Years 5 and 6 Band Description
The nature of the learners
At this level, learners have established communication and literacy skills in Arabic that enable them to explore aspects of Arabic language and culture as well as topical issues drawn from other key learning areas. They are widening their social networks, experiences and communication repertoires in both Arabic and English and developing some biliteracy capabilities. They participate in collaborative tasks that both recycle and extend language. They are gaining greater independence and becoming more conscious of their peers and social context, and increasingly aware of the world around them.
Arabic language learning and use
Purposeful language use in authentic contexts and shared activities in the classroom develop language skills and enhance communication and understanding. Learning how Arabic is structured reinforces learners’ oracy and literacy. Learners develop their speaking skills by interacting with teachers, peers, family and local Arabic speakers to share their own and enquire about others’ experiences أقرأ قصة قبل النوم؛ وأنتِ هل تقرأين قبل النوم؟, social activities and opinions. They have access to a broader range of vocabulary, and use a growing range of strategies such as effective listening skills to support communication. They write more accurately and fluently for a range of purposes, contexts and audiences. They listen to, view and read Arabic folk tales, fables and films to engage with themes, characters and events, exploring embedded cultural beliefs, values and practices, and use their imagination to create and perform songs, poems, short plays and video clips. They obtain information from a range of sources about social, cultural and communicative aspects of lifestyles in Arabic-speaking communities, and present the information in different formats for particular audiences. Individual and group presentation and performance skills are developed through modelling, rehearsing and resourcing the content of presentations.
Contexts of interaction
Learners use Arabic in the classroom and in their extended social space, such as family, neighbourhood and the community, for a growing range of purposes, for example, exchanging information, expressing ideas and feelings, and responding to experiences. They are able to work more independently, but also enjoy working collaboratively in pairs and in groups. They explore cultural aspects of communication, and use information and communications technologies (ICT) to support and enhance their learning.
Texts and resources
Learners interact with an increasing range of informative, persuasive and imaginative texts about neighbourhoods, places, and Arabic-speaking communities and individuals. They refer to and use more established grammatical and lexical resources to understand and communicate in Arabic. The use of dictionaries is encouraged for accuracy and expansion of language acquisition.
Features of Arabic language use
Learners’ pronunciation, intonation and phrasing are more confident, and they apply appropriate writing conventions, including spelling and punctuation, in a range of print, digital and multimodal texts. They use grammatical structures, such as verb conjugation, suffixes, linguistic elements such as conjunctions and a range of adjectives and adverbs to describe actions and events according to time and place هو كتبَ؛ هي ركضت , share information about life at home and school أمي تطبخ طعاماً لذيذاً؛ أبي يغسل السيارة كل أسبوع, elaborate on ideas and information and express opinions relating to their personal and social worlds. They understand how language use varies when interacting with different people and for different purposes. They explore cross-linguistic and intercultural influences of other languages on Arabic, such as Aramaic, Syriac and Assyrian, and regional languages such as Persian, Kurdish and Turkish.
Level of support
While learners work both independently and collaboratively at this level, ongoing support and feedback are incorporated into task activities such as the production of written texts. Support includes the provision of models, scaffolds, stimulus materials, and resources such as word charts, vocabulary lists and dictionaries.
The role of English
Classroom interactions are increasingly bilingual. Arabic is used primarily for communication, while English and Arabic are used for discussion of linguistic features and cultural practices, and for reflective tasks and explanations. Learners are given opportunities to think about personal and community identity. They explore the relationship between language and culture, and ask questions about cultural values and practices and how these relate to their own sense of identity as Arabic background speakers when interacting in different Arabic- and English-speaking contexts.