Mayna

Description

Mayna teaches standard Arabic to absolute beginners with a step by step approach in order to ease the learning process. The app revolves around five sections: Alphabet, Lessons, Vocabulary, Keyboard and Exercises. Here is a summary of each section:

Alphabet: In the alphabet section, you can read the description of the Arabic letters, hear their pronunciation and drag them to see how they connect and disconnect with each other. Also, flashcard exercises with three different levels are provided.

Lessons: The lessons section gradually introduces the Arabic language concepts, with special attention to grammar. We recommend reading the lessons in their correct sequence without skipping any. For each lesson, the prerequisites are the previous lessons. When relevant, exercises are provided in the lessons to help you get the grasp of the concepts you just learned.
The exercises include writing solar and lunar letters, writing personal and possessive pronouns, sound and weak verbs conjugation, completing sentences, dictation and translation of words and sentences related to the lesson studied or to previous lessons. More exercises and more lessons will be added in future updates.
About vowel signs: in everyday life, vowel signs which are also called diacritical marks are usually omitted in Arabic texts and you have to guess the vowels from the context, which can be confusing for a beginner. In this application, vowel signs are never omitted.

Vocabulary: The Vocabulary section of this app includes all the words used in the lessons and exercises. You can use it if you need to recall a word you previously encountered in a lesson or exercise. Some linguists say that in every language, there is a set of 3000 words which are the most commonly used. If you know those 3000 words, you speak the language. For now, the Vocabulary section contains 2300 words including all the words used in the application and chosen among the most usual words. More usual words will be added in the future. Also, in the Vocabulary section, the present tense conjugation vowel of triliteral verbs is always indicated to facilitate memorization.

Keyboard: The keyboard is a tool you can use to type letters with their vowel signs and make words and sentences. Children and beginners can use it to get familiar with Arabic typing. Parents can also use it to teach Arabic to their children.

Exercises: Finally, the exercises section lists the exercises found throughout the app, all in one place. The app offers alphabet flashcards, conjugation, sentence completion, dictation and translation exercises.