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Which Arabic learning option fits your family?

You want your child to learn Arabic. You probably don’t want another daily argument about doing it.

Before we built Kanzy, we tried apps, online tutors, and weekend Arabic schools with our own kids. We also spoke with other families about what worked for them and where they struggled. Here’s how we’d compare the options if we were choosing again.

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Scroll across to compare all four options.

Arabic learning options compared
What matters most?	Apps we tried	Online tutors & academies	Weekend Arabic schools	Kanzy
Will my child want to come back?	Pros Short games are easy to start. Cons Kids need reminders once the novelty wears off.	Pros A teacher your child connects with can make a difference. Cons Parents said their kids dreaded long explanations over video, even with some ‘games’.	Pros Seeing and making friends. Cons Parents said their kids got bored with traditional lessons that don’t match how they learn at school.	Pros Kids build and share their own creations in a virtual world. Cons Kids who enjoy seeing friends in person may prefer a local class.
Will my child understand and speak Arabic?	No conversation Kids hear letters and words, with no practice producing their own sentences.	Varies by teacher Some lessons offer conversation and feedback. Others leave little time for the child to speak.	Varies by class A weekly group lesson can mean few turns to speak or get feedback, especially in a larger class.	Built into every lesson One-on-one lessons center on practice. Kids listen and speak in Arabic as they build and play, with feedback as they go.
Will my child learn to read and write Arabic?	Limited Each app is typically designed for a specific aspect of learning e.g. recognizing letters, reading stories, etc.	Varies by curriculum Some programs teach reading and writing together in a clear sequence. Others leave the sequence up to the teacher.	Varies by curriculum Some schools teach the full alphabet before children start reading words and sentences.	Built into every lesson Kids connect letters and sounds to words from the start and practice reading and writing alongside speaking and listening.
What does it ask of our family?	Try multiple apps then remind kids to use them regularly.	Set aside a regular time for online lessons. Homework varies.	Set aside part of the weekend for class and travel. Drop-off may free up time for you.	Set aside 45 minutes per online lesson. No homework to supervise.
When would we choose it?	Use them to complement a core learning experience.	When your child connects with a teacher who gets them speaking Arabic and follows a clear curriculum designed for online lessons.	When the teaching suits your child and they enjoy the community.	Building their own world gives kids a reason to learn and practice everyday Arabic from day one.

Are Arabic apps enough on their own?

We’d use the apps we tried for practice alongside lessons. They made it easy to spend a few minutes on letters and words. The harder part was keeping that routine going once the games stopped feeling new.

The gap was clearest when it came to speaking. Our kids could recognize a word in an exercise, but the apps gave them no chance to put words together in a sentence of their own or have someone respond. If your goal is for your child to tell you where they left their ball in Arabic, we’d make time for that kind of conversation alongside the app.

When is an online Arabic tutor a good choice?

A teacher your child connects with can make a real difference. We’d also want lessons that build on each other and give your child plenty of time to speak.

When we looked into online tutors and academies, we often saw games advertised. Parents told us their kids still dreaded lessons where they spent most of the call listening to the teacher explain things. We saw the same with our own three kids. A quick game can be fun. Pay attention to how much your child gets to use Arabic during the rest of the lesson.

Give it about a month. By then, you’ll have a better sense of whether your child wants to keep going and whether the lessons build on each other. Can your child use something they learned?

When is weekend Arabic school worth it?

We’d consider it if our child enjoyed the class and looked forward to seeing friends there. Many parents we spoke with said their kids got bored in classes that relied on listening and repetition. It was a shift from the activities and group work they were used to at their regular school. Other families felt that one group class a week gave their child too few turns to speak or get individual feedback, especially in larger classes.

The weekend commitment can go either way. The drive might feel like one more chore, or drop-off might give you a few hours for errands, rest, or time with another child.

Why did we build Kanzy around practice?

We wanted our children to have something they actually wanted to say in Arabic. In a Kanzy lesson, a child might build a room in their virtual world and want to show their teacher what they put in it. Now there’s a reason to learn the words for the things they chose and practice putting those words into sentences.

That’s how the one-on-one lessons work from the start. Children hear everyday Arabic, use it as they build and play, and get help from their teacher when they’re stuck. Reading and writing are part of the same lesson, so children connect what they hear and say with what they see and write.

How do we decide what to stick with?

Start with two questions. Does my child want to come back? What can they do in Arabic now that they couldn’t do a month ago? Look for small signs, like using an Arabic word, reading a short word, or describing something they made. Then choose a routine your family can keep.