It’s not every day that students from the JEC Lower School have the opportunity to work with their RTMA Middle School counterparts, yet a new initiative is allowing for just that.

Beginning in the fifth grade of the JEC Lower School and continuing through the RTMA Middle School’s eighth grade, students are being challenged to develop a strong grasp of the most common words and phrases used throughout Shas.

Eight categories of words have been marked for extra focus this year. Students work together to memorize the words and learn how to apply them.

As one of the youngest students put it, “This is great because now when I see this word in the Gemara, I will know what it means, even if it’s in a place that I never learned before.”