Games for Teaching Arabic Alphabets

Students can learn Arabic alphabet recognition through play.

Passive learning through play is a tried-and-true educational method. Bingo and flashcards can help teach Arabic alphabet recognition, while other games can help with individual letter pronunciation. By creating game cards with Arabic letters, students learn to write, as well as to read, the Arabic alphabet.

Arabic Alphabet Bingo

Playing Arabic bingo helps teach students the Arabic alphabet.

Arabic alphabet bingo is a fun game that helps students learn Arabic letters. Yemen Links offers 10 different Arabic bingo cards, along with a master alphabet card and markers to cover letters that have been called. You can also make your own bingo game by printing two copies of all of the letters of the Arabic alphabet. Cut out each letter on one of the copies for the letters to pick and call out during the game. Make your own bingo cards for each player by making up different combinations of the letters in a grid, preferably made on card stock or a laminated paper for longevity. Use items like pennies or rocks for markers during play. By playing letter recognition games such as bingo, students passively learn the Arabic alphabet.

Alphabet Train Game

A train puzzle with lettered cars is a fun way to learn the Arabic alphabet.

Print the Alphabet Train Game pieces from Yemen Links' website and cut out the individual train cars. Color the cars with crayons if you want to cut the costs of printing them out in color. Write the student's name in Arabic in the empty last cars on the template. Play the game by spreading the pieces out in random order, then line the train cars up in the order of the alphabet (the train is facing right, so that the letters line up from right to left). You can also make your own alphabet train by drawing a template for the train engine and then different train cars, each with an Arabic letter on it; print and cut out the templates, coloring them and playing the game as described.

Arabic Alphabet Fishing Game

Fishing for letters is a fun way to learn about the Arabic alphabet.

Make a fishing game by making game pieces of one Arabic letter per piece of card stock, with a metal paper clip attached by tape to the back of each. All of the letters are placed in a bucket and the students fish for different letters with a fishing pole. Make the pole by using a wooden dowel or stick with string tied to one end, and a magnet attached to the other end. Fish for the letters in the bucket and say the letter aloud when it is reeled in. Yemen Links has templates of the letters you can print out for this game if you prefer them to handmade letters. The templates may be preferable as the letters are uniform, which could reduce confusion due to handwriting.

Arabic Alphabet Flashcards and Memory Game

Flashcards in Arabic help students remember pronunciations of letters.

Flashcards are a traditional learning tool that can be utilized in the study of the Arabic alphabet. Download the flashcards at Quizlet, cut and fold each card in half so the letter is on one side of the card; the word for the letter is on the other side of the card. Yemen Links also has templates of Arabic alphabet flashcards or you can make your own. Stanford University has an Arabic alphabet chart for reference if you choose to make your own. Flashcards can be used competitively, seeing which student can identify the most letters; they can also be used to play a memory game, where the cards are placed face down and turned over in pairs by each player, seeing who has the best memory.

References

• Yemen Links: Arabic Alphabet Bingo
• Yemen Links: Arabic Alphabet Train Game
• Yemen Links: Lost Letters Game

Resources

• Quizlet: Flashcards Arabic Alphabet
• Yemen Links: Flashcards
• Arabic Rescue: Letters
• Stanford University: Arabic Alphabet Chart