Bring your students to the museum — or bring the museum to them
When Tanach is connected to real artifacts, real geography, and real cultures, students don’t just learn it — they remember it. That’s what these museum tours, school presentations, and virtual programs are built to do.
In a world of shrinking attention spans and easy misinformation, teaching Tanach and Jewish history is harder than ever. Students scroll past. They tune out. They don’t see why it matters.
But when they stand in front of a 2,700-year-old Assyrian relief and realize it depicts the same empire that exiled the Ten Tribes — something shifts. Suddenly the text isn’t abstract. It’s real.
זה מה שאני עושה.
I’m Nachliel Selavan, The Museum Guy. For the past decade, I’ve guided thousands of students through the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the מוזיאון ישראל, the מוזיאון ארצות המקרא, and dozens of other collections worldwide. I use artifacts, maps, archaeology, and storytelling to help students see Jewish history as part of the larger human story — and to understand Tanach more deeply because of it.
“My students at first were not keen on the idea of a tour and really just wanted to hang out in NYC. Nachliel was able to engage them so well that they enjoyed the tour and learned so much from the experience that it built vast discussion over Shabbat over what we had seen and its relevance to Tanach.”— Rabbi James Williams, Youth Director, Young Israel of Hollywood & Fort Lauderdale
In the Press
Naaleh Hosts Nachliel Selavan · Bruriah Welcomes ‘The Museum Guy’
See more Jewish Link features
- Naaleh Freshmen Hear From ‘The Museum Guy’— Dec 22, 2022
- Naaleh Hosts Nachliel Selevan— Dec 30, 2021
- Nachliel Selavan Brings Museums to Life— Feb 18, 2021
- Naaleh Freshmen Visit the Met— Jan 16, 2020
Can’t get to a museum? I’ll come to you.
In-school presentations and live virtual programs that bring the same approach into your classroom — no bus required. Primary sources, archaeological images, real coins and other artifacts, and interactive tools like Google Earth ו Herzog’s Hatanakh website — tailored to your curriculum and grade level.
Programs
Three ways I work with schools — guided museum tour, in-school presentation, or live virtual program. Pick one or combine them.
סיורי מוזיאון
- 90–120 min guided tour (up to 30–35 students)
- Pre-visit materials for teachers
- Custom focus aligned to your Chumash / Navi / Jewish history curriculum
- Optional activity sheet for students
- Optional post-visit reflection prompt
- Help booking the museum, if useful
מוזיאון ישראל: ₪1,500*
מוזיאון ארצות המקרא: ₪1,500* Admission is generally not included — each museum sets its own group rates. NYC schools enter the Met free.
School Presentations
- Age of Empires — Assyria, Babylon, Persia in Tanach
- Greece & the Maccabees — Hellenism and Chanukah
- Custom topics aligned to your curriculum
- 45–60 minute sessions
- Grades 3–12 (content adjusted by level)
- Multiple sessions per visit available
- English or Hebrew at full fluency
Multiple same-day or close-proximity: discounted I bring laptop + cables. School provides projector with HDMI + strong WiFi for Google Earth segments.
Virtual Programs
Same content as in-person — adapted with live Google Earth tours, artifact close-ups, and Q&A.
For teachers:Enrichment + practical tools to bring into your own teaching.
Includes:- Short prep conversation
- Recording on request (school use only)
- Resource materials for educators
- Follow-up links
Off-hours: $450* Israeli daytime hours (8am–8pm Israel). Off-hours = evening or early-morning sessions.
* All programs in Israel are subject to VAT. Programs delivered abroad are tax-exempt. For multiple bookings or other museums, contact for custom pricing.
2026–27 note: The Met’s Ancient Near East galleries are closed for renovation (reopening Spring 2027). Tours focus on Egyptian, Greco-Roman, and Jewish art galleries in the meantime — all of which connect to Tanach and Jewish topics. The flagship “Age of Empires” tour resumes when ANE reopens.
Booking Lead Time
US visits: I travel annually October–December. School bookings during that window should come in by early summer of the same year. Sometimes I can accommodate last-minute, but can’t promise.
Programs in Israel: Two weeks’ lead time is comfortable.
Teacher Professional Development
I also work directly with teachers — PD sessions built to give educators tools they can actually use, without rebuilding their curriculum. Once you see how archaeology or ancient geography connects to what you’re already teaching, you can start plugging it in. I bring the examples, the resources, and hands-on practice.
Sessions can take place in your school or — as with the Herzog Rimonim program — in the museum itself. Past work includes Rae Kushner, Magen David Yeshiva High School, and programs in Moscow.
Schools and Institutions I’ve Worked With
What Schools Are Saying
Tell me about your school
I’ll come back with a real proposal — usually within 1–2 business days.
Get in touch →