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Hebrew between lessons: what to watch, listen to, sing and read

A lesson is an hour a week. The other hundred and sixty-seven are where the Hebrew happens, and this page is what we tell our students to do with them: 71 things to watch, hear, sing, read and use, each with one line on why, and the level it suits. All of it links to the people who made it.

Levels are a rough guide:BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedA beginner enjoys a song on the third listen; an advanced student still learns from a kids' channel at 0.75x.

Watch: series and films

Israeli television is the best free Hebrew teacher there is, if you watch it the right way: Hebrew audio, English subtitles the first time, Hebrew subtitles the second, and one episode you know well with no subtitles at all. Start with the slow talkers.

Why each one, and how to use it →

Watch: YouTube channels

Free, and for a learner the most useful screen there is: you can slow it to 0.75x, turn Hebrew captions on and replay one sentence ten times. The first three teach; the rest are Israelis being Israeli.

Why each one, and how to use it →

Listen: podcasts and radio

Hebrew in your ears while you drive, walk or cook. The first ones are made for learners and explain themselves; the last ones are what Israelis listen to, for the day you want to be one of them.

Why each one, and how to use it →

Sing: the songs

A song is a text you will happily repeat fifty times, which is exactly what a language needs. Each one below is picked for one thing it teaches. Listen on Spotify or YouTube, read the words on Shironet (it pays the writers), and sing in the car where nobody hears.

  • Ani Ohev (I Love)אני אוהבBeginnerSpotify ↗
  • Ani Ve'ata (You and I)אני ואתהBeginnerSpotify ↗
  • Etse Li Hashuka (I'll Go to the Market)אצא לי השוקהBeginnerSpotify ↗
  • HallelujahהללויהBeginnerSpotify ↗
  • Bo'i (Come)בואיBeginnerIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • Lu Yehi (Let It Be)לו יהיIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • Medabrim Besheket (Speaking Quietly)מדברים בשקטIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • Yo Yaיו יהIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • Modeh Ani (I Give Thanks)מודה אניIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • SilsulimסלסוליםIntermediateSpotify ↗
  • Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold)ירושלים של זהבIntermediateAdvancedSpotify ↗
  • Shirat Hasticker (The Sticker Song)שירת הסטיקרAdvancedSpotify ↗

Why each one, and how to use it →

Read

Reading is where the vowels disappear, so start with texts that keep them or keep it simple. Ten minutes of easy news is worth more than one paragraph of a real newspaper you gave up on.

  • Hadshon: the news in easy Hebrewחדשון בעברית קלהBeginnerIntermediateThe site ↗
  • The word of the dayהמילה של היוםBeginnerIntermediateAll the words
  • Bereshit and Yanshufבראשית · ינשוףBeginnerIntermediateThe site ↗
  • DvashדבשBeginnerIntermediateAdvancedThe app ↗
  • Sefer-Li: children's storiesספר ליBeginnerThe library ↗
  • YnetAdvancedThe site ↗

Why each one, and how to use it →

Tools

The six tabs a Hebrew learner keeps open. Free unless it says otherwise.

Why each one, and how to use it →

Do: activities that work

The learners who get there are not the ones with the best app. They are the ones who put Hebrew into things they were doing anyway. Eight habits, none of them longer than ten minutes.

  • Get the word of the day on WhatsAppBeginnerIntermediateJoin the group ↗
  • Shadow one sentenceBeginnerIntermediateAdvanced
  • Label the kitchenBeginner
  • Subtitles in three stepsIntermediate
  • Cook in HebrewIntermediateHen in the Kitchen ↗
  • Switch one app to HebrewIntermediateAdvanced
  • Talk to an Israeli, ten minutes a weekBeginnerIntermediateAdvancedTandem ↗
  • Answer the daily challengeBeginnerIntermediateThe challenges

Why each one, and how to use it →

How this page is put together

  • Nothing here is hosted by us. Every item is a link to the people who made it or to a licensed service: a channel's own YouTube page, a podcast's own site, Netflix, Spotify, a ministry website. We do not store, copy or stream any of it, and we do not link to unofficial copies.
  • Song lyrics are on Shironet, not here. Shironet is licensed by ACUM, the Israeli society of writers and composers, and pays them for every page you read. That is why we send you there for the words.
  • Availability changes. Which series is on which service depends on your country and the month; the “where to watch” links show the current answer. A link that has died is a thing to tell us, not a promise we broke.
  • No affiliation, no fees. Nobody on this page pays us and we pay nobody; there are no affiliate links. The names of shows, songs, channels and platforms belong to their owners and are used only to say what they are. Our opinion of them is our own.
  • Made something listed here? If you would like your entry changed or removed, write to info@israelihebrewinstitute.com and we will do it.
  • The lessons themselves, and the terms that cover everything free we give, are at israelihebrewinstitute.com/terms.