14 Essential Arabic Lessons (Workbook)

14 Essential Arabic Lessons (Workbook) is a practical, classroom-tested guide designed to help students of every age learn to read and write the Quran correctly and with confidence. Compiled by veteran Quran teacher Said Hassan Dhore, this workbook gathers fourteen carefully sequenced lessons that he selected and refined over more than a decade of teaching. By the grace of Allah, these very lessons have enabled countless students — young children, teenagers, and adults alike — to recite and write the Book of Allah accurately. The result is a method that is proven, accessible, and easy to follow, whether you are starting from the very first Arabic letter or strengthening foundations you already have.

The workbook builds skills step by step, moving the learner gently from the Arabic alphabet and the way each letter changes shape at the beginning, middle, and end of a word, through the short vowels (harakaat), sukoon, tanween, shaddah, and the long vowels (madd) that govern correct Quranic pronunciation. Each lesson pairs clear, uncluttered teaching with generous tracing and writing space and plenty of practice exercises, so that reading and writing are developed together — reinforcing one another the way they were always meant to. This dual focus is what sets the book apart: students do not merely recognize letters, they learn to form them correctly by hand, a skill that deepens retention and supports the recitation of the Quran with proper Tajweed.

Spanning 142 pages in a large, easy-to-use 8.5" × 11" paperback (second edition, February 2025), it is ideal for home, masjid, and weekend and full-time Islamic schools, and works just as well as a ready-made curriculum for teachers as it does for parents and self-learners. It also sits at the heart of a complete learning path from the same author: younger beginners can start with Play with Arabic (Workbook), progress through this book, and then move on to the full course in Your Way to the Quran (Workbook), reinforcing their reading along the way with Beginners Arabic Reading. Once a student can read confidently, they are ready to recite from the Quran itself with titles such as Juz ‘Amma for School Students and Juz Tabarak (Part 29 of the Quran).

About the Author

Said Hassan Dhore is originally from Somalia and resides in Nashville, Tennessee. He memorized the Book of Allah at a young age at the masjid of Sheikh Ali Sufi in Mogadishu, Somalia. After arriving in the United States, he began teaching the Quran at his local masjid and, by the mercy of Allah, guided many students to read and write the Quran with proper Tajweed. He went on to found the Tajweed Center of Tennessee, which he continues to run and operate, where students learn Arabic reading, writing, and Quran memorization alongside discipline and good character. He has also taught Arabic at Valor Collegiate Academy, a preparatory charter school in Nashville. Drawing on these years in the classroom, he has authored several books on reading and writing Arabic with the aim of teaching students the Quran — of which this workbook is one. In addition to his Islamic studies, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Management and Leadership from Trevecca Nazarene University.

May Allah make his work fruitful, bless his teachers and his parents, and reward him with the highest reward; indeed He is able to do all things and has power over everything. Aameen.