The Importance of Teaching Arabic to Children – My Language, My Identity

Dear friends, here at Belaraby Apps (بالعربي نتعلم) we explore the importance of teaching Classical Arabic (Fusha) to children — a process that plays a vital role in preserving the Arabic language and the wider Arab and Islamic heritage. Because the child is our first priority and the first building block of a righteous person, we believe the journey must begin with the Arabic language.

The Importance of Teaching Classical Arabic to Children

Language has great importance in our lives, young and old. For a child it is especially important: it is the tool for communication and self-expression, and the first means of gaining knowledge, gathering information, and building experience. Because Arabic is the language of the Quran and one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, it is our duty to raise our little ones to know it and love it.

A teacher’s or parent’s success in teaching a child language greatly helps that child succeed throughout the different stages of education. Language learning begins in the earliest months, tied to learning to speak — when a child learns to say “mama” and “baba.” Children even absorb emotions through others’ language and facial expressions: when a mother says “well done” with a smile, the child stores the phrase as praise and gratitude. In this way the child passes an important milestone by learning their mother tongue, the language of the Dhad (Arabic).

⇐ Read also: Beautiful quotes about the Arabic language — printable backgrounds

Why Do We Learn the Arabic Language?

Arabic is not just a school subject — it is also the means to study every other subject, and the way a child connects to the rituals of their faith: reading and memorizing the Quran, learning acts of worship, and performing rituals such as prayer. To answer the question “why do we learn Arabic?” — we learn it to preserve:

• Identity: to preserve our Arab identity we must learn the language and use it correctly, and accustom our children to using it without other accents creeping in.
• The Holy Quran: Arabic is the language of the Quran. To memorize, read, reflect on, and understand the Quran and the teachings of the faith, we must learn the language and its articulation points — even for non-native speakers — which only adds to its honor.
  
• Communication and dialogue: in our Arab societies, Arabic is the means by which people connect and integrate socially.
• Our mother tongue: the language of the Dhad is the first, native language of everyone in the Arab world. There is no harm in learning other languages, but we must never forget Arabic — my language is my identity.

⇐ Read also: World Arabic Language Day — my Classical Arabic language

Features of the Arabic Language for Children

• The most distinctive feature of the language of the Dhad is that it is the language of the Quran — an honor from God to it and to the Arabs.
• The bond of the language among Arabs and among all Muslims is the noblest of bonds for Arabic speakers, whether they belong to Arabism or to Islam.
• The beauty of Arabic lies in its vocabulary and structures; it is the richest of languages in expressing the human soul.
• Arabic is extremely rich in styles, variety, and eloquence — and here lies its importance and standing. That is why so many scientific, philosophical, literary, and historical works have been translated to and from it.
• The unity of Classical Arabic (Fusha): it has no rival branches or offshoot languages, unlike other languages that splinter into many forms.

⇐ Read also: Wise sayings and quotes about the Arabic language — the most beautiful words said about Fusha

Illustrated Arabic Stories for Children

Read your child the most beautiful illustrated stories about the letters of the Arabic language and the importance of learning Arabic through the Hekayat Belaraby (Arabic Stories) app.

Download the Hekayat Belaraby (Arabic Stories) app here:

The Importance of Nurturing the Mother Tongue in Children — and How to Develop Their Arabic

There is no doubt that learning in childhood is like engraving in stone. So we should raise children from an early age to value language and to understand the importance of Arabic in preserving identity. This can only happen by:

1. Planting love and appreciation of the language in parents before children. A child will not use vocabulary and structures that parents and teachers do not use. It has been observed that a child raised in a family that speaks Fusha becomes familiar with classical sentences and always reaches for them to express themselves — unlike a child whose family speaks only colloquial dialects.
2. Always make your child feel proud of their language — it is a language chosen among languages because it is the language of the Quran.
3. Plant in your child, from an early age, a love of the language, a sense of belonging to it, and a desire to spread it for its lofty standing.
4. Talk to your child about the importance of the Arabic language.
5. From an early age, give your child a share of your attention and time to tell and read stories in Fusha, so their ears grow accustomed to it.
6. Encourage them to read in Arabic from a young age, and motivate and reinforce that — whether through moral or material encouragement.

The Benefits of the Arabic Language in Our Lives

For us Arabs in particular, and Muslims in general, Arabic represents the bond of Islamic unity, because it is the language of the Quran. Learning its language — Arabic — is a basic condition for reciting the Quran, and reciting the Quran is a key part of completing the prayer, one of the five pillars of Islam. Add to that the benefits of learning the language for communication and as a means of learning and research.

World Arabic Language Day

World Arabic Language Day is celebrated every year on December 18, supported and organized in cooperation with UNESCO and the Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Foundation. Each year UNESCO chooses a theme that highlights the role of Arabic in culture, science, and innovation while preserving its rich heritage. Source: UNESCO.

The Importance of the Arabic Language in Islam

Arabic was honored by the revelation of the Quran in it, and it became the foundation for completing the teachings of Islam. Every Muslim — even one who is not of Arab origin — should learn it in order to read the divine Book revealed in the language of the Dhad, and as a condition for completing verbal acts of worship such as prayer.

The Role of School in Preserving the Arabic Language

In a child’s earliest stages of learning, the school plays an important role alongside the family in teaching the language and instilling it correctly, with love, pride, and belonging — through easy, simple, and enjoyable methods of teaching Arabic to children, and simple words to read. The key is to teach Classical Arabic to little ones in a fun way, without difficulty or complexity, by using it generally at all times.

Our Arabic language is a source of pride for every Arab and a source of pride in Arab identity. Much has been said about the beauty of Arabic — not only by Arabs and its speakers, but by many foreign historians and orientalists too.

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