Learn the top five tools for learning Arabic
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| Hella: Hello, everyone. I'm Hella. Welcome to ArabicPod101. |
| Musto: With us, you learn to speak Arabic with fun and effective lessons. |
| Hella: We also provide you with cultural insights... |
| Musto: And tips you won't find in a textbook. |
| Hella: Hello, everyone, and welcome to All About Arabic. |
| Musto: In this lesson you will learn about the top five useful tools for learning Arabic. |
| Hella: Well, guys, the first tool will enable you to type in Arabic even if you don't have an Arabic keyboard. |
| Musto: With the second very important tool, you'll be able to practice Arabic reading. Moving on to our third tool, you will be able to listen to Arabic radio. |
| Hella: Which means practice Arabic listening. Don't worry, it's also done in a very cool way. We will talk about it in a few minutes. |
| Musto: By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to translate words and sites online. |
| Hella: How cool is that? It couldn't get easier than this. |
| Musto: I agree! I wish I knew that earlier. By the end of this lesson, you'll be watching Arabic news online and reading the transcript. |
| Hella: Let's cut to the chase. We'll give you top five tools for learning Arabic and then explain these in more detail, let you know how to use these tools, and also explain in what situations you can use them. Now, the top five tools for learning Arabic are: Tool Number 1, the virtual Arabic keyboard. |
| Musto: Tool Number 2, Arabic reading with translation. |
| Hella: Tool Number 3, Arabic radio and podcasts. |
| Musto: Tool Number 4, translation websites for words and more. |
| Hella: Tool Number 5, Arabic videos and news channels with the conversation scripts. So, Musto, what do you think about these tools? |
| Musto: They are pretty useful. I have used most of them myself. It's very important able to translate Arabic words or even websites. |
| Hella: I use these tools all the time myself, but I am lucky to have Arabic keyboard helping me with that. |
| Musto: Now that you mention it, my second biggest problem was not having an Arabic keyboard, which stopped me from really practising writing and getting the words translated, especially if it was typed in a book or something or if I need to translate it online. So the online Arabic keyboard has proven to be such a great help. |
| Hella: using the Arabic keyboard will enable you to write with the Arabic alphabet using short and long vowels without having to install any language files or support programs. |
| Musto: Yes. I didn't have Arabic enabled on my computer, but it didn't make any difference. That was the beauty of it. |
| Hella: While trying to write or translate, it's a good idea to have something to listen to. |
| Musto: Yes. Getting your ears used to the language is always a great idea. The radio channels online provide that, and the best thing about it, it can use Standard Arabic or any of the dialects, depending on the channel you're listening to. Also listening to the beautiful Arabic songs really helps. |
| Hella: Yes. You can have fun while learning. That's the whole idea. |
| Musto: You also mentioned something else related to the news channels. |
| Hella: Yes. Not only will you listen to the programs discussing current issues, but you will be able to read the entire scripts as you hear it. |
| Musto: Now that sounds great for sure. I wish I had known about that before. |
| Hella: You do now. It's never too late. Many of my friends love it. It helps with your focus and understanding, plus any word you don't know, just look it up. |
| Musto: I agree, Hella. Let's take a closer look into these tools. We know that may not be easy, as a lot of people don't have Arabic scripts enabled on their computers. |
| Hella: So, here is the first site, www.arabic-keyboard.org. |
| Musto: Here is the second one, www.muftah-alhuruf.com. |
| Hella: The virtual Arabic keyboard tool is very important. It gives you the option to write Arabic script on your computer even if you don't have the font installed or enabled. Have you tried this tool before? |
| Musto: Oh yes! Plenty of times. My operating system didn't always support Arabic script, so it proved to be very good. |
| Hella: Did you have to pay for it? |
| Musto: No, it's all free and there are several websites that offer it. |
| Hella: Also, anyone can use it, from beginners to advanced learners of Arabic. It's most useful for students really since this might be new to them. |
| Musto: Great. What about our second tool? |
| Hella: Here you will be able to do some Arabic reading with the text translated. |
| Musto: Where can I find it? It sounds really good. |
| Hella: There are few websites that offer Arabic reading with translation at the moment. This is most useful for you since it helps you build your reading and vocabulary at the same time. There is usually a mini-dictionary there as well for some of the words. |
| Musto: That sounds like high-level. |
| Hella: Yes, at least an upper-intermediate can use it, since it deals with media topics and the vocabulary used in it are not an easy level. Mostly college students or people work in media or even politics can benefit from it a great deal. |
| Musto: I find it very helpful for my friends as well. Sometimes these kinds of texts are very important to find. |
| Hella: Here it is, www.news.meeden.net and meeden is spelled with double ‘e’. |
| Musto: Brilliant, but what about the third tool, Hella? |
| Hella: That would be the Arabic radio stations. |
| Musto: Good choice! This is one language you can't really master until you have heard and understood it on the radio. |
| Hella: The idea here is that instead of hearing everything in bits and pieces, you get the full picture of how the language works. The expressions and the different accents, even if it's Standard Arabic. |
| Musto: I always listen to it. Between the news, the songs, and some programs, it does help improve your fluency as well. |
| Hella: How so? |
| Musto: Well, at some point, you start using what you hear and asking for words you don't recognize. It also gives a real insight into the language. |
| Hella: Yes. That is true. The good news is anyone can listen to it. There will always be a little you understand. |
| Musto: That's true. So let's move on to number four. |
| Hella: That would be translating websites, words, and more. |
| Musto: Well, this one explains itself, really. |
| Hella: And it's a must, since many important websites you may need to use or just want to browse are only provided in Arabic. Plus, when reading or listening to Arabic, it's always good to have a handy translator. |
| Musto: It was, and still is, my best friend online. |
| Hella: It can be used by everyone. You need for it never dies, no matter how good you are. |
| Musto: That goes without argument. |
| Hella: Finally, the last tool. |
| Musto: I know that one. Watching Arabic videos or news and programs with the transcript. |
| Hella: Good job, Musto {?}. Yes. This one is my most favorite as well since it merges everything. You listen, watch, and read. If you need to translate, that is easy. |
| Musto: It's a great tool for learning Arabic. |
| Hella: More like to rapidly improve it and also to test how good you really are with it. |
| Musto: That sounds like a high level to me as well. |
| Hella: Yes. Students should find this very interesting. People that are doing any kind of study regarding the Arabic region and the Middle East will see this as a gold mine. |
| Musto: Well, it's a thing you find a lot. |
| Hella: Exactly. So it's very important not to rush into it. Otherwise, things will seem to be too much for you. |
| Musto: Got it. Well, those are the top five tools for learning Arabic. |
| Hella: If you have some other resources you would like to share, you can always stop by ArabicPod101.com and share it with the community. |
| Musto: Thanks for listening! |
| Hella: شكرا everyone. مع السّلامة ! |
| Hella: Before we go, we want to tell you about a way to improve pronunciation drastically. |
| Musto: The voice-recording tool! |
| Hella: Yes. The voice-recording tool. |
| Musto: Record your voice with the click of a button. |
| Hella: And then play it back just as easily. |
| Musto: Record and listen, then... |
| Hella: Compare it to the native speakers... |
| Musto: And adjust your pronunciation. |
| Hella: This will help you improve your pronunciation fast. |
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