Jewish History for Homeschoolers, Families & Curious Minds

New online classes weekly. Monthly museum tours (in Israel).

Learning history in the museum with The Museum Guy
Engaging kids of all ages through history and archaeology. Photo credit: Kineret Rifkind
לימוד היסטוריה בצורה חווייתית לכל הגילאים. צילום: כנרת ריפקינד
New Year, New Free Intro Class!
התחלנו שנה חדשה!

What’s the plan for this year?

מה בתכנית לשנה זו?

FREE INTRO CLASS
Where Are We in History? A Young Time Traveler’s Guide to History
Thursday, September 10 — 9am Israel time and 5pm Israel time (10am ET / 9am CT / 7am PT)
Free · No booking fee — sign up on the schedule below
Sign up on the schedule below →
🏡
COMING UP
Home, Strange Home · Crazy Life, Part 1
One or two more standalone classes between now and October
Schedule to be updated shortly
See the schedule →

התחלנו את שנת הלימודים עם סדרה חדשה ומרתקת: “איפה אנחנו בהיסטוריה? המדריך למטייל הצעיר בזמן”. ההקלטה של מפגש ההיכרות החינמי תעלה לאתר בקרוב. למעוניינים, יש גם שיעורים באנגלית בזמנים אחרים — פרטים בדף האתר באנגלית (החליפו שפה עם דגל האתר למעלה).

📖
הסדרה הנוכחית
איפה אנחנו בהיסטוריה? המדריך למטייל הצעיר בזמן
לאחר מפגש ההיכרות, יש הפסקה עד אוקטובר. בין לבין יש מפגשים בודדים כמו “חיים משוגעים חלק א” — על חיות שלא תאמינו שקיימות, ובקרוב “מזון למחשבה” על הקשר שבין אוכל, שיווק, והנדסה גנטית.
באוקטובר ממשיכים עם הסדרה החדשה.
למערכת השעות

This year

Kicking off the year with a comprehensive series about understanding history, we will then continue to the main focus this year: Tanach stories in order — from the end of David’s reign, through the split of the kingdom, to the tales of the kings of Israel and Judah, Jonah, Elijah and Elisha, and more, alongside the archaeology, geography and art connected to each story. It’s divided into mini-series of 2–4 sessions, with standalone classes on a wide range of subjects in between, such as:

Where are we in history? Understanding the historical timeline — this year’s opening series • Crazy life forms — creatures you wouldn’t believe exist! • Food for thought — how did the carrot turn orange, and why is every banana genetically engineered? • Serpents in stories and mythology • Japan — ninjas, gardens, samurai and film • The Jews of Kaifeng, China • How do we measure distance? (connected to the series on measuring time and world travelers)

השנה

פותחים את השנה בסדרה מקיפה להבנת ציר הזמן ההיסטורי, ומשם עוברים למוקד המרכזי של השנה: תנ”ך על הסדר — מסוף ימי דוד, דרך פילוג הממלכה, ועד לסיפורי מלכי ישראל ויהודה, יונה, אליהו ואלישע, ועוד, לצד הארכיאולוגיה, הגאוגרפיה והאמנות שקשורות לכל סיפור. הכול מחולק ליחידות קטנות של 2–4 מפגשים, ובין סדרה לסדרה — שיעורים בודדים בנושאים מגוונים.

Two ways to join

Online classes every week. In-person museum meetups every month.

Weekly online classes

Live on Zoom · ages 6–16 · English & Hebrew tracks

New topic every week. Recorded and saved to your library, so missing a session doesn’t mean missing the content. Adults often join and stay too.

See the scheduleהצטרפו לקבוצת הווטסאפ (זום)

Monthly museum meetups (Israel)

Once a month · whole family · Hebrew (English on request)

In-person meet-ups at museums and historical sites across Israel. Kids ages 5+ are charged; parents and toddlers welcome free. Tours are organized through a dedicated WhatsApp group.

