Who we are: Green Olive Arts is a cultural center in Tetouan, Morocco, which hosts artist residencies for visiting professional artists, offers visits and workshops with local artisans, and provides language coaching for Moroccan Arabic.

How we teach: Our coach uses The Growing Participant Approach (GPA) which is based on the most common learning styles and the most effective strategies for acquiring language and culture. Read more about the GPA method.

What we teach: We offer coaching for the Northern Moroccan Arabic dialect or Shamali Derija. It is slightly different from other dialects of Moroccan Arabic spoken in the central and southern regions of the country, and our program and materials are crafted specifically for equipping learners to speak this northern dialect. Our coach is native to the north of Morocco so you will be receiving excellent coaching in the pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar of the north.

Where we teach: Green Olive Arts is located in the center of Tetouan, at 18 Avenue Mohamed ben Abderrahman, Tetouan, MOROCCO 93000 and coaching sessions take place in our studio. Occasionally sessions will be held off-sight, but with notification the month prior.

How many hours does it take to complete:

The GPA method is divided into 6 phases, each with a unique focus and number of hours to complete, so the number of hours per week you choose for coaching will determine how quickly you will be able to move through the program. 

Phase 1 – 100 hrs – Connecting – Vocab: 900

Phase 2 – 150 hrs – Emerging – Vocab: 2250 – 3750

Phase 3 – 250 hrs – Knowable – Vocab: 3500 – 4750

Phase 4 – 500 hrs – Deep Personal Relationships – Vocab: 6000 – 8500

Phase 5 – 500 hrs – Widening Understanding – Vocab: 9000 – 12500

Phase 6 – ongoing – Ever Participating/Growing

You can read this description for more detailed information about the GPA method.

How do I know when I’m ready to progress to the next phase?

Green Olive Arts provides language evaluations over Zoom through Thrive MAROC in Casablanca. This is a service available to Green Olive Arts clients and anyone else wishing to assess their level of Moroccan Arabic. A language evaluation can be done every few months or as often as you would like in order to gauge progress and receive advice for how to get through plateaus and stuckages. You will be asked questions and the assessor will listen for the different markers that indicate the current level of language fluency in 8 different categories. There is a self-evaluation you will take to evaluate the degree to which you think they can speak and understand. A language evaluation typically takes an hour on Zoom and costs 500 MAD.

Derija Connect?

Derija Connect is a WhatsApp group designed to facilitate communication between clients and the GOA Administration. Once you are enrolled in sessions, your WhatsApp number will be added to this group. Only administrators can post to this group with relevant announcements that are helpful to our clients. If you have a question about an announcement, you can contact the Administration directly.

Can I do coaching sessions via Zoom?

Zoom sessions are not available for clients residing in Tetouan. Our language coach invests a lot of time and energy in preparing for your sessions and there are many activities that are more effective when done face-to-face. If you are sick, we ask that you book Bonus Time to make up the session face-to-face. If you are traveling, but want to continue while away, an exception can be made if you request zoom sessions.

What if I have questions about my language session or my coach?

Remember, our goal is to give you the best language experience possible. Our language coach is great. He was chosen for you because of his strengths, humility, teachability, and commitment to on-going coaching and upgrading. What you bring to your language sessions is also important because language learning is a partnership between client and coach. If you have questions, concerns or ideas, we ask that you take the initiative to bring them to the Green Olive Arts Administration as soon as possible in order to make sure you’re obtaining the maximum benefit from our program. 

Your coach will only speak to you in Moroccan Arabic, so if you have need to communicate something or ask a question that is beyond your current language ability, you may ask the Administration in English and they will help you.

Can I change my session times?

Once you’ve started our program, we ask that you continue with the times that you committed to doing.

What is Bonus Time?

Bonus Time allows you to make up sessions for freeduring your coach’s available hours, but those hours are limited, so Bonus Time is not guaranteed.

We want you to get the most out of our program, so we encourage you to attend all the sessions in your plan. Your coach may have a minimal number of hours available for booking Bonus Time, which can be scheduled by request, pending availability, if you’ve had to cancel language sessions due to planned absences, such as vacations or visa runs. 

Bonus Time hours are subject to language coach availability. Potential Bonus Time hours will be posted in the Derija Coachig Schedule.  To book Bonus Time, send an email to arthouse@greenolivearts.com indicating the day/time you would like to reserve. These times are available on a first-come first-served basis. You will receive an email confirming whether or not that session time has been reserved for you. If the time was already reserved by another client, you are welcome to pick a different time.

How much Bonus Time can I do each month?

Bonus Time is designed as a way to make up cancelled, and it is subject to availability, so if you cancel, Bonus Time is not guaranteed. Missed sessions (notification less than 72 hours before) are not eligible for Bonus Time. You may only request Bonus Time hours to make up the sessions you have had to cancel in advance, and and only up to 4 hours per month are eligible for Bonus Time. If at any time you decide you want to do more hours per week than the hours included in your invoice, this must first be approved and we will adjust your invoice accordingly.

What should I do if I’m sick and need to cancel a session?

If you are traveling for a visa run or for vacation, you can continue to do your sessions via Zoom. If you won’t be able to attend your sessions, please send an email to arthouse@greenolivearts.com as soon as you make plans to travel and indicate the timeframe in which you will be gone (from first date of absence to last date of absence), as well as what date you will be resuming in-person sessions. This allows the Administration to inform the coach and make sure the coach’s hours are utilized in other ways. 

