Arabic Bootcamp

6-Day Study Retreat: Intensive Literary Arabic

Note: We've had to delay this program due to COVID-19. We're currently considering dates.

 Retreat Address: 1999 Ridge Rd, North San Juan, CA 95960
 Contact Kaathlyn Connor at (530) 777 8275, operations@firm-foundation.org
 Arrive: Friday evening, the 15th of May for dinner and orientation
 Depart: Friday morning, the 22th of May after dawn-prayers and breakfast

Have you ever wanted to learn Arabic but don't have years of time to devote to this very difficult task? What if you could spend a week in an intensive bootcamp and walk away having already read your first novel in Arabic?

Sound impossible? Well, it's not going to be a walk in the park. Learning and using a lot of new vocabulary is an essentially painful process. Your head will definitely hurt. But, if done correctly, your pain will exactly match your gain.

Here's the plan. A couple weeks before the course, you will master a set of flashcards which will provide the most common words as well as phrases containing common grammatical constructs.

Then, for ten days, we will spend one hour practicing some core texts privately, then two hours discussing those core texts in a workshop. Then another six hours of immersion read-along of Arabic adventure stories.

The core texts for this course are some of the most amazing tablets of Bahá'u'lláh such as the "Tablet of Ahmad", the short and long healing prayers, the short and long Obligatory prayers etc. Our guest teacher will lead us through those tablets exploring key terminology and highlighting helpful grammatical principles.

Where will this be held?

In the mountains of Northern California, just East of Sacramento, our friends have a beautiful boarding-school facility with a gymnasium and comfortable classrooms. If you are not within driving distance, you can fly into the Sacramento Airport (SMF) or take a train to the Sacramento Amtrak train station. Our community volunteers will pick you up and shuttle you to the school. The school has various accommodation options, so families will usually be able to stay together.

Who should attend? (ages 15-112)

Given the pace and difficulty of material, only adults and youth 15 or older. Minors will need to be accompanied by a parent or a designated guardian. We will not be splitting out into groups so all participants should be mature enough to sustain a solid day of reading together.

What to Bring? (books, light clothes, shampoo)

Every student should bring their tablet or laptop computer. Materials, pencils, notepads, bedding, towels, food etc. are supplied. We have plenty of laundry facilities as well. You may want to bring a swimsuit for occasional outings to the nearby river.

How much? ($150)

We’re working hard to keep costs as low as possible. This program includes seven nights lodging and twenty-three meals - as well as transportation to and from the airport, if you are arriving by plane.

Our costs are reduced because of the generosity of the community and some very dedicated volunteers. If you need any help getting here, just let us know. We’ll do whatever we can to find a way. If you’re driving and have extra room for a ride share, let us know.