مُرَاجَعَة ١: صُورَة شَخْصِيَّة مُتَّصِلَةUnit I Assessment: A Connected Personal Profile
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Present a connected personal profile that combines identity, family, relationships, routines, and past experience in one account rather than as separate facts.
- Use expanded plurals, construct chains, and relative description to talk about people and relationships accurately.
- Describe habits, changes, and comparisons across time using the imperfect, frequency expressions, and the "used to... but now..." pattern.
- Narrate a short connected biography using the perfect tense, كَانَ, and common weak verbs, sequenced with أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْد ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا.
- Read and listen to connected personal narratives at the Unit I level and answer questions that require tracking pronoun reference and event sequence.
- Complete an integrated spoken and written personal and social profile that draws on all four chapters of Unit I.
Communication Scenario
A new community center in your neighborhood is putting together a short welcome booklet, and each new member is asked to submit a spoken and written self-introduction: who you are, the people in your life, how your daily life looks now compared with before, and a short account of your background. This is exactly the kind of connected self-presentation that Unit I has been building toward — not a list of isolated facts, but one coherent profile a stranger could listen to or read and come away understanding who you are.
- Chapter 1 gave you paragraph-level self-description and pronoun reference.
- Chapter 2 gave you the vocabulary and grammar to describe relationships and your local community.
- Chapter 3 gave you the tools to describe habits, frequency, and change over time.
- Chapter 4 gave you the perfect tense, كَانَ, weak verbs, and sequencing words for narrating a short biography.
- This chapter does not add anything new. It asks you to combine all four into one connected profile.
What This Assessment Draws On
Chapter 5 introduces no new language system. Every item below was activated in Chapters 1–4 and is now expected at the level of independent, connected use rather than isolated practice.
If any one of these four areas feels unstable, review that chapter briefly before beginning the assessment tasks below.
Cumulative Vocabulary Review
No new vocabulary is introduced in this chapter. The table below regroups a sample of high-value items from Chapters 1–4 that you will need to complete a connected personal profile.
| Arabic | Meaning | From |
|---|---|---|
| أَقَارِب | relatives (plural) | Chapter 2 |
| جِيرَان | neighbors (plural) | Chapter 2 |
| الَّذِي / الَّتِي | who, which (relative pronouns) | Chapter 2 |
| دَائِمًا / غَالِبًا / أَحْيَانًا / نَادِرًا | always / usually / sometimes / rarely | Chapter 3 |
| كُنْت + imperfect | used to... | Chapter 3 |
| أَكْثَر / أَقَلّ / مِثْل | more / less / like | Chapter 3 |
| وُلِدَ / وُلِدَت | was born (m./f.) | Chapter 4 |
| كَانَ / كَانَت / كُنَّا | was / were (past state or habitual) | Chapter 4 |
| عَاشَ / جَاءَ / نَسِيَ | lived / came / forgot (weak verbs) | Chapter 4 |
| أَوَّلًا / ثُمَّ / بَعْد ذَلِك / أَخِيرًا | first / then / after that / finally | Chapter 4 |
This table is a memory aid, not new teaching content. Consult the relevant chapter's vocabulary table for full metadata on any item.
Personal Description and Relationships
This section combines Chapter 1's self-description with Chapter 2's relationship and community vocabulary. No new grammar is presented; the goal is connecting the two systems in one paragraph.
اِسْمِي لَيْلَى، وَعِنْدِي أُسْرَة كَبِيرَة تَعِيش قَرِيبَة مِنِّي. جَارَتِي الَّتِي تَسْكُن بِجَانِبِي صَدِيقَة قَدِيمَة لِعَائِلَتِي.
My name is Layla, and I have a large family that lives close to me. My neighbor who lives next to me is an old friend of my family.
Notice that the relative clause (الَّتِي تَسْكُن بِجَانِبِي) does exactly what it did in Chapter 2 — it adds description to a noun without starting a new sentence. Combining it with Chapter 1's self-introduction pattern produces one connected description rather than two separate statements.
- لِي أَخ يَعْمَل مُهَنْدِسًا وَأُخْت تَدْرُس الطِّبّ فِي الجَامِعَة.I have a brother who works as an engineer and a sister who studies medicine at university.plural family reference + descriptive verbal clauses
Habits, Change, and Comparison
This section reuses Chapter 3's system for describing present routines and marking change from the past, now combined with the people introduced above.
الآن أَزُور أَقَارِبِي كُلّ أُسْبُوع تَقْرِيبًا، لَكِنَّنِي كُنْت أَزُورُهُم نَادِرًا فِي طُفُولَتِي. حَيَاتِي الآن أَكْثَر ارْتِبَاطًا بِالعَائِلَة مِن ذِي قَبْل.
Now I visit my relatives almost every week, but I used to visit them rarely in my childhood. My life now is more connected to family than before.
