FIVE SETS of Textbooks to Learn Arabic - Which ONE is BEST?

Bismillah ir rahman ir raheem

asalamualikum warahma tullahi wabaraka tuhu

I really wished to write this review very much. I hope Allah will make it a benefit for all insha-Allah including myself.

 

what i like about all these FIVE SETS of Books is that they all have lessons and then follows up by Exercises.

First Thing: How to study the books by yourself?
Suggestion: I like this very much, people studying on their own. I have very great issue with people who when you advise them to study on their own, they will say something like, "I need someone to teach me right in front of me face to face, teach me by writing on board etc...". I mean you don't leave off learning from people when there are good people giving classes, but when there is none to learn from you just don't sit home and do nothing making such excuse, you can't learn by yourself, you need someone to teach you. what a thing on earth. Leave this excuse behind and get up and get ready to study hard insha-Allah.

To study: Look at how much time you have each day that you can spend to study. Then, look at the book that you want to study. Look at each lessons and decide how many lessons you can finish in a day. After you have decided that, make a start date and end date and be on top of your schedule to finish your work. Do not slack of insha-Allah. Do your best to finish your work by the due date.

Like a friend of mine said to me: keep a break time, you need it. I would say this too. I think one needs a break in the middle of the day if one studies all day.

Writing the Head of the Matter: I truly think writing out what one goes over helps a lot to absorve what one learns. I didn't like to write so much before but now alhamdulillah for the tawpiq of Allah, i write as i study. I just can't leave the writing alone anymore. and i truly believe it benefits one to learn faster so much. Alhamdulillah. I would say, as one goes over - Write out almost the full book as you study insha-Allah. [I don't write any English parts - no English wriitng - whatever in Arabic that's what i write out alhamdulillah]

Now these are some text books out there to learn Arabic and i am sure there are more. Alhamdulillah i have these 5 sets and i have gone over them and seen what's in them. So i would like to share some of my words on each books insha-Allah.

 The First set of books that are world wide known. This set is found online in full with its

3 sets of Text Books 

3 books Grammar Keys

3 books Solution manuals with all answer key to all exercises 

and the Glossary

 along with DVD and Audio lessons found online for download and watch for FREE 

There is teacher teaching version of these books as well. [I don't hve that]

[There is one site that sells all these and lets one download for free download except for teacher teaching version books]

This completes the full set Alhamdulillah. Over the time, i bought everything to complete this set alhamdulillah. Most of my Arabic i learned from this set so far Alhamdulillah due to finishing the full set Alhamdulillah.

The book is great and the 3rd book is a great book with so much grammar in that book in much detail and exercises.

Book one is simple - teaches mostly nouns and its rules, second book on verbs of 3 letters and its rules and book 3 teaches you details of book and 2 and more grammars that you can find in Aljaromiyah. 

By the time you finish book 3, you should be very good with all grammar rules of Aljaromiyah in brief detail at least insha-Allah.

Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya with DVDs: A Textbook for Beginning Arabic

 This set of Text Books has

Four Textbooks

First book - alif baa is to teach only letters and some new words and writing

then from First vol on starts the teaching of Arabic and its grammar

So textbook is from Vol 1 to 3

There is solution manual to first book - alif baa to Vol # 2

There is no solutional manual for last vol. as it is a very advance grammar. I believe they assumed by that time you should be excellent in Arabic Insha-Allah.

The Set also includes DVD for First 3 books and for the last book you have MP3 CD for the Book.

This is the textbook that was taught and is taught in our City College of New York and also at Hunter College and Queens College and other Colleges.

This is a English <> Arabic Book i.e. there is English to Explain Arabic terms and words and Grammar and more. The book is ok.

at the beginning of each lessons you have list of words to memorize then you have exercies to do and then you have some reading and exercies on that.

I have finished almost the full book in College - upto 19 or 18th lessons. Then i finished rest of the book by myself. I bought all four books and solutions for second book to third one.

I finished upto 6th lessons of the second book. I liked book two more than book one. Book two is very advance and you can feel how much works it has .I gave 3 days to finish one lessons and it wasn't enough. i felt like if i wanted to finish each lessons well then i needed about 5 days.

I did not like the method of learning new words from these books. There is no dialog which makes it easy to learn new words. In book two, you have like 4 to 5 pages long new words in each lessons. in DVD they just read words and say a sentence about each. Well there are more reading in book 2, so by doing that you learn words but authors suggests you memorize words before you read which is best otherwise you be flipping pages as they said.

But yea beside that part i like from book 2 - vol 2 to vol 3 as they are advance. book - vol 1 is ok - not so advance but there are so many important grammar taught. you won't feel it unless you go over Madinah books because Madinah book does not touch these grammars until in 3rd and last vol of it. mash-Allah.

Well, there is one thing i realized each author and book has its own method.

Madinah book looked more organized than this book and other books.

For vol 1, you don't need DVD so much, i didn't use it at all almost but from Vol 2 you need it very much.

You can buy these books at amazon.com and also many other sites.

Just each by its name.

Arabic Between Your Hands العربية بين يديك

This book set has Three volumes

and they come with MP3 CD of the full book reading except for some exercies

There is Arabic to Arabic Dictionary comes with this set. 

The Book set also has a teacher teaching version of these books. In the teacher version you have the solution to the Exams in the books and also the exercies and more.

Alhamdulillah all books and dictionary and i hope to buy teachers' version of these books very much as well insha-allah.

Alhamadulillah i was able to finish First Vol. of this set so far. Alhamdulillah. I looked through all sets grammar and i see all grammars will be review for one who finished Madinah Arabic Course in full [upto last and 3rd vol].

The Books are really good and i like the fact that they have dialog to teach new words very much.

You have about 3 dialog in each chapters and after that you have new words list and then you have a lot of exercies for writing and reading.

