I am a constant supporter and beneficiary of the extraordinary power of online Jewish learning. Particularly if it happens to live in a non-English, remote community without direct access to diverse source of education, online classes for every age, but especially for children, are a great mitzvah. As an adult, I had the chance to attend various online classes on a big variety of Jewish topics, from the comfort of my home, long before Covid made Zoom calls and online classes fashionable - by default.
The more, the better and therefore I was very excited to get in touch via social media - another blessing on the online connections - by the representatives of Jewish Interactive, a fresh new website offering resources to teachers, school leaders and parents.
The site is very friendly, both in terms of design - fonts, colours, accessibility - and information. There are games, and books and tutorials about holidays, Israel and the Hebrew alphabet. If you are a parent who haven´t had the chance to attend the Jewish school, you can learn at the pace of your child or refresh your long forgotten memories of Jewish education. Among the topics featured: Hebrew, Parasha, Jewish holidays, Jewish books.
According to the site´s representatives, the target of the website wants to help any teacher of Hebrew or Jewish studies to create their own content based on the sourecs provided. The content can be accesses in English, but the search can be done in any of the 13 support languages. All descriptions of images, for example, are automatically translated into the 13 languages allowing for searches in those languages.
Jewish Interactive plans to train teachers to become master teachers based on professional courses currently under development. They can create their own lessons and become part of the community. Under the community section of the website, teachers will be able to join and list their bios and expertise, and share their coures. Thus, teachers of Hebrew and Jewish Studies throughout the world will be encouraged not only to contribute but to support and share their experiences. As for now, teaching can be done via Google Classroom.
Although most of the access to the materials - over 17,000 Jewish and Hebrew games made by teachers - is free, there are also paid options, in case you need a wider access. For instance, for families - up to 5 children - the subscription is of 4.99 USD/month, while for educators - 11.99/month. Especially in the case of educators, the paid option makes possible to use various tools to trace and organise your classes. In both cases, a 7-day full access trial is possible, which is enough time to figure out the advantages and shortcomings, if any. In order to access the resources, either for free or as a paid membership, one needs to set up an account.
For children and families thinking about making aliyah soon, the section Ivrit Misaviv La´Olam can be used as a good start. Besides language tools, there are also interactive games explaining everyday life in Israel, which can be useful for both children and parents.
Jewish Interactive is browser-based. You can use it from your PC or/and iPad but not phones. All lessons allow the creator to both write and/or voice instructions. Some of the JIGs (Jewish Interactive Games) were created by the specialists from Beit Issie Shapira in order to help the learning process of children with disabilities.
I will definitely continue following the next steps of JI and will clearly encourage my son to improve his Hebrew and Jewish knowledge by using it during the upcoming summer holidays.