The frequency words (دَائِمًا، غَالِبًا، أَحْيَانًا، نَادِرًا) and the كُنْت + imperfect pattern do not change here. What is new is only that they now describe the same people and relationships introduced in the previous section, producing a single connected account of "then and now."
Biography and Sequencing
This section reuses Chapter 4's perfect-tense sequencing, كَانَ, and weak-verb system to close the profile with a short life narrative.
وُلِدْت فِي هَذِه المَدِينَة، وَكَانَت عَائِلَتِي تَعِيش هُنَا مُنْذُ زَمَن طَوِيل. أَوَّلًا دَرَسْت هُنَا، ثُمَّ عِشْت سَنَتَيْن فِي مَدِينَة أُخْرَى لِلْعَمَل، وَأَخِيرًا رَجَعْت لِأَكُون قَرِيبَة مِن أَقَارِبِي وَجِيرَانِي القُدَامَى.
I was born in this city, and my family has lived here for a long time. First I studied here, then I lived for two years in another city for work, and finally I came back to be close to my relatives and my old neighbors.
Every element in this paragraph — the relative clause, the frequency comparison, the perfect-tense sequence, the weak verb عِشْت — was taught in Chapters 1 through 4. This chapter asks only that you produce them together, accurately and in a natural order, as one connected profile.
If a task in this chapter seems to require a structure you have not yet studied — full case-ending production, subjunctive or jussive verbs, or derived verb forms, for example — it does not. Every task in Chapter 5 can be completed using only material from Chapters 1 through 4.
Model Dialogue
Setting: At the community center's welcome event, هَنَاء introduces herself to a new neighbor, رَامِي, combining identity, relationships, habits, and background.
السِّيَاق: فِي حَفْل التَّرْحِيب بِمَرْكَز الحَيّ، تُقَدِّم هَنَاء نَفْسَهَا لِجَارِهَا الجَدِيد رَامِي.
أَسْئِلَة الفَهْم — Comprehension questions:
- Which relative clause does Hanaa use to describe herself, and what does it modify?
- Put Hanaa's three sequenced events in order using أَوَّلًا، ثُمَّ، and أَخِيرًا.
- What comparison does Hanaa make between her life now and her life in her old city?
Listening Station
Ask your instructor, a partner, or a text-to-speech tool to read the following short passage aloud twice at a moderate pace. Listen without reading along the first time, then answer the questions below.
اِسْمِي عُمَر، وَعِنْدِي أَخَوَات كَثِيرَات وَأَقَارِب يَعِيشُون فِي أَكْثَر مِن مَدِينَة. جِيرَانِي الَّذِين أَعْرِفُهُم مُنْذُ الطُّفُولَة مَازَالُوا يَسْكُنُون بِجَانِبِي. فِي الماضِي كُنْت أَقْضِي وَقْتِي أَكْثَر مَع أَصْدِقَاء المَدْرَسَة، لَكِنِّي الآن أَقْضِي وَقْتِي غَالِبًا مَع عَائِلَتِي. وُلِدْت فِي هَذَا الحَيّ، وَكَانَت طُفُولَتِي بَسِيطَة وَسَعِيدَة. أَوَّلًا دَرَسْت فِي المَدْرَسَة القَرِيبَة، ثُمَّ اِنْتَقَلْت لِلدِّرَاسَة فِي الجَامِعَة، وَأَخِيرًا رَجَعْت لِلْعَيْش هُنَا مَع عَائِلَتِي مَرَّة أُخْرَى.
مُهِمَّة الاسْتِمَاع — Listening task
Answer the following questions based on what you hear:
- Who are the neighbors Omar describes, and what relative clause does he use for them?
- How did Omar spend his time in the past compared with now?
- Put Omar's three sequenced life events in order.
Speaking Station
تَدْرِيب مُوَجَّه — Controlled practice: Four-part chain
With a partner, take turns building one connected statement about yourselves using four short parts in order: (1) a self-description, (2) a description of one relative or neighbor with a relative clause, (3) a habit now compared with a habit in the past, (4) one sequenced past event with أَوَّلًا or ثُمَّ.
مُهِمَّة تَوَاصُل — Communicative task: Welcome introduction
In pairs, role-play the community-center scenario from the opening of this chapter. One partner introduces themselves fully; the other asks at least two follow-up questions drawing on Chapters 2, 3, and 4.
لِلْمُتَعَلِّمِينَ المُسْتَقِلِّينَ — Solo alternative
Record yourself giving a connected two-minute self-introduction that includes identity, at least one relationship description, a habit-then-and-now comparison, and a short sequenced biography.
Reading Station
Read the short passage below, then answer the questions that follow. As in earlier chapters, some predictable short vowels on familiar words are left unmarked.
