Services at T'chiyah often feature a lot of Hebrew, the traditional language of Jewish prayer and study for some 2000+ years. Although we always strive to facilitate accessibility by providing transliteration and translation, knowing some basic Hebrew can vastly improve your comfort and confidence in Jewish prayer and ritual, and open up new layers of meaning for you. So, we're offering a Hebrew 101 course to help you get started!
Beginning on December 5, our HEBREW 101 CLASS will support beginners (and those who need a review) to learn the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, some basic Jewish prayer vocabulary, and a bit of grammar.
OUR GOAL: By the end of the course, participants will be able to read aloud a page of Hebrew text (with vowels), and will be able to translate a few key blessings. And of course, we seek to have fun and build community along the way!
NOTE: We will do some writing activities, but this course's primary focus will be on reading the kind of Hebrew one would find in the prayerbook. We will not be learning spoken Modern Hebrew (though this course will give you good preparation if you choose to learn Modern Hebrew, Yiddish, Judeo-Arabic, or other Jewish languages that use the Hebrew alphabet.)
Tachlis/Logistics:
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Class will take place on Mondays from 6-8 P.M., December 5 - February 13, with some minor adjustments likely along the way. Because this is during dinnertime, we will provide some hearty nosh. This will be an in-person class; participants will mask while not eating. Participants are expected to be up-to-date on a complete course of COVID vaccinations, barring any medical exemptions.
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This class is open to members and non-members of T'chiyah. Feel free to spread the word and share widely!
- For the course to be most effective, at-home study and homework is required. You are welcome to attend classes whether or not you complete the homework, but please do your best to keep up, as the course moves quickly.
We will utilize two textbooks as our guides:
- Simon & Anderson, Teach Yourself to Read Hebrew, EKS Publishing
- Anderson et al., Prayerbook Hebrew: The Easy Way, EKS Publishing
Books will be provided to the first 15 students who register. Please reach out if you require financial assistance in acquiring the materials.
**This class is tailored for adults - children and teens are welcome if accompanied by an adult.**
| "Many Jewish spaces operate under the assumption that everyone is proficient in Hebrew, which can be disempowering for those of us who didn't get a formal education in the language. Attending a few Aleph Bet classes has made me feel less lost in Hebrew texts and allowed me to connect more deeply at services. We're stronger as a community when we can stay on the same page (of the siddur)." - testimonial from a participant from the 2019 Aleph Bet Intensive course |
Tuition Information:
We are experimenting with a pricing model that allows our congregation to generate income while still remaining financially accessible. Tuition costs go to instructor compensation, food for attendees, books for our first 15 registrants, and general operating support for T'chiyah. If you have any questions or are in need of additional tuition subsidies, please contact Jake at [email protected].
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NON-MEMBER TUITION:
T'CHIYAH MEMBER TUITION:
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