Private schools across Abu Dhabi are rolling out exciting new programs to bring the Arabic language to life for their youngest students. From hiring Emirati educators to creating immersive play-based learning experiences, institutions are gearing up to implement a groundbreaking education policy that requires all kindergartens and nurseries to teach Arabic.

The Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (Adek) announced this transformative initiative on Monday, requiring private schools to dedicate four hours weekly (240 minutes) to Arabic instruction for all early childhood levels - from nursery (pre-KG) through second kindergarten (KG2). The commitment deepens in the 2026-2027 academic year, expanding to five hours (300 minutes) per week.

Educational leaders report enthusiastic preparations underway, with many schools having already introduced foundational Arabic elements like phonics and letter recognition in anticipation of the policy. Parents overwhelmingly support the measure as a crucial step in helping children develop strong Arabic communication skills during their formative years.

Adek emphasizes that this policy ensures every child - whether native speakers or beginners - receives high-quality, consistent language instruction during this critical developmental window. While implementing these requirements presents challenges, especially for non-native speakers, numerous schools have already mapped out implementation plans for the coming academic year.

Innovative Approaches Take Center Stage

The education community has responded with creativity and enthusiasm. K George Mathew of GEMS United Indian School highlighted how their existing multilingual program will complement the new requirements: "As an institution already offering trilingual education including Hindi/Malayalam, English and French, we're excited about adding robust Arabic instruction."

The school plans engaging methodologies like interactive storytelling sessions where children act out traditional Arab folktales; musical activities featuring classic Arabic children's songs; movement-based games incorporating vocabulary building; and immersive play scenarios set in culturally relevant contexts like souks or desert camps.

"We're transforming language learning into an adventure," Mathew explained. "Our teachers are designing modules where students might 'travel' through different Emirates collecting words or solve simple puzzles using basic phrases - making acquisition feel natural rather than academic."

Parental Support Strong For Early Language Start

The initiative has sparked widespread approval among Abu Dhabi's diverse parent community who recognize both cultural value and cognitive benefits of early bilingualism.

"This finally puts proper emphasis on our mother tongue," said Emirati mother Fatima Abdullah while waiting outside her son's preschool. "I'm actually transferring him next year because his current school only offers two short sessions weekly - completely inadequate when we live surrounded by this beautiful language daily."

Expat parents echo this sentiment while acknowledging practical considerations. Rawda Musabah noted: "The school day is already full so I hope they integrate it creatively rather than just adding more hours." She added thoughtfully: "English comes easily later if needed but establishing strong roots here matters most now."