A Connected Personal Profile — Sample Description
اسمي دلال، وعندي عائلة كبيرة تسكن قريبة مني في نفس الحي. جدتي التي تعيش معنا تحكي لنا قصصا عن طفولتها كل مساء تقريبا. في الماضي كنا نزورها مرة في الأسبوع فقط، لكننا الآن نزورها كل يوم تقريبا لأنها أصبحت تحتاج إلى مساعدتنا. ولدت في هذه المدينة نفسها، وكانت حياتي بسيطة في البداية. أولا درست في مدرسة صغيرة، ثم انتقلت مع عائلتي إلى حي أكبر، وأخيرا بدأت العمل هنا قريبا من جدتي وأقاربي.
أَسْئِلَة الفَهْم — Comprehension questions:
- What relative clause does Dalal use to describe her grandmother, and what does it tell us?
- How has the frequency of visiting the grandmother changed, and why?
- List Dalal's three sequenced life events in order.
- Identify one item recycled from each of Chapters 2, 3, and 4 in this passage.
Writing Station
In this station, you will draft a connected personal profile of eight to ten sentences that combines every system from Unit I into one coherent account.
- Open with identity. One or two sentences introducing yourself, recycling Chapter 1's self-description pattern.
- Describe one relationship. One sentence describing a family member, neighbor, or friend using a plural and a relative clause (الَّذِي/الَّتِي) from Chapter 2.
- Compare a habit now and in the past. Two sentences using a frequency word and كُنْت/كُنَّا + imperfect from Chapter 3.
- Open your biography. One sentence with وُلِدْت and one with كَانَ/كَانَت describing a past state or habit, from Chapter 4.
- Sequence three events. Three sentences using أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ or بَعْد ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا, including at least one weak verb.
- Revise. Check your draft against the editing checklist below.
قَائِمَة المُرَاجَعَة — Editing checklist:
- I introduced myself clearly, recycling Chapter 1's pattern.
- I described at least one relationship using a plural and a relative clause from Chapter 2.
- I compared a present habit with a past habit using a frequency word and كُنْت/كُنَّا + imperfect from Chapter 3.
- I used وُلِدْت and at least one correct use of كَانَ/كَانَت/كُنَّا from Chapter 4.
- I sequenced at least three events using أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْد ذَلِك, or أَخِيرًا, including one weak verb.
- My profile reads as one connected account, not four separate paragraphs stapled together.
Culture and Communication
A self-introduction that mentions family, neighbors, and background rather than only personal facts is a common pattern in many Arabic-speaking communities, since who you are is often understood partly through your relationships and roots. Expectations for how much detail to share, and in what order, vary by setting, generation, and community, so the model dialogue and readings in this chapter should be read as illustrative rather than as a fixed script.
The closeness implied by جِيرَان (neighbors) in this chapter's readings — visiting often, helping with family needs, long-standing relationships — reflects a pattern reported in many neighborhoods across Arabic-speaking regions, but the intensity and form of these relationships vary widely between urban and rural settings, older and newer neighborhoods, and different countries. Treat these passages as examples, not as a single universal model of neighborly life.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Error: writing four separate, disconnected paragraphs — one about identity, one about family, one about habits, one about biography — with no linking language between them.
Correction: use connectors such as وَ، لَكِنَّ، and the sequencing words from Chapter 4 to move smoothly from one part of the profile to the next, so the whole reads as a single account.
Error: أَقَارِبِي الَّذِي يَسْكُن بَعِيدًا. (singular relative pronoun with a plural antecedent)
Correction: أَقَارِبِي الَّذِينَ يَسْكُنُون بَعِيدًا. — the relative pronoun and verb must agree with the plural noun, exactly as practiced in Chapter 2.
Error: attempting subjunctive, jussive, or derived-form verbs to sound more advanced in this profile.
Correction: every task in this chapter can be completed accurately using only Chapters 1–4. A simple, accurate, well-connected profile using known systems is stronger evidence of learning than an inaccurate attempt at untaught grammar.
Chapter Review
Section A — الوَصْف الشَّخْصِيّ وَالعَلَاقَات (Personal Description and Relationships)
1. Write two connected sentences introducing yourself and describing one relative or neighbor with a relative clause.
Section B — العَادَات وَالتَّغْيِير (Habits and Change)
1. Write one sentence describing a present habit and one sentence describing the same habit in the past, using كُنْت/كُنَّا + imperfect.
Section C — السِّيرَة القَصِيرَة (Short Biography)
1. Write three sequenced sentences about your own past using أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, and أَخِيرًا, including at least one weak verb.
مُرَاجَعَة تَرَاكُمِيَّة — Cumulative review
Complete the short exchange below, drawing on all four chapters of Unit I.
