Levantine: Arabic in Real Life Program
Our Levantine Arabic in Real Life program focuses on teaching Ammiyya / the Jordanian spoken dialect. Learning the dialect is essential for students to their interaction and communication. Students at AlBaher Arabic Language Center can study this course anytime during the year on a monthly basis, or they can join our Summer Intensive Course which lasts for 8 weeks through which they can learn both the Arabic in Real Life / Jordanian Ammiyya and MSA and which will take place at AlBaher Institute in Amman, Jordan.
Out of our concern of helping our students in all levels to be more immersed in the society and to have a clear vision about the country, it has been our pleasure at AlBaher Institute to always discuss, receive and respond to our students` various inquiries regarding the Jordanian culture, customs, history, and traditions and to discuss with them the differences between the Middle Eastern and the Western cultures.
This program is suitable for students who start at the Absolute Beginner level with no previous knowledge of Arabic, or for students at the Intermediate level who have previously studied Fusha Arabic (MSA) and would like to switch to learn the Ammiyya or the Jordanian spoken dialect, and for students at this level our main focus is on the speaking and the listening skills.
For students at the Absolute Beginner level who join this program, they study our own book (Yalla Nadros Arabi) which has been designed carefully for this level using the Jordanian dialect. It is considered as a survival course (90-100) hours in which we aim at meeting the students` needs. In this book, students focus on common greetings, everyday vocabulary words and expressions that help them to get acquainted, and to be able to express themselves and to interact with the locals in different daily situations.
They also learn the basic word structure that includes various grammatical drills to help them speak correctly. This book is accompanied by audio and video through which we introduce our students to different scenarios, listening comprehension dialogues and many more drills that enhance their exposure to the language.
After covering all the topics in the textbook, our students reach the confident level of using oral Arabic so we move them to the Novice level. As Novice students, they start learning the Arabic alphabets and some basic rules of Arabic writing, they will be able to recognize long and short vowel sounds and pronounce them correctly.
In this level the students study the (Alef Baa) book in addition to many different extra writing exercises and separate alphabet charts that we prepare as more reinforcement to the students. Such exercises include asking the students to write their own journals and read them in class while the other students listen, and they are encouraged to spot out any mistakes their classmates may have and to try to check them, the thing that helps them to improve both their oral and comprehension skills.
By completing the textbook (Yalla Nadros Arabi) and the (Alef Baa) book, students are able to speak, read and write in Arabic, so we move them to the Pre-Intermediate level. At this point, we work on improving their fluency, listening, reading and writing skills. At this level they study from the (ARABIYYAT AL-NAAS / Part One Book).
This book has been picked by our team for the fact that it is a comprehensive Arabic-as a foreign language- program. It integrates MSA or Fusha with the Levantine dialect with special focus on the Jordanian dialect in a way that reflects the use of language by native speakers. This book consists of 21 units, two glossaries, a grammar index, video clips, and a companion website. It is also accompanied by a DVD which includes audio materials.
The first two units review with our students all what they covered in the previous books (Yalla Nadros Arabi and Alef Baa) so it is an excellent starting point with a new book for a new phase as well, and then units 3 to 21 build on these two units through the introduction of carefully designed videos, reading materials and activities with the goal of developing the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.
Culture is also an integral part of this book, in addition to the notes on Arab geography and descriptions of some Arab cities, culture is reflected in Emily (the main character of the video clips) and her dealings with Arab speakers of different ages and backgrounds through her personal experiences with airport officials, hotel employees, restaurant waiters, taxi drivers, a roommate and her family and Arab friends.
The material of this book is designed to be covered in about (90 – 100) classroom instruction hours. Students at this level are encouraged to speak and to interact a lot in the class with their classmates and to help them to achieve this goal we create different scenarios and supervise the students` performance as they role-play them during the sessions
Arabic in Real Life Program at AlBaher is divided into two levels: the Beginner and the Pre-Intermediate Levels.
| Level | CEFR | Learning Goals |
| Beginner | *Start: 0 *End: Speaking and Listening Comprehension: (A2) Reading and Writing Comprehension: (A1+) | 1- Describe and give basic information about themselves (address, telephone number, nationality, family, hobbies etc…) Ask and answer basic questions. 2- Communicate using simple word, phrases and gestures, and have basic understand of the Arab culture. 3- Read and understand familiar words, phrases, and sentences. 4- Write about current program related topics using simple language. |
| Pre-Intermediate | *Start: Speaking and Listening Comprehension: (A2) Reading and Writing Comprehension: (A1+) *End: Speaking and Listening Comprehension: (B2) Reading and Writing Comprehension: (A2) | 1- Communicate in day-to-today situations in simple sentences by applying different tenses using the spoken dialect. 2- Understand, describe and talk in details about various topics (experiences, feelings, reactions, opinions etc.) 3- Read and understand short and simple texts or messages from friends, and most important info in advertisements containing familiar vocabulary words. 4- Write comprehensible texts on familiar topics describing experiences, events, feelings and reactions. |
Notes:
1- Students can choose the course that best fits their level, learning requirements and goals.
2- AlBaher offers skill assessment for the students through placement tests and interviews upon arrival to ensure the accuracy of their program selection.
3- Our group classes do not exceed 6 students.
Tuition Fees: USD $800
This course is available all year.
Checkout our Course Dates & Tuition Fees