Nanour
For heritage & dialect-speaking parents

You speak Arabic but can't read it โ€” here's how to still support your child

2 min read

Millions of parents across the UK, France, the US, and beyond grew up in Arabic-speaking homes but were educated entirely in another language. They can follow a conversation, understand their parents on the phone, and maybe speak some Arabic themselves โ€” but reading and writing? That's a different story.

If this is you, you might feel a quiet guilt about it. The truth is: the fact that you're choosing to give your child structured Arabic education already puts you ahead of where you were. You don't need to read Arabic to be an excellent Arabic-learning parent.

What you can offer that no tutor can

  • The language of emotion. Dialect is the Arabic of lullabies, family nicknames, and kitchen conversations. That connection is priceless and yours alone to give
  • Cultural context. You can explain why something matters โ€” why a word or a story resonates โ€” in a way that a tutor from a different region never could
  • Validation. When your child hears you say "that's real Arabic, I understand that" โ€” it means everything

Practical ways to support learning at home

  • After each lesson, ask your child to teach you one new word โ€” it consolidates their learning and involves you without requiring you to know the answers
  • Use the words and phrases you do know, naturally and often, even if they're dialect. Exposure is exposure
  • Play Arabic music, watch Arabic TV, put on Arabic cartoons. You don't need to explain the MSA โ€” the atmosphere does the work
  • Tell stories from your own childhood in Arabic (or in your dialect, even mixed) โ€” children are sponges for narrative
  • Read your child's Nanour materials alongside them. You may surprise yourself โ€” MSA is closer to what you know than you think
"I can't help with Arabic homework" is almost never true. You can listen, you can encourage, and you can share the language you do have. That's enough โ€” and it's more than enough.

Ready to start learning?

Book a free trial โ€” see how Nanour involves parents.

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