קשר בעברית
Kesher B'Ivrit

Kesher Center for Jewish Learning
at
Congregtaion Beth Israel, Bellingham, WA

About our Hebrew Program
Kesher B'Ivrit is the Hebrew language component for the 4th through 6th grade students of the Kesher Sunday program. Classes meet approximately 28 times per year for hour and a half sessions with the the objective of achieving a basic linguistic understanding of Hebrew as well as the cultural understanding of its inseparability from Jewish learning.

Kesher B'Ivrit sessions cover 7 different language components -

  1. Decoding
  2. Modern Hebrew
  3. Grammar
  4. Siddur Hebrew
  5. Tefilah Leadership
  6. Reading fluency
  7. Tefilah Comprehansion

tEach of the three level groups - beginners ( Yarok - green), intermediate ( Kachol - blue), and advanced ( Adom - red) use different materials to cover the respective yearly goals. In the description below you may find more information about the yearly goals of each of the three levels.
Kesher B'Ivrit Shalav: Yarok
beginner, mostly 4th graders (Morah Miriam)
Composed of mostly students of the 4th grade, the students that complete the Yarok level will be able to:

Decoding  Recognize every letter and vowel symbol; sound out syllables.

Modern Hebrew  Master modern Hebrew vocabulary presented in class based on the  Yesh Lanu Lama  textbook.

Grammar  Demonstrate basic understanding of grammatical forms such as suffixes of common verbs and nouns.

The students will learn the following Siddur prayers as a guide to hone the language skills on the 4 language components in the bottom:
Modeh/Modah Ani מוֹדֶה אֲנִי
Ma Tovu: Lines 1-2 מָה טוֹבוּ
Barchu בָּרְכוּ
Shema שְׁמַע

Siddur Hebrew  Demonstrate ability to translate, identify, and integrate modern Hebrew vocabulary with that of the prayers learnt. 

Tefilah Leadership  Able to lead independently and proficiently.

Reading Fluency  Make clear progress towards a greater Siddur reading fluency.

Tefilah Comprehension  Demonstrate comprehension of the overall meaning of the prayers.

Kesher B'Ivrit Shalav: Kachol
intermediate, mostly 5th graders (Morah Michele)
Composed of mostly students of the 5th grade, the students that complete the Kachol level will be able to:

Decoding Demonstrate confident k nowledge of every letter and vowel sound.

Modern Hebrew Master modern Hebrew vocabulary for: Ulpan Alef selected lessons.

Grammar Demonstrate understanding of simple verbal forms in present tense, simple singular/plural suffixes, and pronouns.

The students will learn the following Siddur prayers as a guide to hone the language skills on the 4 language components in the bottom:

Elohai Neshama: lines 1-2 אֱלֹהַי נְשָׁמָה
V'Ahavta וְאָהַבְתָּ
Mi Chamocha מִי כָּמוֹךָ
Sim Shalom: line 1 שים שלום
V'Shamru וְשָׁמְרוּ

Siddur Hebrew Demonstrate ability to translate, identify, and integrate modern Hebrew vocabulary with that of the prayers learnt.

Tefilah Leadership Able to lead independently and proficiently.

Reading Fluency Show clear progress towards a greater Siddur reading fluency.

Tefilah Comprehension Demonstrates comprehension of the overall meaning of the prayers.  
Kesher B'Ivrit Shalav: Adom
Advanced, mostly 6th graders (Morah Robin)
Composed of mostly students of the 6th grade, the students that complete the Adom level will be able to:

Decoding Demonstrate confident k nowledge of every letter and vowel sound.

Modern Hebrew Master modern Hebrew vocabulary for: Ulpan Alef selected lessons.

Grammar Demonstrate understanding of simple verbal forms in present tense, simple singular/plural suffixes, and pronouns.

The students will learn the following Siddur prayers as a guide to hone the language skills on the 4 language components in the bottom:

Nisim B'chol Yom נִיסִּים בְּכָל יוֹם
Laasok B'Divrei Torah לַעֲסוֹק בְּדִבְרֵי תּוֹרָה
Hazi Kadish חֲצִי קַדִּישׁ
V'ha'eir eineinu וְהָאֵר עֵינֵינוּ
Amidah עֲמִידָה
Ki Metziyon כִּי מִצִּיּוֹן
Torah blessings בִּרְכוֹת הַתּוֹרָה
Aliya blessings עֲלִיָּיה
Haftarah blessings הַפְטָרָה

Siddur Hebrew Demonstrate ability to translate, identify, and integrate modern Hebrew vocabulary with that of the prayers learnt.

Tefilah Leadership Able to lead independently and proficiently.

Reading Fluency Show clear progress towards a greater Siddur reading fluency.

Tefilah Comprehension Demonstrates comprehension of the overall meaning of the prayers.  
PRINT & SAVE
Print out this useful Hebrew letter chart for reference:
PRINT & SAVE
Print out this simple nikud (vowel) chart summary for reference: