After we go through an Arabic unit, I find that my kids need more practice to become fluent in reading and writing.
So I came up with an Arabic Practice Center that they can use daily to build their reading and writing speeds, insha Allah, for the words/sentences of each unit/lesson.
Daily Arabic Practice Center Set Up/Details
It contains three parts:
· a reading practice section,
· a writing practice section,
· a meaning/translation section.
I stapled down plastic page protectors in each section and the kids write on the page protectors.
Most of the activities are timed drills, borrowing from our math facts practice success. The kids enjoy being timed to see how quickly they can read and write the words and sentences.
The center is great because when you want the kids to practice, whether inside class time or outside, they can just grab the center and practice on their own or with you watching.
Here’s what I include (as well as ideas that I came up with that I would like to include as they become relevant to what we are studying):
Meaning
These are generally not timed for us
· Matching activity (match the Arabic word to the English word)
· Given the English word, write the Arabic word
· Given an English sentence, write the sentence in Arabic
Reading Section
Timed Drill sheets (but they don’t have to be timed):
· letters, for younger children
· words
· sentences
· paragraph/selection, ayaah, short surah, etc.
Writing
Timed Drill Sheets (but they don’t have to be timed)::
· letters, for younger children
· words
· sentences
· paragraph, ayaah, short surah, etc.
An additional section is a “study sheet” section. I made a little paper tray that students can hold their study sheet on and use if they forget the meanings of some words.
If you are able to, make a separate center for each child. Right now, I only have one due to a short supply of file folders, but it should make things easier if each child can pull out their own center and work at their own pace.
How to Make the Center
1. Take two file folders and place the right side of one over the left side of the other (i.e. overlapping them).
2. Staple or glue the top one to the bottom one. If you staple the bottom of the folders together, this forms a middle section which has a pocket section (in the back). This is where the study sheet tray and sheets can be stored. You should now have three flaps.
3. Customize each section according to your needs. I put little page labels up at the top to show which section is which.
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I store all the practice sheets in the appropriate section in the page protectors.
If you’d like to save a little time, you can use my labels for your different sections and the cover. They are pretty basic, no bells and whistles: Arabic Practice Center Labels
Insha Allah, I will have drill sheets that we have used at the main TJ site’s Arabic department soon.