YIDDISH AA – Elementary Yiddish I
Semester: Fall
Offered: 2021
Instructor: Sara Feldman
Meeting Time: M,T,W,Th,F 10:30am-11:45am
Introduction to Yiddish language, literature, and culture. In the course of the year, students will acquire a thorough grounding in Yiddish grammar and will develop strong foundational reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension skills. The course will introduce students to the 1000-year history of Yiddish culture in Eastern Europe, the United States, and around the world. Students will learn about the past and present of this culture through exposure to Yiddish literature, music, theater, film, radio, oral history, and the Yiddish internet—an introduction to the dynamic world of Yiddish culture and scholarship that exists today. Students must complete both terms of this course (parts A and B) within the same academic year in order to receive credit.
Recommended Prep: Modern Hebrew 120A/120B sequence, or equivalent level of proficiency
Notes: For students with little or no knowledge of Yiddish. This course meets for 5 hours per week during the window listed. Yiddish AA/AB is an indivisible year-long course. Students must complete both terms of this course (parts A and B) within the same academic year in order to receive credit.
For more details please visit the Harvard Course Catalog.
In response to students’ interest came a new format for the first-year students’ final project: a group effort to create pedagogical materials to meet Yiddish speakers’ growing need to be able to discuss family relationships without using gendered language. They evaluated existing language-learning activities and created new ones that use available non-gendered vocabulary.
Sara Feldman
Yiddish Preceptor
