Family Guide — Session 35: Numbers 11 to 20

A one-page guide for parents, after-school caregivers, or co-teachers. Plain English. No teaching experience required.

What we learned today

Your child can now count past ten in Arabic. Today we focused on 11 through 15, plus the big milestone number 20:

These are the Levantine (everyday spoken) forms — the way your child would hear them on a street in Beirut, Amman, or Damascus.

Why this matters

Numbers 1–10 are a milestone. Numbers 11–20 are where Arabic counting becomes useful. Now your child can say their age (most of them!), count the stairs to the apartment, count cousins at a family gathering, or tell you how many minutes until dinner. The "-ta'ash" ending is the magic pattern — once they hear it a few times, the rest of the teens click into place on their own.

What to do this evening (3 minutes total)

You don't need flashcards. Just do these three tiny things:

1. Ask their age in Arabic.

"كَم عُمرَك؟" (Kam 'umrak? = How old are you?)

If they're 11, the answer is ih-da-'ash. If they're 8, they already know it from last session. Either way — they answer in Arabic.

2. Count something together.

Stairs. Grapes on a plate. Books on the shelf. Go past ten if you can. Even if you only get to ithna'ash before someone gives up — that's a win.

3. At bedtime, ask:

"كَم ساعة؟" (Kam saa'a? = What time is it?)

Let them try to say the hour in Arabic. Don't worry about perfection.

What to do this week

Pick one of these:

• Number hunt. Find numbers 11–20 around the house (clocks, microwaves, license plates) and say them in Arabic when you see them.
• Count cousins / classmates / siblings. At the next family or friend gathering, your child is the official counter. In Arabic.
• "How many?" game at dinner. Kam habbet zaytoun? (How many olives?) Kam ti'a? (How many slices?) They answer in Arabic.
• Phone-number practice. Have them say their phone number digit by digit in Arabic. It's harder than it sounds — and incredibly useful.

If you don't know Arabic yourself

You don't need to. Numbers are one of the easiest things to practice alongside your child because you already know what the answer should be — you're just learning the sound.

• Count out loud with them. Stairs, steps, jumping jacks. You'll learn the numbers by repetition, same as they will.
• Let them be the expert. Ask them, "Wait, what's fourteen again?" Kids LOVE correcting parents. Use that.
• The "-ta'ash" ending is your friend. Once you hear it, you'll recognize it in every teen number. That's already half the job.

If you're a heritage Arabic speaker

• Heads up: we're teaching Levantine forms. If your family speaks Egyptian, Gulf, or Moroccan Arabic, the numbers sound a bit different (hidashar, itnashar, etc.). Don't "correct" your child to your dialect — instead, say: "In our family we say it like this, and in Lebanon they say it like that." Both are right.
• Push past 20 if they're ready. Some heritage kids already know 1–10 cold. Try 30, 40, 50 (thalatheen, arba'een, khamseen) as a bonus.
• Watch the written numerals. Even fluent-speaking heritage kids often can't read Arabic-Indic digits (١٢٣٤٥). Point them out on packaging and clocks this week.

What's coming next session

Session 36: Numbers 16 to 20 + Review (الأَرقام مِن سِتطَعَش لِعِشرين) — We'll finish the teens (sitta'sh, saba'ta'sh, thamanta'sh, tisa'ta'sh) and play counting games to lock in all of 1–20.

Materials needed: nothing new. Just bring this folder.

Questions or struggles?

Email: dabagh_safaa@smc.edu Or visit: https://learnwithoutwalls.com

Yalla Arabic · Family Guide · Session 35