Regardless of the Arabic textbook used in an Arabic program, once printed, the textbook remains static. Meanwhile, language usage evolves and changes. Even programs that strictly teach Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) can struggle with timely articles and cultural shifts, particularly in the beginning and intermediate stages. The advent of social media, the mix of Arabic with English such as ‘Arabizi’, the usage of ever-changing hashtags and memes, and political unrest and upheaval all help to create a living linguistic environment constantly in flux that no printed textbook can compete with. Genre-based approaches to language pedagogy can help programs break free of issues such as these that are commonly found in textbooks and static curricula. Developed in Australia primarily by educators following the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) (Halliday and Matthiessen, 2013), the genre-based approach advocates for a multi-year curriculum sequenced according to textual genres (Arens, 2008; Byrnes, 2002; Byrnes et al., 2006). Using NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements as the basis for genres, this paper will seek to show both successes and challenges of a genre-based approach to curriculum development, including technology resources. It will specifically analyze the development and implementation of a unit on social media use in a U.S. Intermediate Arabic class that incorporated plurilingual (e.g. Piccardo, 2017) and translanguaging (e.g. García and Li Wei, 2014) pedagogies. The participants include the teacher/researcher, a co-teacher, and 18 students enrolled in the class over two separate years. The data analyzed include lesson plans and teacher reflection notes, students’ classwork and end-of-unit assessments and reflections, and interviews with the students. Thematic analysis of this data demonstrates both challenges and successes with this approach. The challenges include time constraints, the prevalence of monolingual ideologies among teachers and students, and the scarcity of models of these approaches in an Anglophone classroom context. The successes include high student investment, the extension of language learning beyond the classroom, and increased ability with sociolinguistic variation and translanguaging practices. The paper concludes with recommendations for future curriculum development and research. References: Cenoz, J. and D. Gorter, eds. (2015). Multilingual Eduation: Between language learning and translanguaging. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Garcia, O. and L. Wei (2014). Translanguaging: Language, Bilingualism, and Education. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. New York: Routledge. Halliday, M., and C. Matthiessen (2013). Haillday’s Introduction to Functional Grammar. Kinginger, C. (2009). Language Learning and Study Abroad: A Critical Reading of Research. London: Palgrave Macmillan.