TheTimesTribune.com, Corbin, KY

January 25, 2010

Education Enriched

Corbin second graders reading at middle school level


By Becky Manley / Staff Writer

About 20 Corbin Primary School second graders were challenged Thursday to find the word that means “the sequence of events in a story.”

After a couple good guesses — including the word “parts” — Principal Travis Wilder revealed the mysterious vocabulary word “plot.”

The exchange occurred during an enrichment language class for second graders Wilder is teaching.

Wilder’s is one of two enrichment classes the school first launched this month, Wilder said.

The other class, taught by Ann Longworth, has about 15 first graders.

The students participating in both classes have scored in the 95th percentile or higher on two of three nationally standardized tests, Wilder said.

Wilder’s class of second graders is currently studying the classic novel “Charlotte’s Web,” which Wilder said is considered a fourth grade-level book. His class will also study excerpts from Kentucky literature.

Some of Wilder’s second graders are reading at a middle school level while Longworth’s first graders are reading at a second grade level or higher, Wilder said.

Wilder said parents had suggested the school offer classes for advanced students.

The response to the new classes has been good and Wilder said he hopes to expand them to other grades and subjects, including math.

“They are absolutely loving it,” Wilder said.