By Lee Brice
At this year’s NewCAJE conference in West Hartford, CT, I’ll be leading a Hebrew Reading Marathon—a 9-hour Hebrew decoding workshop using the book Alef Isn't Tough by Rabbi Linda Motzkin.
My goals are that participants will learn to read the siddur in Hebrew, not in transliteration, and will feel more confident using Hebrew words that express Jewish values and are part of our life cycle events and holidays. Words such as t'shuvah, tzedakah, bar mitzvah, and shiva carry nuances in Hebrew not apparent in their English translations.
The Hebrew Marathon course will give them the foundation of Hebrew learning: the sounds of the letters and vowels, nine Hebrew roots, biblical and modern Hebrew words formed from these roots, and prayer words and excerpts to read. We will learn 8-10 letters and vowels a day, with ample opportunity for practice in a safe, supportive community.
I chose Alef Isn’t Tough as our course materials because:
- The book provides an appropriate sequence of letters, with a thorough explanation of the sounds and pronunciation of Hebrew letters, vowels and syllables, reading selections that include real words from prayers as well as selections from the prayers, and an introduction to nine roots and associated words from modern Hebrew.
- I can choose the portions of each chapter I want to work with in class, leaving some for review and additional enrichment.
- When the student completes the course, the book provides a resource for them to review and to use if they want to continue to learn or to bridge into another class.
Behrman House, who acquired Alef Isn’t Tough from the URJ, is pleased to provide complimentary copies of the book to the Marathon participants.
Hebrew connects us to our history, to the siddur, to the Torah, and to Israel. I remember the thrill of reading an actual line of Torah even though at the time I couldn’t understand the meaning, or carefully sounding out a street sign in Israel. I took many workshops on teaching Hebrew at CAJE each year, and I am thrilled to be giving back and providing an opportunity for others to learn Hebrew decoding at NewCAJE6.
Lee Brice is a Hebrew teacher, special needs teacher, a retired Jewish Educator, and grandmother. She has experience teaching classes, small groups, individuals, children and adults, in the United States and in Israel as well as professional development workshops with teachers. She has an M.Ed in Elementary and Special Needs Education and 24 years of teaching experience. She can be reached at lbrice39@gmail.com
