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Open House at the Arabic Language Center

From December 02, 2022 until December 18, 2022Free attendance with prior registration for each of the activities.
MADRID
Casa Árabe Headquarters (c/ Alcalá, 62). Free attendance with prior registration for each of the activities. From 10:00 to 14:00 hours.
In Spanish and Arabic.

To celebrate International Arabic Language Day, on December 18 Casa Árabe is opening up its Arabic Language Center (CLA) to children, with a series of workshops and storytelling to introduce the alphabet, writing and Arabic calligraphy in a simple and fun way, by age. Sign up to participate!

Arabic calligraphy, declared Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2021, will be the focus of many of the activities that Casa Árabe is holding on this day, and this time around it will be aimed at children, so that they can learn to familiarize themselves with Arabic calligraphy and the use of the calligraphy pen.

The open house will begin at 10:00 a.m. Families will get to learn more about the classes, method and facilities at the Center, with the help of the head of the Arabic Language Center, Saidi Chermiti, and the center’s teachers, and then participate in the storytelling and calligraphy workshops, adapted by age.

No previous knowledge of Arabic is required for any of the activities. Places are limited and assigned on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Parents and family members over the age of 12 can register for the Thuluth calligraphy course that will be given on the weekend of December 16-18.

Program
10:00 a.m. CLA Open House
Introduction and visit to the Arabic Language Center facilities- for families.
Free entry, no registration required.

10:30 a.m. Storytelling "El día que Saída llegó " ("The day Saida arrived") (from 3 to 7 years old)
Storytelling in Arabic and Spanish - for younger and older children- inspired by the book "El día que Saída llegó" (Takatuka, 2012), written by Susana Gómez Redondo and illustrated by Sonja Wimmer. By Saida Chermiti, head of the CLA, and Nadia Jallad, a CLA teacher.

11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The alphabet and my name in Arabic (for the youngest kids)
Introduction to the Arabic language and alphabet, as well as some first words, expressions and greetings in Arabic. Students will learn how to introduce themselves and write their name in Arabic. As a souvenir they will be given their name written in Arabic. Taught by Saida Chermiti, head of the CLA, and Nadia Jallad, a CLA teacher.

10:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Arabic calligraphy: how to start using the calligraphy pen (from 8 to 12 years old)
Introductory workshop to Arabic calligraphy and writing with ink and pen. It will begin with a preliminary introduction to al-khaṭṭ-al-arabi (the Arabic line) and the calamus, to then become familiar with the tools and correct way of writing, learning how to write easy letters (Alif, Ba, Sa, Ra... ) and helping each child to get started and write them with the calligraphy pen. It includes the materials to perform the exercises (soft paper and calligraphy pen), which can also be brought from home if you wish. Taught by calligrapher Mohammad Sadeq Ale Isaac.
ABOUT THE TEACHERS

Saida Chermiti Chermiti
With a bachelor’s degree in Arabic Language and Literature from the School of Philology and Human Sciences at the University of the Center (Sousse, Tunisia, 1999) and a Master’s degree in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language (E/LE) from the University of Alcalá de Henares (2005), Saida Chermiti is the head of the Arabic Language Center (CLA) and has been the creator, promoter and coordinator of the Arabic language course for children since its launch in 2014. Her professional career has focused on teaching Arabic as a foreign language to both individuals and professionals from companies in various sectors. She has also worked as an Arabic-Spanish translator for large Spanish companies with projects in the region and on various publications, including the full translation from Spanish to Arabic of the book Hispanic Pilgrims to Mecca (Spanish Geographical Society, 2018).

Nadia Jallad
With a degree in Management and Business Administration from the European University of Damascus, Nadia Jallad has worked in Syria as a project manager at various international oil companies and as a teacher and trainer of adults and children at the United Nations Children's Agency (UNICEF). Since her arrival in Spain in 2011, she has been trained in teaching foreign languages, specializing in teaching Arabic for business. As a result, she has taught courses in Levantine dialect and Standard Arabic at several academies and the NGO Asilim (Association for the Linguistic Integration of Immigrants in Madrid), whose Board of Directors she has been a member of since 2012 and where she is responsible for Arabic teaching programs. Since 2015, she has been teaching Arabic, children's classes and Levantine dialect at Casa Árabe's Language Center and is fully devoted to teaching Arabic as a foreign language and translation.

Mohammad Sadeq Ale Isaac
Sadeq has a PhD in aeronautics and works for a drone company, Wake. Alongside his engineering studies, he has been practicing Persian, Turkish and Arabic calligraphy for 16 years. He earned his high professionalism certificate and teaching certificate of Nasq'taliq and Thuluth calligraphy in 2013 and since then he has been contributing in various areas to the invention of new geometrical methods of Thuluth calligraphy.