Intensive beginners’ Yiddish class will use new prizewinning textbook

Image by Yiddish Book Center

By Forverts Staff October 5, 2021

For six weeks in November and December, the Yiddish Book Center will conduct an intensive beginners class online, using its prizewinning multimedia Yiddish textbook, “In Eynem” (a Yiddish expression which means “together”).

The book, written by Asya Vaisman Schulman and Jordan Brown with Mikhl Yashinsky, received a Textbook Excellence Award last February from the Textbook and Academic Authors Association. As one of the judges put it: “I’ve seen a lot of foreign language textbooks over the years, but this one was so engaging that I had a hard time putting it down. It’s the best marriage of authentic language and culture (both day-to-day and high culture) I’ve seen in a foreign language textbook.”

The prizewinning textbook that will be used for the course Image by The Yiddish Book Center

Using the textbook’s website, students will be introduced to a wide variety of multimedia resources, primary source historical documents and literary texts. The book also includes a cast of characters that represent the various types of people who speak and study Yiddish today, from Hasidim to Jews of color.

Although the course, which will meet twice a week, is designed for students with no prior Yiddish language experience, they are expected to familiarize themselves with the Yiddish alphabet before the program begins. To sign up for the class, click here.

Rukhl Schaechter and Zach Golden are the staff of the Forverts, the Yiddish Forward.

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