Monthly Archives: July 2021

Hebrew opens the gates to a world of skills and deeper connection to Jewish prayer, culture, and tradition. 

That’s why Behrman House creates learning tools that support students of all ages and skill levels—whether that’s in the classroom, at home, or in the community.

For more than 100 years, we have partnered with Jewish educators to offer a range of options that can best meet the needs of your students.

Adaptable, dependable, and authoritative. You can count on us to help learners attain solid Hebrew skills.

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Setting Hebrew Goals

Strengthen your program by building in goals

When it comes to figuring out what and how to teach, there’s no need to start from scratch.

Start by determining what ideas you want students to explore and how much time you will have.

Then, choose curricular materials that will help you to get there. And by that we mean teacher guides and lesson plan manuals and resource guides. Our rich collection of educator materials support your work and mission. 

Think of these support materials as your launch pad, the starting point. They map out the directions for where you want to go. Then you can add in student text as source material for the content you’re trying to provide.  

First, some terminology. 

What are teacher support materials?

Curriculum planners create a map of the big picture goals and key concepts that will drive your learning program.

We have developed three big ideas that encompass the key values and purpose of

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What does a one-hundred-year-old Jewish publishing firm do to celebrate a big birthday? It publishes a book!

Behrman House: A Century of Jewish Publishing (Behrman House, 2021), described as both classy and quirky, tells the story of three generations of Behrman family ownership that began in New York City in 1921 and continued uninterrupted through ten decades, creating books that “set an esthetic standard other publishers had to meet.” [1]

In that time, the firm that began as a modest Judaica bookshop on Manhattan’s lower Fifth Avenue selling prayerbooks and ritual objects grew into a trade publisher and the leading creator of Jewish educational materials, one that has counted among its customers most of the Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist synag

“In the 1980’s we introduced our 800 number (800-221-2755) but for a while it was still less expensive to encourage people to call MU 4-2742 and reverse the charges. Customers usually did this to place their yearly school orders. One day a congregation called from California, asking to reverse the charges. Our office manager, Sheila Tannenbaum, interrupted a meeting Jacob Behrman and I were having to ask if that was ok. He answered yes and we continued with our meeting. A few moments later, Sheila interrupted again. ‘You won’t believe it. The rabbi’s secretary wanted to know what the weather is in New York because the rabbi is coming here this week." He told her, 'Behrman House knows everything. Ask them.'”   --Seymour Rossel, author and former Executive Editor of Behrman House.

Do you have a fond or funny memory of Behrman House? Did you drive the forklift at a visit to our old warehouse? Did you have an unusual encounter with a student ove

Temple Sinai in Pittsburgh has a lot to celebrate this fall: it's 75th anniversary and a return to the synagogue after the pandemic. And of course, Rosh Hashanah, the new year and a season of renewal.

The synagogue is creating Caring Bags for each member of the congregation, to be sent out before High Holidays. Among the many items included in the bags will be a hand-picked book for each adult and child. This will mark the kickoff of a year-long program that involves members reading the same book and accompaying programming around the book's theme.  

The 8-10-year-olds at the synagogue will be receiving Once Upon an Apple Cake: A Rosh Hashanah Story, by Elana Rubinstein and published by Apples & Honey Press. This chapter book about

A boy goes to doctor and refuses to get his shot, convinced his toy shield can protect him from germs.

When his father points out that his baby sister is too young for her vaccines, the boy agrees to get his shot so he won't pass diseases to her. He cries, briefly.

The boy's name is Judah, and is feels proud to learn that his namesake, Judah Maccabee, was also a brave and strong warrior on behalf of his family and other Jews.

A collaboration between Behrman House and The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot, The Hero in Me introduces children to an array or Jewish heroes - from biblical figures to contemporary ones - in an exploration of what makes a hero, and how each of us can be a hero in our own lives.