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Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya - A Textbook for Intermediate Arabic: Part Two (Paperback, Third Edition) (Al-Kitaab Arabic Language Program)
"Al-Kitaab Part Two "is the third book in the "Al-Kitaab" Arabic Language Program, the bestselling Arabic textbook series. It is intended for use in second-year (or equivalent) Arabic courses, though it can also be utilized in the second half of second semester courses. This book focuses on strengthening reading and writing skills and continuing to grow conversation skills.
This new edition follows the trajectory charted by the popular new third editions -- integration of two spoken varieties, more grammar explanation, more exercises, and more activities that engage learners throughout. Part Two picks up where Part One ends (incorporating chapters 14-20 from Part 1, 2nd ed.) A companion website offers drills, audio and video. The text is highly directed, indicating when drills should be done at home or in class. This new edition includes new authentic reading texts and new real-situation dialogues.
- Four-color design throughout the book with more than 100 illustrations
- Color-coded words and phrases throughout to easily follow the variety or varieties of Arabic you want to learn -- Egyptian, Levantine, or formal Arabic
- Presents the story of Maha and Khalid in formal Arabic and Egyptian, and Nasreen and Tariq in Levantine
- Expanded grammar explanations and activation drills, including discussions about colloquial and formal similarities and differences
- New video dialogues from everyday life in both Egyptian and Levantine to reinforce vocabulary in culturally rich contexts
- Develops reading comprehension skills with new authentic texts
- Reinforces learning through extensive classroom activities and homework exercises that provide constant review
- Includes Arabic--English and English--Arabic glossaries, reference charts, and a grammar index
- A convenient DVD includes audio and video materials for offline study that will play in iTunes (interactive exercises are available through the website only)
- New companion website (access sold separately) -- alkitaabtextbook.com -- features fully integrated interactive, self-correcting exercises, all the audio and video materials, and additional online course management and grading options for teachers
This new edition follows the trajectory charted by the popular new third editions -- integration of two spoken varieties, more grammar explanation, more exercises, and more activities that engage learners throughout. Part Two picks up where Part One ends (incorporating chapters 14-20 from Part 1, 2nd ed.) A companion website offers drills, audio and video. The text is highly directed, indicating when drills should be done at home or in class. This new edition includes new authentic reading texts and new real-situation dialogues.
- Four-color design throughout the book with more than 100 illustrations
- Color-coded words and phrases throughout to easily follow the variety or varieties of Arabic you want to learn -- Egyptian, Levantine, or formal Arabic
- Presents the story of Maha and Khalid in formal Arabic and Egyptian, and Nasreen and Tariq in Levantine
- Expanded grammar explanations and activation drills, including discussions about colloquial and formal similarities and differences
- New video dialogues from everyday life in both Egyptian and Levantine to reinforce vocabulary in culturally rich contexts
- Develops reading comprehension skills with new authentic texts
- Reinforces learning through extensive classroom activities and homework exercises that provide constant review
- Includes Arabic--English and English--Arabic glossaries, reference charts, and a grammar index
- A convenient DVD includes audio and video materials for offline study that will play in iTunes (interactive exercises are available through the website only)
- New companion website (access sold separately) -- alkitaabtextbook.com -- features fully integrated interactive, self-correcting exercises, all the audio and video materials, and additional online course management and grading options for teachers
368 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 27, 2018
I have used this series as a main resource for
studying Arabic and I must admit I have always been surprised by the bad reputation it gets on amazon and generally among learners.
Alif baa and Part 1 are probably quite average books,but they did their job for me, but Part 2 is a great book that presents grammar and especially vocabulary in a very efficient manner that I enjoyed and found very innovative.
Basically, words that were used before are used again against new vocabulary that shares the same root. New vocabulary is then used in sample sentences, which are themselves a good workout for comprehension. Plenty of exercises then reinforce the vocabulary. After that it comes to introduction of culturally relevant vocabulary with explanation, progressively more in Arabic.
The main text ensues and by then, one is usually ready to tackle it even without a teacher. A good teacher, though, makes work with this series much more enjoyable and can fill in the gaps, that necessarily appear. Overall, I would recommend this series.
studying Arabic and I must admit I have always been surprised by the bad reputation it gets on amazon and generally among learners.
Alif baa and Part 1 are probably quite average books,but they did their job for me, but Part 2 is a great book that presents grammar and especially vocabulary in a very efficient manner that I enjoyed and found very innovative.
Basically, words that were used before are used again against new vocabulary that shares the same root. New vocabulary is then used in sample sentences, which are themselves a good workout for comprehension. Plenty of exercises then reinforce the vocabulary. After that it comes to introduction of culturally relevant vocabulary with explanation, progressively more in Arabic.
