About Mifgashim B'ivrit

Mifgashim B’ivrit--Conversations in Hebrew--began in 2019 when Gila Efrati, an Israeli and teacher of Hebrew, recognized adult Hebrew learners’ need for natural conversational practice. Gila organized monthly, in-person interactions in the Washington, DC area for Hebrew learners guided by qualified teachers who developed meaningful and engaging activities. Participants baked challah, discussed current videos, learned songs, played board games from Israel, shared cultural stories, and more—all 100% in Hebrew.

The new reality of social distancing due to COVID-19 presented an opportunity to redesign the approach—thus Mifgashim B’ivrit 2.0 was born. While keeping the original approach of providing a space for building confidence and skills in speaking Hebrew, the move to an online format means now we can…

have small breakout “rooms” based on Hebrew level and interests
invite new guest speakers and conversational activity leaders
“meet up” more often
open up Mifgashim B’ivrit to the world!

Meet The Faculty

Gila Efrati

Gila Efrati, the founder of Mifgashim B’ivrit, is a professional teacher with a master’s degree in theater and a teaching license from Tel Aviv University. A native of Israel, she built the theater department at Ramot Heffer High School and taught middle and high school for nine years. Gila was part of the pilot team at Ramot Heffer that developed a unique methodology for teaching, leading to the school’s recognition as an “experimental school” and its role as a mentor to other schools. Gila led the development of the new teaching method used in the school's theater department.

After moving to the US in 2000, Gila began teaching Hebrew at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, and for the last ten years she has taught Hebrew at Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital. Since 2017 she has enjoyed developing and teaching adult Hebrew courses, from beginning to advanced levels, at the Edlavitch Jewish Community Center of Washington, DC.

Dr. Michal Krupnik-Gottlieb

Dr. Michal Krupnik-Gottlieb is the head of MoEd--a unique Jewish after-school program--at the North Bethesda, Maryland, branch. She also serves as their academic director and as a mentor to teachers. She previously served as a STEM consultant at Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital, where she incorporated a new middle school science curriculum.

Michal’s background is as a neurobiologist, holding BSc and MSc degrees from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and a PhD from the Technion–Israel Institute of Technology in brain research, focusing on learning and memory. In addition, she holds an MA in science education from The Ohio State University.

In her home country of Israel, Michal was the head of the School for the Gifted and Talented at Oranim for ten years. She served as a lecturer and researcher at Oranim Academic College of Education, teaching graduate courses and in-service teachers. As an active member in the Research and Evaluation Authority at the Oranim College, her research interests include gifted and talented students, teachers' perceptions, and ways of learning. As an expert in pedagogy, Michal has provided workshops and lectures for teachers, parents, and adult learners in Israel and helped establish programs for gifted and talented students in several other countries.