think about the new words you can add to your growing Arabic vocabulary.

CEFR and ACTFL

This unit matches the reference points for CEFR Basic User A1 and ACTFL Novice Low for Listening.

You might wonder what the connection is between telling stories and learning Arabic. Children and adults recall details from stories effortlessly. Whether it’s lines from a well-known fairytale classic or bedtime readings of the much-loved Gruffalo, the benefits of storytelling apply to anything we want to retain. 

 

The powerful context of an engaging story strengthens learning and language acquisition. A learner’s memory, comprehension and vocabulary all benefit because stories entertain us, allowing us to learn language without realising. A truthful narrative will tap into our emotions. This puts us at ease and creates a personal connection with the scenario presented. It also provides us with a quick and relaxing way to process something new and challenging, like the Arabic language!

 

Stories expose us to a greater vocabulary. The repetition of words makes them easier to remember. Providing context, we automatically learn how these words come together. We can then construct sentences without focusing on complicated grammar rules. 

 

Stephen Krashen, Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern California, describes how good methods are based on interesting stories where the learner gets so interested in the story that they forget it’s in another language.

 

With this in mind, we deliberately developed a story-based video library of Arabic content. We want learners of Arabic to stay motivated and thrive in their quest to learn and attain fluency in the language. We also want them to enjoy it as much as we do!

Featured Image: Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash