The Zilberman Method is a system of teaching the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

to young students, pioneered by

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

rabbi Yitzchak Shlomo Zilberman, that emphasizes rote learning of the text, while leaving the more advanced study of

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

to older students. Schools employing the method are colloquially referred to as Zilberman Schools.

Theory

The Zilberman Method draws upon traditional teaching methods as outlined by

Chazal Chazal or Ḥazal () are the Jewish sages of the Mishnaic and Talmudic eras, spanning from the final 300 years of the Second Temple period until the 7th century, or . Their authority was mostly in the field of ''Halakha'' (Jewish law) and les ...

and championed by The Maharal and the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman''), also known as the Vilna Gaon ( ''Der Vilner Goen''; ; or Elijah of Vilna, or by his Hebrew acronym Gr"a ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu": "Our great teacher Elijah"; Sialiec, April 23, 172 ...

. The

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

and the

set forth

halakhic ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is based on biblical commandments (''mitzv ...

guidelines for teaching Torah to children. These guidelines include the ages at which texts should be studied: "Five years old s the age to begin studyingScripture; a ten year-old earnsthe Mishnah; a thirteen year-old for the ''

mitzvot In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word (; , ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment from God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discussion of these commandments ...

'' ( bligation of thecommandments); a fifteen year-old or the studyof Talmud..."; the times of study (including Shabbat for children; ''Hachazan roeh heichan tinokot korin'' – the chazzan observes n Shabbatwhere n the textthe children are reading) and the manner of teaching (''safi lei k'tura'' –stuffing the children like oxen; ''ligmar inish v'hadar lisbor'' –read the text and then explain it. The Zilberman method has children focus exclusively on

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages, Indigenous languages of California See also

* Pentateuch (dis ...

(Scripture) is introduced in the following manner. On Monday and Tuesday, the teacher chants the text with the ''tropp'' ( ''ta'amei ha'mikra'') and the students immediately imitate him. This is repeated several times until the students are able to read the text independently. Then the teacher introduces the translation/explanation of the text and invites students to participate in the process. New words typically need to be translated only once; subsequently, students are encouraged to call out the translation on their own. All translations are strictly literal. If the translation does not automatically yield a comprehensible meaning, the students are invited to try to find one. The class spends the rest of the week reviewing the material. Each pasuk is reviewed with the tropp at least twenty-four times. Adjustments are made for each grade level.

Examples

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; , , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the seven-day week, week—i.e., Friday prayer, Friday–Saturday. On this day, religious Jews ...

63a it states, "A man should recite, and only later expound." This is in contrast to standard procedure in the Torah world, where intense scrutiny of the text at a relatively young age is favoured over the covering and committing to memory of vast amounts of material. Zilberman also instituted that school sessions be continued on

and

Jewish holidays Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' (, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed by Jews throughout the Hebrew calendar.This article focuses on practices of mainstream Rabbinic Judaism. ...

, albeit at a reduced schedule."Rav Yitzchok Shlomo Zilberman: The Zilberman Derech -Charting a New-Old Path"
''The Jewish Eye''

Other practices

Rabbi Zilberman kept the practice of donning his

tefilin Tefillin (Israeli Hebrew: / ; Ashkenazic pronunciation: ; Modern Hebrew pronunciation: ), or phylacteries, are a set of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. Tefillin ...

all day, and so encouraged his students.Hadar, Alon (23 August 2007
"Goodbye to All That"
''Haaretz''. "They wore tefillin hylacteriesall the time." In normative practice, the tefilin are removed after

Shacharit ''Shacharit'' ( ''šaḥăriṯ''), or ''Shacharis'' in Ashkenazi Hebrew, is the morning '' tefillah'' (prayer) of Judaism, one of the three daily prayers. Different traditions identify different primary components of ''Shacharit''. E ...

. Zilberman was one of the first rabbis to promote the usage of

tekhelet ''Tekhelet'' ( ''təḵēleṯ''; also transliterated ''tekheleth'', ''t'chelet'', ''techelet'', and ''techeiles'') is a highly valued blue dye that held great significance in history of the Mediterranean region, ancient Mediterranean civil ...

, and encouraged his students and family to make use of the dye in their

tzitzit ''Tzitzit'' ( ''ṣīṣīṯ'', ; plural ''ṣīṣiyyōṯ'', Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazi: '; and Samaritan Hebrew, Samaritan: ') are specially knotted ritual Fringe (trim), fringes, or tassels, worn in antiquity by Israelites and today by o ...

.Meyers Epstein, Varda (3 January 2014
"Tekhelet: A Choice or an Imperative?"
''The Jewish Press'' He encouraged his students to get married young, because it states in ''Pirkei Avot'' "An 18 year-old ntersthe ''

chuppah A ''chuppah'' (, ) is a canopy under which a Judaism, Jewish couple stand during their Jewish wedding, wedding ceremony. It consists of a cloth or sheet, sometimes a tallit, stretched or supported over four poles, or sometimes manually held u ...

'' (wedding canopy)".

History

Proponents of the Zilberman Method argue that it is not a new innovation, but rather a return to an ancient form of

Torah study Torah study is the study of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature, and similar works, all of which are Judaism's Sifrei kodesh, religious texts. According to Rabbinic Judaism, the study is done for the purpose of the ''mi ...

elucidated in the

Mishna The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

and

, and favoured by both the Maharal and the Vilna Gaon. Zilberman found the existing Jerusalem ''

heder A ''cheder'' (, lit. 'room'; Yiddish pronunciation: ''khéyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language. History ''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th century. L ...

''s' curriculum not suitable for his own children, so he began to teach them at home according to his method. In the beginning of the 1980s, after years of limited success with incorporating his teaching style in existing institutions, Zilberman founded, with the help of his sons, a school in the northern part of the

Jewish Quarter Jewish Quarter may refer to: *Jewish quarter (diaspora), areas of many cities and towns traditionally inhabited by Jews *Jewish Quarter (Jerusalem), one of the four traditional quarters of the Old City of Jerusalem *Jewish Quarter (), a popular name ...

of Jerusalem. The school,

Yeshivat Aderet Eliyahu Yeshivat Aderet Eliyahu (, commonly referred to as "Zilberman's") is a Haredi Lithuanian-style educational institution located in the Old City of Jerusalem. If follows the teachings of the Vilna Gaon and utilises the Zilberman Method, a unique pe ...

– also known as "Zilberman's

Cheder A ''cheder'' (, lit. 'room'; Yiddish pronunciation: ''khéyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language. History ''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th century. L ...

" – adopted its founder's method, and became an inspiration for many of his students, who later branched out all over

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

founding schools with the same teaching approach. Zilberman's life work was favored by rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach and the Tchebiner Rav.

Schools using the Zilberman Method

In addition to Yeshivat Aderet Eliyahu, numerous other schools throughout Israel adhere to Zilberman Method principles, including Talmud Torah Yishrei Lev and the Zichru schools.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official websiteZilberman Method
at Jewish Spiritual library
The Zilberman Method
in Jewish Action
The Zilberman Method Innovation in Torah education
on Five Towns Jewish Times. Jewish education Learning methods