Hebrew Program

Our aim is to instil passion and love of Hebrew as a living language through its connection to Israel and the Jewish people: past, present and future.

Years K-6: A Culture of Hebrew

K-2: The focus is on speaking, using basic sentence structures. Students learn to introduce and describe themselves, friends and family and their immediate environment. Students learn to read and write in block and cursive letters.

Year 3: In Year 3 students use the online program iTaLAM. This interactive program is designed for individual and group work at school and at home.

Years 4-6: This whole-language approach uses an all-Hebrew environment, including songs, games, books, interactive posters, home readers, CD-roms and interactive whiteboards. Each activity strengthens students’ speaking, writing, listening and reading skills, while integrating Jewish concepts.

Years 7-12: Communicating in Hebrew

Emanuel uses the outstanding NETA curriculum, which encourages students to think and communicate in Hebrew. Students are exposed to diverse Hebrew genres, including modern scientific texts, poetry, short stories, biblical and rabbinic texts. Students listen to Israeli songs, watch Hebrew films, and appreciate and discuss artworks and their relevance to world events, all in Hebrew.

Hebrew Outside the Classroom

Students in Years K-6 conduct Pesach sederim in Hebrew, while Year 9 students lead Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) commemorations. Many Year K-2 students choose to attend the Hebrew Reading Club, where they transform Hebrew books into plays, learn Hebrew songs and play Hebrew games. Students present Hebrew poetry, songs, short plays or prayers in assemblies and communal events. Our choirs learn Hebrew and Israeli songs; students learn Israeli dances, and Hebrew signs are visible across the campus. High School students attend Hebrew camps and participate in voluntary Hebrew poetry workshops.

Catering for Diverse Needs

Emanuel students include Israelis as well as students with no Hebrew background. Our classes are differentiated to support all Hebrew learning levels. We offer extension classes and acceleration for our most advanced Hebrew students, as well as beginner classes for those who have never learned Hebrew before.