Hebrew Alphabet and Hebrew Vocabulary Flashcards

• You will find that you learn some Hebrew letters, Hebrew Vowels or Hebrew Vocabulary very quickly. Once you have learned them, remove them from your flashcard deck so that you are left with Hebrew words which you still find difficult.
• You will find other Hebrew letters, Hebrew Vowels or Hebrew Vocabulary difficult to learn, and you will struggle with them, finding them easy to forget. This is natural. Using flashcards allows you to spend time with those tricky ones, re-testing yourself until you finally memorize them.
• If you repeatedly look at lists of Hebrew vocabulary in a notebook, you actually start to memorize other things about the Hebrew words, such as the order of the words, their position on the page, connections between other words, and so on. The problem is that you are always presented with the same Hebrew words in the same order. This is bad: it means you think you know the words in isolation when you really don't. By contrast, flashcards allow you to shuffle the card deck quickly every time, and you are presented with words in random order. If you think you know the word, then you really do – you are not memorizing the order or anything else. Presenting the Hebrew words in a different order each time is really important.
• It is very important that you test yourself both ways: from Hebrew to English, and from English to Hebrew. Flashcards allow you to do this by flipping the cards round. Memorizing one way does not mean you automatically know it the other way round.
• For new words, it's important to test yourself regularly, with intervals, rather than in long sessions. With long sessions, words tend to remain in your short-term memory. To get them into your long-term memory, you need to leave time, 'forget' the word, then try to recall it after a certain interval of time. The process of trying to remember the word actually strengthens memory: the more times you do it, the more the Hebrew word will sink into your long-term memory.
• Flashcards are very compact. You can slip them in a pocket very easily and test yourself throughout the day.

• It is better to test yourself regularly, such as several short intervals throughout the day.
• Create several decks of flashcards. Remove Hebrew words you have learned, and put them in a separate deck. Test yourself again after a week, then a month. For new words which you believe you have now learned, make a separate deck and re-test yourself after a few days. Keep words you are really struggling with in a separate deck and test yourself several times throughout the day.
• Give yourself time to 'forget' Hebrew words. If you test yourself again after an interval of time, it will tell you whether you really know them.
• As you start to learn new Hebrew words, you can increase the re-test interval, until eventually for some words you are only re-testing yourself every few months.
• Move flashcards from deck to deck, depending on how well you have memorized them.
• Shuffle the deck every time you re-test yourself. If you don't do this, you risk memorizing the order of the Hebrew words.
• Look for connections between words, such as words from the same Hebrew root, or words which sound similar, or words which are similar to those from other languages you know.
• Use all your senses: look at the word; speak it and listen to it; write it; repeat it in your head; imagine yourself eating or drinking a word such as bread or wine! Different people learn in different ways, and the more senses you use, the better your memory process will work.
• Memory is strengthened by frequent recall: practising often for a few minutes each time is better than one long session.
• Going through a deck of flashcards two or three times is sufficient for one session. Try again later.