Every feature of this primer - from its ground-breaking methodology to its vibrant, streamlined design - has been years in the making. Shalom Uvrachah: The New Hebrew Primer teaches decoding skills from key cultural words and concepts. For example, students learn the letters kuf and tzadee from the word tzedakah; they learn tet from tallit and zayin from mezuzah.
Shalom Uvrachah makes use of the best contemporary educational theory:
- Meaningful words teach decoding skills.
- Vowel sounds are systematically introduced in small, manageable increments.
- Confusing look-alike and sound-alike letters are introduced separately.
Exercises include:
- Visual discrimination practice
- Similar letter-sound and vowel-sound drills
- Writing practice to reinforce the forms of the letters
- Exercises allowing teachers to customize reading practice for each class
- Checkpoints to monitor student progress
Teaching Hebrew writing has been simplified with custom-designed Hebrew print and script fonts, enhanced by arrows showing how to form each letter.
Shalom Uvrachah also features:
- Selected readings of key prayers and blessings, including Shema, Ve'ahavta, and Aleinu
- Heritage dictionary of 80 cultural words
- Explanation of special reading rules
- Text and activities together in one volume
