The Judaic Leap®: Computer Based Visual Learning Module Helps Students Master Judaic Subject Matter

April 13, 2010 - PRLog -- To help students learn Hebrew, Jewish religion, culture, society, values, and tradition, The Visual Leap, LLC announces the launch of The Judaic Leap®, a unique content module for use with Inspiration® and Kidspiration® software, at the 2010 Good Ideas Supporting Hebrew Access (GISHA) Conference April 24. With the addition of this new module designed to integrate seamlessly with Inspiration® and Kidspiration®, schools can harness the power of award-winning technology tools to teach Judaic content visually and facilitate differentiated instruction.

“Visual thinking, also called visual learning, is a proven method of using diagrams, such as webs, concept maps, mind maps, charts, and graphic organizers to develop, display, and work with ideas,” says Jesse Berg, Founder of The Visual Leap, LLC and creator of The Judaic Leap®. “It is an intuitive and easy-to-learn strategy that works for many academic and professional projects. The more complex the task or idea, the more useful this approach can be. Visual thinking is a strategy that benefits people of all ages.”

When asked where the idea for The Judaic Leap® came from, Berg recalled his own childhood experience. “Judaism and Hebrew are complicated. There are so many different books, prayers, events and ideas from which the values and culture draws from. Plus, the language is an amazing decoding puzzle, largely because of the beautiful Hebrew alphabet. While I loved reading the Hebrew and chanting the prayers, I always struggled to understand how all of the pieces of the religion, language and culture fit together. Now that I have kids of my own and know the importance of them learning about their culture and enjoying it, I thought that there must be an easier way.”

That “easier way” is Berg’s innovative Judaic Leap®, which combines the power of visual learning with Judaic content. “Given the complexity of Hebrew, it was an obvious marriage. Since visual learning is an intuitive and natural approach for establishing relationships and connections within any topic, I thought it was a great strategy to make all of the facets of Judaism more accessible and coherent.  My goal was to make the study of Judaic content fun and to give the student success each step of the way. As an educator, I understand the importance of making learning fun and having students experience success early on,” says Berg.

Because of its visual approach, The Judaic Leap® does just that. It contains 27 interactive graphic organizer templates and over 450 Jewish symbols, divided into over 45 symbol libraries.

Students and teachers can use the interactive, visually rich intuitive graphic organizers as the basis for learning. Additionally, learners can use the symbols to create their own student-centered, interactive graphic organizers about any facet of Judaism or Hebrew vocabulary.

The Judaic Leap® is designed for K-12 Jewish studies at Jewish Day Schools and Hebrew schools, however, it is highly flexible and adaptable to diverse curricular goals and higher education.

Mel Berwin (Director, Kochavim & Notz'tzim Hebrew Immersion Programs, Portland, OR) comments, “As a Jewish educator, I find that using Judaic Leap is terrific. The visual approach to learning is intuitive for teachers and students. Students are totally engaged with the program and learn complicated ideas so much easier than before. As a teacher, I find myself re-teaching way less. Students just grasp ideas better with The Judaic Leap.”

“We are already seeing the benefits of using visual learning in Judaic studies, including increased student engagement with the material, accelerated vocabulary acquisition, and improved reading comprehension,” says Berg.  “Learning Judaic content with a visual learning approach not only improves students’ mastery of the material, but they become better thinkers and learners overall. When teaching and learning come together in this way, regardless of the subject matter, it’s a good day to be a teacher.”

About The Visual Leap, LLC
The Visual Leap, LLC® is a learning and productivity company dedicated to helping individuals and organizations reach their intellectual and performance potential. Our mission is to improve efficiency, productivity and learning with proven "visual thinking" methods. Our goal is to simplify, accelerate and improve work. Our solutions do just that. We believe in visual thinking because we have experienced how visual thinking helps makes complex tasks easier. We offer training programs and professional services for (1) school and university faculties, (2) corporate teams, and (3) right-brain dominant learners. Learn more at http://www.thevisualleap.com.

# # #

The Visual Leap, LLC® is a learning and productivity company dedicated to helping individuals and organizations reach their intellectual and performance potential. Our mission is to improve efficiency, productivity and learning with proven "visual thinking" methods. Our goal is to simplify, accelerate and improve work. Our solutions do just that. We believe in visual thinking because we have experienced how visual thinking helps makes complex tasks easier. We offer training programs and professional services for (1) school and university faculties, (2) corporate teams, and (3) right-brain dominant learners. Learn more at http://www.thevisualleap.com.