ARABIC I Mrs. Fadia Hamid Room # 302 - CFHS Tel: 247-5500 ext. 4458 Email: fadia.hamid@chagrinschools.org COURSE MATERIALS: Alif Baa, an Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds, Third Edition, by Brustad, Al-Batal, and Al-Tonsi. Comes with a DVD. To be purchased ASAP - $55.00 Al-Kitaab fii Ta alum al- Arabiyya, Part I, Third Edition. Comes with a DVD and has an online companion. You will not need to purchase this book. Three ring binder with dividers. OBJECTIVES: In this course, you will acquire and develop skills for speaking, listening, reading and writing Arabic. You will also explore the cultures of the Arab World through readings, music, videos, current events, etc. By the end of the first semester you should be able to read and write in MSA (Modern Standard Arabic) and comprehend simple audio, video, or written text on familiar topics in both MSA and Egyptian colloquial. You should also be able to initiate and sustain a very basic conversation in Arabic on topics such as greetings, personal information, family, leisure activities, and some likes and dislikes, following culturally appropriate etiquette. REQUIREMENTS Attendance: is very important in this class because this is when you will practice your Arabic speaking and listening skills. Daftar: you must maintain an Arabic notebook or binder where you keep all your class notes and homework. We will discuss the guidelines for organizing it in class. You must bring it to class everyday and I will check it periodically for a grade on organization and completeness. Homework: due at the beginning of class. Late homework will be checked but not credited. For unexpected absences, you have one day for each day you were absent (with a maximum of one school week) to make up any missed work. For planned absences (going on a trip, etc.) assignments are due upon your return to class. The DVD that comes with your book is a valuable tool so make sure you use it. Please use a pencil for all writing in Arabic. This will make it much easier for you to erase any errors and your paper will be neater. ALWAYS skip a line to allow enough space for corrections or comments. All written assignments must be kept in your “daftar” unless otherwise instructed. Participation: this is critical for your learning. You must make every attempt to speak Arabic in class. Remember that you are working on developing your Arabic language skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) which can only happen through practice. Your active involvement in class will pay you high dividends. Extra credit: as stated in the school handbook, this is an extension of the academic curriculum. Extra credit points will not exceed 5% of your total points for the quarter. Opportunities for extra credit will be discussed in class. Academic Integrity: the school rule for academic integrity applies to all work completed for this course. Behavior: you are expected to show respect to your classmates and me at all times. Please note that the CFHS language department does not accept student work from translation websites ASSESSMENT/GRADING: Grades will be earned by fully participating in class activities, thoroughly completing class work and homework, and coming to class prepared to ask and answer questions and engage in discussions on the topics being studied. In addition, you will be evaluated on dictations, quizzes, and projects. At the end of each unit, in lieu of traditional tests, you will be evaluated based on your performance in the three modes of communication: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. We will discuss this in class in more details. If you need any help come see me or email me. I look forward to a successful year with you! Grading Scale Grade Regular 92-100 A 4.0 90-91 A- 3.7 88-89 B+ 3.3 82-87 B 3.0 80-81 B- 2.7 78-79 C+ 2.3 72-77 C 2.0 70-71 C- 1.7 68-69 D+ 1.3 60-67 D 1.0 0-59 F 0