أ: مَن هُم أَقْرَب النَّاس إِلَيْك، وَكَيْف تَتَغَيَّر عَلَاقَتُك بِهِم مَع الوَقْت؟
ب: ______________________________________ (describe a relative or neighbor with a relative clause, then compare the relationship now and in the past)
أ: وَحَدِّثْنِي قَلِيلًا عَن حَيَاتِك — أَيْنَ وُلِدْت، وَمَاذَا حَدَث بَعْد ذَلِك؟
ب: ______________________________________ (a short sequenced biography using وُلِدْت, كَانَ, and at least two sequencing words)
Practical Performance Task
مُهِمَّة الأَدَاء العَمَلِيَّة
صُورَتِي الشَّخْصِيَّة المُتَّصِلَة — My Connected Personal Profile
Complete both parts below.
- Written: Write a connected personal profile of eight to ten sentences that includes a self-description, a relationship description using a plural and a relative clause, a habit compared across present and past with a frequency word, a biographical opening with وُلِدَ/وُلِدَت and كَانَ, and at least three sequenced past events including one weak verb.
- Spoken: Present the same profile aloud for about two minutes without reading it word for word, as if introducing yourself at a community welcome event.
Assessment focus: accurate use of plurals, agreement, and relative clauses; correct frequency and كُنْت/كُنَّا comparison; accurate perfect-tense and كَانَ narration, including weak verbs; a clear and logically ordered sequence of events; and an account that reads and sounds as one connected profile rather than four separate exercises.
Answer Key
Model Dialogue — Comprehension
- Hanaa uses الَّتِي تَسْكُن فِي البِنَايَة المُقَابِلَة to describe herself as the neighbor living in the building across the way.
- أَوَّلًا: they moved there for work. ثُمَّ: they bought the apartment. أَخِيرًا: they decided to stay because of the kind neighbors.
- Hanaa says her life now is much calmer; she used to go out a lot in her old city, but now spends most of her time with neighbors and nearby relatives.
Listening Station
- Omar's neighbors are described with الَّذِين أَعْرِفُهُم مُنْذُ الطُّفُولَة — people he has known since childhood who still live next to him.
- In the past, he used to spend more time with school friends; now he spends most of his time with his family.
- أَوَّلًا: he studied at the nearby school. ثُمَّ: he moved to study at university. أَخِيرًا: he returned to live in the neighborhood with his family again.
Reading Station — Comprehension
- Dalal uses الَّتِي تَعِيش مَعَنَا to describe her grandmother as living with the family.
- They used to visit her once a week; now they visit almost every day because she has come to need their help.
- أَوَّلًا: she studied at a small school. ثُمَّ: she moved with her family to a bigger neighborhood. أَخِيرًا: she began working near her grandmother and relatives.
- Chapter 2: الَّتِي (relative clause); Chapter 3: كُنَّا نَزُورُهَا (past habitual with frequency contrast); Chapter 4: أَوَّلًا/ثُمَّ/أَخِيرًا sequencing with وُلِدْت and كَانَت.
Chapter Review — Model responses
Section A: اِسْمِي كَرِيم، وَعِنْدِي جَار الَّذِي يُسَاعِدُنِي كَثِيرًا.
Section B: الآن أَذْهَب إِلَى العَمَل يَوْمِيًّا، لَكِنِّي كُنْت أَذْهَب نَادِرًا وَأَنَا طَالِب.
Section C: أَوَّلًا دَرَسْت، ثُمَّ عِشْت فِي مَدِينَة أُخْرَى، وَأَخِيرًا رَجَعْت إِلَى هُنَا.
Other well-formed, accurate answers combining the required systems are equally acceptable throughout this section.
Cumulative Review — Model responses for Speaker B
ب: أَقْرَب النَّاس إِلَيَّ أُخْتِي الَّتِي تَسْكُن بِجَانِبِي، وَكُنَّا نَتَقَابَل نَادِرًا فِي المَاضِي، لَكِنَّنَا الآن نَتَقَابَل كُلّ أُسْبُوع.
ب: وُلِدْت فِي هَذَا الحَيّ، وَكَانَت طُفُولَتِي سَعِيدَة. أَوَّلًا دَرَسْت هُنَا، ثُمَّ سَافَرْت لِلْعَمَل، وَأَخِيرًا رَجَعْت لِلْعَيْش قَرِيبًا مِن عَائِلَتِي.
Exact wording will vary. Check that a plural/relative-clause description, a frequency comparison, and a sequenced biography with كَانَ are all present and connected.
Looking Ahead
مَا الَّذِي تَسْتَطِيعُ فِعْلَهُ الآن — What you can do now
You can now present a single, connected personal and social profile that introduces who you are, describes the people in your life, compares your habits now and in the past, and narrates a short biography in correct sequence. This closes Unit I: every system introduced in Chapters 1 through 4 is now available to you for independent, connected communication.