Monday, January 26, 2009

Free Videos that Teach Hebrew

By Neal Walters

With the advent of online video sites, learning Hebrew is now easier than ever with free videos. The people that make the videos have been very creative and artistic. We will discuss some of the videos available in this article.

All beginners must start with the basics, the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. While you can learn to speak Hebrew without reading it, many of the videos will show the letters, so you will want to learn how to pronounce them first. There are several ALEF-BET songs available online, but one of the all-time favorites is the one by Debbie Friedman.

The videos are a mix of commercial demos and videos developed by volunteers. HebrewResources.com has uploaded several lessons from "At Home with Hebrew" and their new "Hebrew Kindergarten" product. Some of the Ulpan schools in Israel have uploaded samples of their students applying what they have learned.

Frequently, with the videos, the words are displayed on the screen while you hear the person on the audio reading, singing, or pronouncing the words. A user called "bnaiorpueblo" has posted several videos like this in which he teaches from Hebrew Bible verses.

Many of the videos include music. You can often find yourself learning Hebrew faster with a catchy Hebrew song, whether it be ancient liturgy or a modern Israeli song. The melodies tend to help your remember the words, so you find yourself learning with minimal effort.

Children can also learn from the online videos. One set of Hebrew lessons are taught by "Vampire Bear". As an adult, it may sound juvenile, but children probably love it.

Hebrew prayers have also been included in some of the videos. You can learn the Sabbath candle-lighting prayers. Other have been nice enough to record the Shema V'Ahavta, and display the Hebrew letters (in both Hebrew and transliterated English).

Other videos simply teach basic vocabulary. They are usually organized by topcis, such as "parts of the body", "computer terms", or "shopping" terms. You can always rewind or play the video again until you have mastered the words on these videos.

If you are bored with learning Hebrew by books, then you should check out the site below to see some of the online videos. You can improve your pronunciation and your vocabulary in a new fun way. And one thing that I know you'll love - the videos are entirely free. - 16928

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