Join WhatsApp group

About the course

History is an adventure — an exploration of ideas, places, people, cultures, and the stories that connect us all. I’m here to share that with your family in this online Jewish history course, so you and your kids can also get excited about the study of the past.

This is primarily a Jewish history course, but we delve deeply into global history too. Jewish history doesn’t happen in a vacuum — with a better understanding of the cultural, geographic, and historical context, we enrich our own learning and identity. As a child of the Old City of Jerusalem, I have a strong connection to ancient history and archaeology, and we’ll learn about many ancient cultures and artifacts and how to think about them.

During the year, we cover Tanach (Biblical stories), other periods of Jewish history, famous characters in global and Jewish history, and the occasional fun topic across science, art, archaeology — using Google Earth to travel to distant places.

Do I need prior knowledge?

No, but it helps. I always introduce every topic with a brief overview to bring everyone up to speed. I assume my audience is diverse, and I do my best to present the material in a respectful and thoughtful way. Jewish and Biblical topics are taught with a respectful attitude towards the entire spectrum of secular-traditional-religious attendees.

My terminology is both general (Babylon, Genesis, Temple) and traditional (Bavel, Beit haMikdash). Everyone knows what I’m talking about and can connect.

Ages 6–16: Multi-Age Learning

This course is for kids and teens, and adults often join and enjoy as well. The earliest age I recommend is 6, but it varies from child to child — I have regulars who are 4, and some who joined at 7 when they felt ready. As the community grows, I hope to separate classes by age, like I do in the Hebrew course.

Recorded classes & video library access

All classes are recorded and edited, with extra links and videos added to each video. You get access to the recording of any class you paid for. Classes from previous years are grouped into courses and available for purchase as members.

Pricing

Top up your wallet, then use it for any class — live or recorded. The more you buy at once, the lower the per-class price.

All prices include 18% VAT. Wallet credit is for the online classes and their recordings only. It cannot be used for monthly meetups, public tours, or merchandise.

Free Classes to Enjoy

Every year starts with a free introductory class, and occasionally there are additional free sessions throughout the year. Some recorded courses also include free sessions — feel free to use the filter in the course library below to find them.

FREE · ENGLISH
Egyptian Mythology, Wild Animals, and the Ten Plagues
FREE · ENGLISH
Pyramids Around the World: A Virtual Adventure for Kids
FREE · ENGLISH
The Hen, the Goat, the Tree, and the Really Bad Butler — Tisha b’Av Stories for the whole family
FREE · ENGLISH
What happened to the Jews after the destruction of the first temple? — FREE intro
FREE · ENGLISH
Adventure Around the World with the Holidays of Tishrei — Free Intro Virtual Tour
FREE · ENGLISH
Color of Return: A Tisha b’Av Journey Through Color and Restoration
חינם · עברית
הסוד של המפות העתיקות! הכר את השטח — שיעור 1 לילדים
חינם · עברית
למה מפות עתיקות מכוונות למזרח? הכר את השטח — שיעור 1 לנוער
חינם · עברית
התרנגול, תרנגולת, העץ, והמשרת הגרוע — קמצא ובר קמצא
חינם · עברית
מה קרה ליהודים שניסו לברוח ממלך בבל למצרים? — מפגש היכרות לילדים
חינם · עברית
הרפתקה מסביב לעולם עם חגי תשרי — מפגש היכרות לחנ”ב
חינם · עברית
היסטוריה בצבע מלא: יפורים עתיקים בצבע — לתשעה באב
What topics do we cover — and what have we covered? read more ↓

Across four years in Hebrew (with the English track added two years ago), we’ve explored Tanach through Second Temple period narratives (Joshua, Judges, Samuel), with a focus on geography, archaeology, art, and history; the major Biblical-era empires (Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome); the Jewish calendar, agriculture, symbols, and holidays; and a wide range of fascinating general topics — mythology, hieroglyphics, the great revolutions (urban revolution, the invention of writing, the industrial revolution), the history of education and schools, amazing libraries around the world, travelers who expanded the world, and many more.

