How to Learn Hebrew Online
Hebrew is an ancient language and one of the official languages of Israel. There are opportunities to learn Biblical Hebrew, which many Jews study to read the Torah (Hebrew Bible) and to join in prayers. Theology students also learn Biblical Hebrew. Other courses offer Modern Hebrew or a mixture of both. Some people learn because they want to immigrate to Israel or because they want to conduct business there, or take a vacation there.
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Instructions
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Enroll in an online Hebrew language course. Some courses that give an overview are free, such as The Online Hebrew Tutorial, but more in-depth courses and those involving interaction with teachers have a cost. Courses charging a fee include HebrewOnline.com and Milingua. Courses provide lessons and a dictionary.
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Order supplementary material with teaching products from an online merchant, such as Amazon. Order books, audio CDs, CDRoms, or computer or MP3 downloads.
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Plan a timetable for study. It is easier to memorize what you learn if you study every day for a short period, rather than studying once or twice a week for longer periods. Set realistic targets for learning with regular revision sessions before moving on to something new.
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Learn the 27 letters of the alphabet and memorize each one. The alphabet sounds and looks very different from the English alphabet, so spend time practicing the correct pronunciation for each letter. The Hebrew alphabet doesn't contain vowels and you need to observe the dots and dashes called Nikkud (meaning points) that are written with certain letters (mostly vowels) to indicate how to pronounce them.
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Revise the alphabet by looking at online Alphabet Charts, such as Alphabet Global, and watching You Tube clips that teach the alphabet through songs.
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Learn common words and phrases and you practice speaking them with the correct pronunciation.
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Learn common verbs (action words) using the correct tense (past, present, or future), gender (Hebrew uses masculine and feminine words), and the singular ("I" or "you"), or plural ("we", plural "you", or "they").
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Learn the basic rules of grammar, which state how sentences should be formed, and practice speaking grammatically correct sentences.
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Practice handwriting the letters, words, phrases and sentences you have learned, using the correct grammar. Hebrew is written from right to left across the page.
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Practice typing Hebrew script in a word processor. Some computers have access to Hebrew versions of fonts, such as Times New Roman and Arial. Alternatively, download them from Microsoft.
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Interact with Hebrew speakers by joining MyLanguageExchange.com, an online community where members improve their language skills by emailing, texting and communicating through live messenger services, such as Skype.
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Join Facebook groups, such as Native Hebrew Speakers, and forums for people learning Hebrew to practice and exchange information.
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Buy books of short stories online, beginning with stories for children and progressing to stories for teenagers and adults, as you develop your ability. Sample chapters are posted to help you select which titles.
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References
- Photo Credit hebrew letters and prayer books image by leprechaun from Fotolia.com
