Z'man Likro Volume 1 (Revised Edition) (Hebrew Edition)

You never can be sure about a book until you hold it in your hands. I'm happy to report that this is a great little Hebrew primer. The text is color coded to assist with the lesson, and the pages are very visually appealing. Information is presented well in an organized and easy-to-understand fashion. Letters and vowels are selected for each lesson's focus and there is also a page for writing practice which provides traceable letters at first and then just blank lines. I hope they have more of these for when my child finishes this one!

It's simple to follow and contains sounds, vowels, and pronunciation.

Although I work at a Chabad, I couldn't read a single letter or speak barely a word of Hebrew, which is super inconvenient for me. When this book first came in the mail, I looked at it and thought it was way too hard, until my rabbi explained that you read each letter from top to bottom basically, and that was all I needed. In just a week I'm near the end of the book and I read an entire comic strip in it. It's a great approach, very very easy to understand. Mind you I am an adult using this book, so no I can't say I'm thrilled about the coloring pages, but it's repetition, and introduction to vowels and basic words is just hands down great. I'm actually really excited to start volume two.My six year old daughter has a limited grasp on the letters, she didn't really understand their sounds so much yet. I had her reading this up to the second lesson in just one day. I wound up ordering another copy for her, and I'm excited to go through it with her, I think it'll give her one heck of an edge in Hebrew School.I don't think this is what you want if you are looking to speak hebrew fluently, or to read the words without the vowel markers like Israelis do, but if you're looking for a good start to be able to read Hebrew books and know all the letters, and learn some words in the process all in a small time frame, this is definitely it.

I really appreciate these books (Time to Read, both volumes). I chose them as an introductory course in Hebrew (our chosen foreign language for our homeschool) for my 1st, 2nd and 4th graders, and have been very pleased with both the pace of the lessons and the amount of practice. Each lesson (in the first book) introduces two or three letters and a vowel point, followed by a page of reading practice using the newly introduced letters, as well as previous ones, a short page of writing practice, and 4 or 5 (average) activity pages using various methods of reiterating the lesson. There are also a handful of vocabulary words in each lesson, so that by the end of the book you have learned 30-40 common Hebrew words, applicable to conversation or to cultural study. Book one begins very simply (my advanced five-year-old can do it) but it is not too simplistic or silly for my 9-year old. As they started from the same knowlege base (pretty much no knowledge), they are able to learn it together without it being to hard for the one or too simple for the other. Some exercises are a quick and easy review, while others require a bit more thought. It's a great mix, and thorough without being overwhelming. The book is also very colorful with a nice layout, not too busy, nor too much white space. The only draw backs are these:1. The book is obviously directed at a populace already familiar with Jewish tradition (ie. - parents or Shabbat-School teachers, as this is who would generally be teaching the language to children.) Most of the information is familiar to those with at least a superficial knowledge of the culture, but at times I wish the author had included a bit more background information for those of us not steeped in it. While more information would have been nice, the lack thereof in no way inhibits the actual goal of the book, which is teaching one to read the language.2. Again, as this book is written with a knowledgable teacher in mind, there is no teacher's manual. Obviously, most people teaching out of these books wouldn't need one. I however, would find one helpful (perhaps a teachers' manual would be a good place to include more in-depth info about the culture and language as mentioned above. . .). I began the book able to read Hebrew on perhaps a first-grade level, so I am one step ahead of my kids (actually, not ahead of my 9-year-old any more). The first book I can check pretty easily, but checking the second one will require a bit more of my concentration, and I'd like to be able to check behind myself. (If the author reads these reviews, how quickly can you publish a teachers manual and book 3? Also, a CD would be a lovely addition.) All in all, I have found these books to be the best on the market for teaching young people how to read the language, and deserving of at least another half a star (Not an option on here). I will reserve my fifth star for a second edition that includes a CD. I wish the author would continue the series with a third and fourth book. (Definitely would need the teachers manual for those.)

I'm pretty sure this product is meant for grade schoolers, but I'm a full-grown adult and feel like I learned a ton from this! There's a few main things about this book that make me glad to recommend it:1. It keeps things simple - no weird linguist jargon like "palatalization", "orthography", or "syntax".2. It encourages you to read out loud. It's easier to learn everything correctly when you have to actively speak it yourself, as opposed to just listening or reading silently (both are good things to do; just not as effective).3. It shows you how to write each letter of the Aleph-Bet. As someone who grew up knowing only English, it can be kind of hard to learn how to write right-to-left.4. All words are spelled with niqqud. This is important. None of the letters in the Aleph-Bet are technically vowels. Niqquds are dots and dashes under the letters that show you what (if any) vowel sounds to make after the letter. Many Hebrew resources don't show this because most of the time Hebrew-speakers can figure out how to pronounce a word without looking at the niqqud.

Terrific module for late elementary and middle school.

I bought this book to teach my 7 year old daughter how to read Hebrew. She is starting day school in the fall and needs to catch up a little. This book is GREAT for her. It presents the letters in a logical sequence, about 2-3 letters per chapter, with lots of reinforcement activities & reading in between. My daughter enjoys doing the work and she's learning how to read Hebrew. I am working through the book with her, but if she were a bit older (and more self motivated) she could probably use it without my help. It doesn't require anyone who knows Hebrew as a guide. It also teaches some basic words, many relating to Jewish holidays like Passover and Shabbat. This book is all I hoped for! I also have the workbook, which is a good supplement but I think you could learn as well without it if you only want one book. This volume only covers about half the alef-bet, for the second half you need volume II (we're not up to it yet, but we'll get there).

An excellent book for teaching under eights

A good starting point.