Year-to-year content is mostly fresh, with occasional revisits when a topic deserves a second look. The recorded course library you see below is still being built — more sessions are in the pipeline and added as they’re ready.

Monthly museum meetups (Israel)

Once a month: a hands-on, in-person learning adventure at a museum or historical site.

Once a month, we have meet-ups at museums and historical sites across Israel — an opportunity to learn face-to-face, have fun together, and involve the whole family in hands-on historical discovery.

The tours are open to the whole family. I only charge for kids ages 5 and up. Parents and toddlers are welcome to join and help keep things organized. In Israel these tours are conducted in Hebrew — English speakers can be accommodated when needed.

▸ Museums and sites visited read more ↓

Recent meetups in Israel:

  • The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
  • The Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem
  • Tel Beersheva · Abraham’s Well · Negev Brigade memorial (one-day combo)
  • Footsteps in the Valley Museum + Beth Alpha synagogue (combined)
  • Museum of the Land of Israel, Tel Aviv
  • Caesarea Harbor
  • Museum of Philistine Culture, Ashdod
  • Hecht Museum, Haifa
  • The Glass Factory Museum, Kibbutz Nachsholim · Dor Beach

Coming up / planned:

  • Old City of Jerusalem
  • Tower of David
  • National Maritime Center, Haifa
  • Tel Aphek National Park (Antipatris Fortress) · Migdal Tzedek
  • ANU — Museum of the Jewish People, Tel Aviv
  • Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv

Each meetup is themed to the site — archaeology, geography, Tanach connections, hands-on tasks for kids of all ages. The planned list is a direction, not a schedule — some of these may only happen the year after.

מפגשים אחרונים בארץ:

  • מוזיאון ישראל, ירושלים
  • מוזיאון ארצות המקרא, ירושלים
  • תל באר שבע · מרכז באר אברהם · האנדרטה לחטיבת הנגב
  • מוזיאון עקבות בעמק בגן השלושה (סחנה) · בית הכנסת העתיק בית אלפא
  • מוזיאון ארץ ישראל, תל אביב
  • נמל קיסריה
  • מוזיאון תרבות הפלשתים, אשדוד
  • מוזיאון הכט, חיפה
  • מוזיאון המזגגה, קיבוץ נחשולים · חוף דור (הבונים)

בתכנון:

  • העיר העתיקה, ירושלים
  • מגדל דוד
  • המוזיאון הימי הלאומי, חיפה
  • גן לאומי תל אפק (מבצר אנטיפטרוס) · מגדל צדק
  • אנ"ו — מוזיאון העם היהודי, תל אביב
  • מוזיאון הטבע ע"ש שטיינהרדט, תל אביב

כל מפגש מתוכנן לפי האתר — ארכיאולוגיה, גיאוגרפיה, קשרים לתנ"ך, ומשימות לילדים בכל הגילאים. הרשימה בתכנון היא כיוון ולא לוח זמנים — חלק מהאתרים ייתכן שיגיעו רק בשנה שאחרי.

How do I sign up?

Tours are scheduled through group discussion and surveys to find the best days, times, and attendance. Join the dedicated WhatsApp group (Hebrew) to participate in planning and receive updates.

Tours in the US?

Yes — I travel annually to the New York area (tours at the Met and AMNH), California (Getty Villa, with plans to add the Skirball), and visits to Atlanta, Florida, Chicago, and Baltimore. Open to traveling to meet other homeschool communities.

What does it cost?

~₪80 for the first child · ~₪70 for each additional child, plus museum admission per each museum’s policy.

Parents, guardians, and siblings under 6 join free. Group discounts when available. Tips are always welcome.

US rates are in USD and slightly different.

Courses & Recordings Library

Years of live classes, now available to watch anytime. New courses added regularly.

Schedule

Reviews

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