If you are gone longer than two weeks, Green Olive Arts reserves the right to give your session time to a different client. When you don’t show up for a session or you let the Administration know less than 72 hours before a session, that session will be considered missed and is not eligible for Bonus Time. When you give more than 72 hours’ notice, the session is considered cancelled. Cancelled sessions are eligible for request to be made up with Bonus Time within that month, subject to availability. Cancelled and Missed sessions are not eligible for refund.

What if I want to pause or end my enrollment with Green Olive Arts?

If you need to pause your sessions for an extended period of time, or if you want to stop doing sessions at Green Olive Arts, we ask that you send an email to arthouse@greenolivearts.com at least one month in advance. Our language coach is not paid hourly; he receives a monthly salary, and this advance notice gives us time to find other clients to fill his schedule. If you are pausing sessions, your recurring invoices will also be paused until you return. Please note that your session times will be subject to availability at the time of your return. Anyone who decides to pause or end enrollment is welcome back at any time, pending availability!

We offer monthly rates that vary depending on the number of hours per week of individual coaching:

5500 MAD – 10 hrs per week (40 hrs per month)

4500 MAD –  8 hrs per week (32 hrs per month)

2800 MAD –  4 hrs per week (16 hrs per month)

Material Costs per phase are:

Phase 1 = 400 MAD

Phase 2 = 400 MAD

Phase 3 = 400 MAD

Phase 4-6 = 0 MAD

If you have committed to a monthly plan, but need to temporarily reduce hours for a particular month, you will need to choose the needed hours plan for that month and pay that price, rather than have a prorated bill of your regular plan.

Contact us if you are interested in discount prices for group coaching sessions.

First arrange a meeting with the administration so that we can understand your language learning needs and  assess availability, and you can determine if our program will be a good fit for you. Decide how many hours you want to commit to each week based on your language goals, and email or message GOA administration (arthouse@greenolivearts.com) with your request and desired start date.  GOA will contact you to schedule your free orientation session so that you can know how to get the most out of our program.

How do I pay for my invoice?

There are two ways to pay for your invoice:

1. Make a transfer to the Green Olive Arts bank account directly from your Moroccan bank account using the Green Olive Arts RIB (Relevé d’Identité Bancaire).

2. Take your cash payment and the Green Olive Arts RIB to the nearest branch of BMCE and say that you would like to make a payment to the Green Olive Arts account.

Account name: Green Olive Arts, SARL 

Bank: BMCE Bank (in Morocco)

RIB/IBAN/CLABE (account number): 011720000002210001099491

SWIFT/BIC code: BMCEMAMCXXX

Routing Number/IRC/Sort Code: BMCEMAMCM

BMCE address: 5 Place Moulay Mehdi, Tetouan, TETOUAN 93000, Morocco

When is my invoice due?

Once you’ve started our program, your recurring invoice will be emailed on the 20th of every month for the next month’s sessions. We ask that you pay your invoice by the last day of the month in order to avoid the 5% late fee per week for each unpaid invoice. If you’re experiencing complications with your payment, please make arrangements with the Administration before the last day of the month. Thank you in advance for your cooperation in this area. If language sessions began mid-month, the first month’s invoice will be prorated. 

Green Olive Arts is a small company and on-time payment of invoices ensures that we can fulfill our obligations to pay our language coach by the last day of the month.

How many hours are included in my invoice?

Your invoice is based on you completing four weeks of sessions per month. For example:

10 hours per week x4 = 40 hours per month

8 hours per week x4 = 32 hours per month

4 hours per week x4 = 16 hours per month

Most months have 4.3 weeks, which means that in general you’ll be finishing more hours each month than you’ve paid for. The Administration tracks the number of hours that you’ve completed each month to make sure that your monthly average stays at or above the goal listed above. We recommend not dropping below that number because missed classes cannot be refunded, and Bonus Time is not guaranteed.

When is GOA closed for vacation?

GOA offices are closed for one day on national holidays and two days for Muslim religious holidays, with the exception of the First of Moharram, Muslim New Year, which is a 1-day religious holiday. We also close for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (December 24/25). Note that when national and religious holidays fall on a Sunday, they are not deferred or extended to Monday (as happens with Christmas, January 1st, July 4th and Veteran’s Day in the USA). In addition, GOA offices are closed for vacation for the last two weeks in December and up to 2 more weeks during the year, the dates of which will be posted at least 2 months in advance. Invoices are automatically pro-rated for the month of December and any other month with GOA-reduced days.

Can my invoice be pro-rated?

Once you’ve begun sessions with Green Olive Arts, your invoice will be the same every month that you are enrolled in sessions, with the exception of months when GOA has closed days. Those months are pro-rated because that is when Green Olive Arts offices are closed for vacation. If you will be traveling for a week or longer, or if you will be pausing sessions for a period of time, we ask that you send an email to arthouse@greenolivearts.com at least one month in advance so that adjustments can be made to your recurring invoice if needed and so that the Administration can make sure the coach’s hours are utilized in other ways. 

If you have committed to a monthly plan, that plan cannot be prorated, but you can choose a different plan for the month in which you need reduced hours – a plan that has less hours and a different price. 

Remember that if you are gone longer than two weeks, Green Olive Arts reserves the right to give your session time to a different client. Also, remember that when you don’t show up for a session or you don’t notify the Administration of cancellation at least one month before a session, that session will be considered missed, and is not eligible for a refund. Within an already paid month, if you give more than 72 hours’ notice of cancellation for a session, you are eligible to request bonus time to make up the session, but Bonus Time is not guaranteed. It is subject to availability.