The main text ensues and by then, one is usually ready to tackle it even without a teacher. A good teacher, though, makes work with this series much more enjoyable and can fill in the gaps, that necessarily appear. Overall, I would recommend this series.
November 14, 2007
One of the best books to learn Arabic from. Of course it's not good enough to allow you to learn it on your own without prior knowledge of the language, but when used together with class, it's great. It has excellent explanations of how to pronounce the various sounds, how to write the letters, and gives various lessons on cultures and the difference between dialects.
FYI...It is Egyptian dialect. If you want to learn Arabic, classical is best. But Egyptian is the second most recognized dialects since most of the Arab movies come from Egypt.
FYI...It is Egyptian dialect. If you want to learn Arabic, classical is best. But Egyptian is the second most recognized dialects since most of the Arab movies come from Egypt.
May 10, 2016
Many students, teachers, and Amazon reviewers are not fans of Al Kitaab, the most widely-used book used (in English speaking countries, at least) for teaching/learning Arabic at an intermediate level.
Initially I, too, was frustrated by its structure and methods--as well as by the fact that the CD menus are entirely in Arabic, and many of the chapter contents as well. I've come to increasingly appreciate this book as a *method* for teaching where each chapter builds on vocabulary and concepts previously discussed. It's very comprehensive and detailed, despite a few inaccuracies (according to native speaking teachers--I can't tell!)
Trying to self-study with it, however, is very difficult, so the big caveat is THIS BOOK SHOULD BE USED IN CONJUCTION WITH A GOOD CLASS AND TEACHER! Given that when learning another language one inevitably comes across linguistic/grammatical concepts that one bridles at for being "illogical", a good teacher can explain these concepts more fully; the grammatical/stylistic explanations, though very detailed, are often confusing, It's also helpful to thoroughly learn (at least study!) the concepts and vocabulary in each chapter before moving on to the next one, since this book is structured very particularly, and the experience is definitely cumulative.
Two negatives of Al-kitab are 1) is the CD which is near-IMPOSSIBLE to use on a Mac or PC! You can't rewind or stop without crashing the player, which is enormously frustrating, because it seems to have good audio and information, but I ended up not listening to much of it because the UI drove me crazy. 2) Many of the readings in each chapter are boring and dated--it really needs an update for more modern learners.
Initially I, too, was frustrated by its structure and methods--as well as by the fact that the CD menus are entirely in Arabic, and many of the chapter contents as well. I've come to increasingly appreciate this book as a *method* for teaching where each chapter builds on vocabulary and concepts previously discussed. It's very comprehensive and detailed, despite a few inaccuracies (according to native speaking teachers--I can't tell!)
Trying to self-study with it, however, is very difficult, so the big caveat is THIS BOOK SHOULD BE USED IN CONJUCTION WITH A GOOD CLASS AND TEACHER! Given that when learning another language one inevitably comes across linguistic/grammatical concepts that one bridles at for being "illogical", a good teacher can explain these concepts more fully; the grammatical/stylistic explanations, though very detailed, are often confusing, It's also helpful to thoroughly learn (at least study!) the concepts and vocabulary in each chapter before moving on to the next one, since this book is structured very particularly, and the experience is definitely cumulative.
Two negatives of Al-kitab are 1) is the CD which is near-IMPOSSIBLE to use on a Mac or PC! You can't rewind or stop without crashing the player, which is enormously frustrating, because it seems to have good audio and information, but I ended up not listening to much of it because the UI drove me crazy. 2) Many of the readings in each chapter are boring and dated--it really needs an update for more modern learners.
May 15, 2016
I used the whole Al-Kitaab series in college when studying Arabic. I have also studied French & am currently studying Japanese. The Al-kitaab series is organized in a manner unlike any other language textbook I have ever used - and not in a good way. Usually textbooks try to introduce words that are related to each other - for example, vocabulary related to grocery shopping & various foods. The Al-kitaab books, instead, will introduce a bunch of seemingly random words. Some are related, most are not. The vocabulary words they introduce in each chapter are from the main reading in each chapter, which, is great, but I was asking questions like, "if this is the word for 'left,' what is the word for 'right'?" I also found the reading sections a bit strange. You need a really good professor in order to really gain a good understanding of the Arabic language with these books. I don't recommend the series, but, they are the most widely used and from everything I've heard, they're the "best" series there is? Which is sad.
July 29, 2013
Not really sure about the rating, to be honest, considering I already know Arabic. It appears to be useful, but ultimately the benefits to be gleaned depend on the willingness of the student.
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July 24, 2015I can't even open to read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews