Your Guide to Navigating the Coronavirus Lockdown with Kids - Maktabatee

Your Guide to Navigating the Coronavirus Lockdown with Kids

How do we deal with a prolonged “shutdown” of normal activity in light of a pandemic like the Coronavirus? That is a question parents the world over are grappling with right now. With little time to plan or prepare, we are entering uncharted territory. For many of us, access to unlimited online resources that are being widely shared on social media can be overwhelming. For many, the idea of trying to homeschool one or more children while “teleworking” or managing a home is daunting at best.

Here are five ways you can make the most of this time with your kids at home (and naturally, use Arabic along the way):

 

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Five Mistakes Parents Make When Teaching Kids Arabic - Maktabatee

Five Mistakes Parents Make When Teaching Kids Arabic

When it comes to teaching one’s children Arabic, in a non-Arabic speaking country, and in the face of technology and shortened attention spans, there’s not much in the way of “past experience.” Yes, many of our parents had to teach us Arabic too, but for most, it was their dominant language as immigrants to the US or Canada. For second or third generation Arab-Americans, that is not the case. So the challenge is even more daunting but the desire to maintain one’s connection to their heritage, faith, and culture is strong enough to motivate many of us to stick to it. 

We asked ourselves and other parents teaching their kids Arabic about the mistakes they made in their journey and we found several common answers. Here are the top five mistakes parents make when teaching their kids Arabic, and ways to avoid them (if you’re new to this) or fix them (if you’ve already made some). 

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Giveaway: Calling All Arabic Language Teachers! - Maktabatee

Giveaway: Calling All Arabic Language Teachers!

If you are a teacher based in the US and are associated with an Arabic full-time or weekend school program, you can enter the giveaway by completing the application form at http://bit.ly/ArabicTeacherGiveaway.  

We'd love to hear about your experience and any highlights or memorable experiences of your Arabic teaching journey. How did you become an Arabic teacher? What do you love most about your job? What's the most challenging aspect of teaching children Arabic? What resources would you like to have in your classroom to help make teaching Arabic more fun and accessible? 

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Arabic music for kids

How to Boost Arabic Learning by Playing a Tune

Arabic music has always been a part of my life—it was the way my parents entertained us in the car on road trips before iPads and car DVDs became popular, and one way we learned a lot about our religion, culture, and heritage. On our annual summer trip to Jordan, our aunts and great aunts would commonly bust out with a tabla and start a dance party in the kitchen while washing dishes, or even sing together cultural songs in preparation for a wedding or graduation party.

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Wild About Arabic Animal Books - Maktabatee

Wild About Arabic Animal Books

What child doesn’t love caring for a furry pet, visiting the zoo, or watching their favorite animal themed cartoon shows? In fact, if you think about it, so many children’s television characters are animals.  Our children’s love for animals is innate, somehow developing at such an early age, even without any pets around. 

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