Vol 1 - teaches only new words without focusing much on Grammar at all, but Vol 2 on you have a lot of grammar coming from Vol 2 - teaching with nice charts mash-Allah.

 i saw these books last year Summar, [2008] and when i saw these books filled with real people picures, i ran off but i did download its ebook version and also mp3 and i tried to listen to the audios - i liked audios but i didn't have time to go over them. But i was hesitant to touch the book because of amount of pictures in them.

Then after reading the reviw of Brother Aboo Imraan, i decided to buy the books, so i bought them at the beginning of this summer [2009] - all 3 vols. alhamdulillah.

The book are sold for so much cheap price at its official site but other store sells for $45 dollars that is double the price. The store in brooklyn didn't lower the price - i didn't complain with good excuse so yea, they still sell for $45 dollars but for online store, i complained good alhamdulillah, they were very kind to check through whole company and lower the price to $34.99 dollars - very good price Alhamdulillah compare to the excuses they have. Alhamdulillah.

These books have Self Exams at the end of each 2 lessons and there is a mid-book exam and end-book exam as well for the vol 1.

for vol 2 - you have - a start-book exam, then exam after every 2 lessons and then mid-book exam and then end-book exam and same goes for vol 3.

So this is something very helpful Alhamdulillah and i like it very much and there is so much reading and writing and exercies from Vol 2 on that you can feel the books are very intensive and advance Alhamdulillah.

So to compare this set with Madinah Arabic Course - In terms of organization in teaching Grammar, Madinah Arabic Course Book wins

and

In terms of teaching new words and giving you speaking ability by teaching you a lot of conversation, this book is best. Really. Alhamdulilllah.

in vol 1 of this set, you have a lot of conversation that they just skip Subject and just tells you the Predicate [in complete sentences], so if you know grammar, you know the rest is hidden and understood and grammar rules are applied that way.

This is FOUR Vol. Set

the book is a translation of a set of book by an author and this book is taught in many country in schools to teach Arabic.

There is said to be a solution to these books but i haven't seen them. I have the four books. These are found online for free PDF download as will.

I finished some parts of vol. 1 and finished vol. 2. and looked through vol. 3 and 4.

The books are really good in teaching you grammar. By vol. 4, they give you so much details of grammar and words construction that you cannot find in Madinah Arabic Course books that i feel very happy i bought these books. Alhamdulillah.

The books are set in this mannar,

they have teach you some grammar rules and its detail in each lessons and then gives you a list of new words and then gives you exercieses and then self test.

I like doing exercieses very so i am very happy. After reading a lot of grammar rules, one need to practice and apply them to get them in the head well. Otherwise, much of the reading may fly off.

After finishing Madinah Arabic Course and also Al-Arabiya Bayna Ya Dayk, if you finish this four sets you will expend your Arabic Grammar Knowledge a Great Deal insha-Allah. I plan to finish these books in near future insha-Allah with finishing the Exercises insha-Allah. I just read the book but no writing out of Exerciese sor doing them. So, i don't feel like i have gone over it yet.

 Exciting Grammar القواعد المشوقة للطلاب

 This is a Text Book set intended for Middle School students of Arabic lands. This is a four vol. set.

I just found them in a onine store and bought them hoping to learn and benefit. alhamdulillah.

First Vol. teaches you Arabic Letters and A LOT of NEW WORDS - mash-Allah and there are little story here and there and exercies.

I read through about half of first book, i like the fact its funny type book but i felt confused to do the exercies. Maybe it was due to my lack of vocab.. Couple of times i felt like selling them back but then when i look into vol 3 and 4, i see so much works, i kept them.

The books starts by being simple and then goes deep and becomes Advance. A lot of grammar are taught by vol. 4 and a lot of reading and exercies Alhamdulillah.

There are cartoon type pictures - what i don't like is that all stuffs have faces, so i had to cover up all funny pictures that i didn't like to look at in  vol 1 and 2, vol . 1 has more pictures than vol. 2.

pictures amount go down by vol 4.

It is a FULL ARABIC BOOK.

It could be a good text book to learn ARabic for the beginner - maybe with a teacher [just sayingit because i found it confusing, not like Al-Arabiyah bayna ya dayk].

I think i will go over this book as the last book insha-Allah.

The Order in which i would suggest for myself and others to go over these FIVE sets of Text book is: 

# 1: Madinah Arabic Course [with its full set and DVD and Audio Lessons]

# 2 : Al-Arabiyah Bayna Ya Dayk [it would be good to have a teacher just to learn the new words meaning OR good dictonary use - as Al-Mawrid or Hans Wahr & use of teachers' version of these books for solutions and answer key]

# 3: Arabic Tutor [for Grammar review and detail learning]

# 4 : Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum Al-Arabiyah [with its DVDs and MP3 and Answer keys - solution manuals]

# 5: The Exciting Grammar [for grammar review and learning of new words]

OR this order

 

# 1: Madinah Arabic Course [with its full set and DVD and Audio Lessons]

# 2 : Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum Al-Arabiyah [with its DVDs and MP3 and Answer keys - solution manuals] This suggestion is only for you to learn GOOD amount of Arabic Words so you do not feel discourage to go over the book all alone by yourself, and then leave off your learning of Arabic by yourself while you have no ne to teach you. insha-Allah.

 

# 3 : Al-Arabiyah Bayna Ya Dayk [it would be good to have a teacher just to learn the new words meaning OR good dictonary use - as Al-Mawrid or Hans Wahr & use of teachers' version of these books for solutions and answer key]

# 4: Arabic Tutor [for Grammar review and detail learning]

# 5: The Exciting Grammar [for grammar review and learning of new words]

Alhamdulillah End of my LONG review. I hope Allah makes it a benefit for many insha-allah.