OLC

Meet Josh Warshawsky: A Featured Hebrew in Harmony Musician

Hebrew in Harmony—the new prayer curriculum for 4th-6th graders—features music from today's top Jewish musicians. This is part of a series profiling some of these talented artists.

OLC For All Ages: One School's Experience

Rabbi Mark Levine believes firmly in the power of technology to enhance student learning. An early adopter of the Behrman House Online Learning Center (OLC), this education director at Congregation Beth El in Bethesda, Maryland, reports that three years later, students and teachers in his large school are thriving in the digital learning space.

More Help Using the Online Learning Center

As you begin planning for your fall program, it’s time to revisit the ways the Online Learning Center can enrich your students’ learning. This FREE platform offers a variety of learning features, including free prayer practice, a fast-paced Hebrew letter game, and a virtual Hebrew keyboard. And it also provides a virtual classroom environment where you can upload your own materials, create a variety of projects and experiences, and have learners post and show their work as a virtual portfolio.

Announcing Teacher Training for Hebrew in Harmony

Prepare to teach Hebrew through music! Beginning July 11 and through the end of September, join other educators in an online Hebrew in Harmony training course offered by Behrman House, in partnership with Gratz College’s NEXT program, an expert provider of online learning for supplementary school Jewish educators. Registration is open now. 

Keep Hebrew Skills Sharp Over Summer

You and your students have worked hard learning Hebrew all year. Don't let those gains evaporate in the summer heat. These fun Hebrew apps encourage summer practice:

Student Group OLC Registration Now Available

You've been asking. We've answered. Education directors can now upload student lists in groups to the Online Learning Center using an Excel spreadsheet. Your days of registering students one by one are over. In advance of the 2016-2017 school year, we've made it simpler for large schools to administer their online learning space.  Now when you register students in the OLC, you'll see a new option to perform a Bulk Upload.

Experience Hebrew in Harmony in May

The excitement about Hebrew in Harmony has been spreading, and it may be coming soon to a community near you. In April, we hosted two information sessions in New Jersey about this groundbreaking new prayer curriculum, and we're taking it on the road in May with several events for you to learn more about it.

Free Hebrew Practice for Summer

Looking for a fun, cheap way to give your students some Hebrew practice as they head into summer? We've got two great options for you.  Shalom Hebrew OLC App Students of all ages can learn to read Hebrew in a fun and effective way on any device!  Designed as a universal app, Shalom Hebrew OLC App can be used on any PC or Mac desktop; laptop; tablet; or smartphone. 

Meet Lisa Levine: A Featured Hebrew in Harmony Musician

Hebrew in Harmony—the new prayer curriculum for 4th-6th graders—features music from today's top Jewish musicians. This is the first in an occasional series profiling some of these talented artists.

No Wireless for Online Hebrew Practice? No Problem.

Want children to practice Hebrew but the wifi in your building is, um, spotty at best?  The Shalom Hebrew OLC App provides a reliable way to learn decoding, Hebrew letters, vowels, and keywords—on any device. Designed as a universal app, it can be used on any PC or Mac desktop; laptops; tablets; or smartphones. Now students can practice Hebrew at home, school or on the go – on any device!

Educator Spotlight: Top 10 Tips for Using the OLC

Cheryl Epstein, assistant director of education at Congregation B'nai Israel in Boca Raton, Florida, introduced the Online Learning Center to her school in 2012. In the years since, her 500 students have made huge strides in Hebrew as a result.

Get to Know Hebrew in Harmony

You’ve heard the buzz about the new prayer-through-music curriculum, Hebrew in Harmony. Want to know more? Join us for the 40-minute introductory webinar, "Introduction to Hebrew in Harmony," Wednesday, April 13, 1 pm EST Topics Covered: Overview of the program and prayers included The benefits of teaching through music The target learners

We've Made the OLC Easier to Use

  More than 525 educators and 3500 students have logged in this year to teach and learn online. The Behrman House Online Learning Center is about to enter its fourth year, and we continue to make improvements to make it the best—and easiest—year ever for students, teachers, and education directors. At the same time, our commitment to children's safety and privacy online is simply unparalleled.  Here are some of the changes we have made to make the OLC work better for you:

Hebrew Learning + Music = Fun

It’s been a long day of secular academics, and yet your arriving students are soon dancing, smiling, and singing in Hebrew.  They’re comparing prayer melodies and moving to the rhythm, engaged and lively.

Shalom Hebrew OLC App Now Available

Practice Hebrew at home, school or on the go – on any device! Developed in conjunction with the Jewish Journey Project, Shalom Hebrew OLC App is a digital primer to learn decoding, Hebrew letters, vowels, and keywords. Packed with engaging features, interactive reading exercises that can be recorded and reviewed by educators, and more than a dozen games, Shalom Hebrew OLC App makes learning to read Hebrew fun AND effective for students of all ages.

The Fast Track to Hebrew and Prayers

The Hineni series has been a long time favorite resource for teaching Hebrew and prayers. The new Hineni Express, by Ellen Rank, offers the same proven approach as Hineni 1, 2, and 3, combined into one easy-to-use volume. It's especially useful for studnets who have joined your program in 5th grade or later.

Mindfulness and the Brain

People who practice meditation and mindfulness have long reported health benefits, from lower blood pressure to reduced anxiety. New research released this week shows that such practices can actually change your brain. "To meditate mindfully demands 'an open and receptive, nonjudgmental awareness of your present-moment experience,'"says J. David Creswell, who led the study and is an associate professor of psychology and the director of the Health and Human Performance Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University in this week's announcement.

The Healing Power of Music

Music holds a special power. Just ask Rabbi Ron Isaacs.  Apples & Honey author and rabbi emeritus of Temple Sholom in Bridgewater, New Jersey, works part-time as music therapist for patients receiving palliative care.  "I play my guitar, I sing for (and sometimes with) them, I encourage them to keep the beat with rhythm instruments, to make any special requests, even to talk about memories that the songs evoke," Isaacs explains. 

Teacher Tip: Recording with Hineni OLC Edition

Last summer we brought Hineni to life in the Online Learning Center. To ensure students are getting the most out of their Hebrew practice, we have put together a couple tips for success. 

Hot Topics: Dealing with Iran

Iran has earned its reputation as a terrorist state and enemy of the West. How should the international community deal with Iran? U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu don't see eye to eye about the international community should deal with Iran's nuclear program. In the latest Hot Topics, students will learn about the history of relations between Iran and the West and apply the Torah's models of conflict resolution to the current political situation. 

Teach Israel

 Experience Modern Israel

New from Behrman House. Fly to Israel without a plane ticket.

Discover Israel

 Let's Discover Israel

Offer younger children an exciting and age-appropriate introduction to the Jewish homeland