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Rochelle is an all-star tutor. She is knowledgeable outrageously beyond her years in the ins and outs of cantillation for readings throughout the calendar year. The structure and exercises she provided made learning my reading of Megillat Esther a breeze, and a joy to boot. I'd recommend her for learners of all ages and in any nook or cranny of Jewish liturgy and cantillation.
- Gedalia Penner-Robinson
Cantorial Student, H. L. Miller Cantorial School of JTS
Resident Alumnus, Hadar's Rising Song Institute
Check out Gedalia's Website, GPennerMusic.com
Rochelle worked with my daughter for approximately six months helping her prepare for her Bat Mitzvah. She is capable, responsible, and responsive. From the start, my daughter felt very comfortable with Rochelle and enjoyed their time together both in person outdoors and over Zoom. Rochelle taught my daughter how to read trope, learn her Torah portion and her Haftarah. I was surprised how quickly my daughter picked up the tunes and learned all of her verses. We were ahead of schedule, which was very comforting and allowed for the final weeks to be mostly review. Rochelle was flexible with our schedule and did her best to accommodate us. We very much appreciated her knowledge and support!
- Debbie K.
Sitting in synagogue one winter morning in early 2018, I heard Rochelle, who was then in 8th grade, chant the week's entire torah portion beautifully. Knowing that this portion would also be my son's Bar Mitzvah assignment two years in the future, I cornered her after services and asked if I could hire her to be his tutor. With her characteristic blend of enthusiasm and humility, she immediately agreed while also making sure I knew that she didn't have much experience doing this. She began formally working with him in the fall of her 9th grade year, combining in-person and virtual sessions. My husband had initially been skeptical of me hiring someone so young, but right from the start we were unbelievably impressed by her maturity, her responsiveness to both us and our son, her clear talent for teaching, and her ability to keep our son motivated and engaged in the process. Working with her was a true pleasure. My son looked forward to their sessions and she always pushed him to learn more and to do it better. At his bar mitzvah, halfway through her 10th grade year, she stood beside him proudly serving as the gabbai while he read the entire portion.
- Miriam S.
Rochelle‘s maturity, patience, musical ability, and most importantly, love of Torah and teaching are appreciated in every lesson that our daughter has had. While we could have waited for one of the wonderful B’nai mitzvah tutors at our shul, our daughter wanted to get started early and was incredibly excited to work with Rochelle. That she is close enough in age to be somewhat of a peer yet also so clearly a cool teenager sets the stage for a learning environment more like a chevruta— and yet Rochelle‘s expertise clearly drives each session. What I kvell about is that my daughter and an almost-but-so-not peer are learning Torah together. That learning Torah will carry on throughout my daughter’s life, as Rochelle models, and that my daughter is acquiring lifelong skills with such joyful kavanah is priceless.
- Maia M.
I learned to read Torah from Rochelle as an adult and am still surprised at the ease with which I now approach the bimah. Rochelle builds your confidence and helps you master the fundamentals of leyning, no previous experience necessary. Her "you can do this" attitude helps you identify the skills to practice in order to become a proficient ba'al koreh.
- Tyler G.
For my daughter’s bat mitzvah, Rochelle taught my daughter the unusual trope for the Rosh Hashana Torah reading. Rochelle was delightful, timely, attentive, professional, and fun. She was creative and patient, and my daughter always looked forward to working with her. The recordings she made were clear and helpful and she always followed up and checked in on progress. My daughter was completely prepared, and even when they added an unexpected Aliyah, she knew the leyning so well she was able to pick up in the middle of a paragraph. We attribute this to Rochelle’s thorough preparation. Rochelle contributed to some of the finest memories we have.
- Tova R.
Rochelle not only presented material in a systematic and clear way that was easy for my son to follow, but she also has a lovely voice and a reassuring and positive demeanor that made lessons a joy. She also offered knowledgeable explanations about why certain sections are recited according to different traditions. In short, she is a gifted teacher and became a beloved part of our simcha and lifelong memories.
- Elissa P.
My daughter, who has poor Hebrew skills, has just recently started weekly learning with Rochelle for her Bat Mitzvah. I can tell already that Rochelle was quickly able to meet her where she needs to be met in terms of identifying her ability and setting a pace that is both challenging but not daunting as she starts to learn her Torah portion. Rochelle has supported her with recordings and has a lovely demeanor with her that I appreciate profoundly. I want the learning for her Bat Mitzvah to be a positive one, and so far it seems to be one!
- Deborah S.
We are so very thankful for Rochelle and her caring and careful teaching. She led our daughter through learning and practicing the important content with patience and diligence and kept her on track, despite the many challenges that every family inevitably has. She also helped her with motivation, and made many adjustments to accommodate our schedule. A bonus is that Rochelle's musicality becomes part of the learning. We also felt wonderful with Rochelle as a role model for our daughter.
- Philip H.
Rochelle tutored my daughter for her bat mitzvah exclusively on zoom. Regardless of the medium, my daughter learned quickly, proficiently, and eagerly. I most appreciate Rochelle serving as a role model for my daughter. Rochelle always models love, care, and enthusiasm for Jewish ritual involvement. My daughter now wants to lead services regularly, a passion I attribute to her time with Rochelle.
- Rachel B.
Rochelle taught me everything for my Bat Mitzvah, from Shacharit to all of my torah and haftarah readings, to my dvar torah. I learned so much with her, and now I am capable of leading anything at shul, all because Rochelle taught me the skills.
- Y. , a recent student