DECEMBER 2019 \ GOVERNOR’S SCHOLARS PROGRAM The bulky, distorted skeleton lying in the corner of a classroom at Bellarmine University was created by some of Kentucky’s sharpest students. One of its creators, Jaxson Ratliff, 17, now a senior at Johnson Central High School, explained that the clunky 6-foot-long papier-mâché frame with no neck and extra-long legs taught an important lesson: its makers still have a lot to learn. Building a model solely from their collective skeletal knowledge proved an entertaining and mind-opening first assignment for students in the Healthcare Industry focus area at the five-week Governor’s Scholars Program on the Bellarmine campus. The site is one of three concurrent programs over the summer reaching 1,000 students on the cusp of their final year of high school.

AUGUST 2019 \ MILES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL in ERLANGER-ELSMERE Vivid facts about an unusual predator capture a classroom of first graders in Northern Kentucky. Together, students read about the Humboldt squid — most common in the Pacific currents off South America, Mexico and California. The giant squid darts through the sea with long tentacles and hunts with sharp teeth inside a powerful beak. For the class, the description is an attention grabber. The imagery suits a lesson about finding attributes in a text to differentiate between similar animals. The activity also lets students practice their ability as writers to describe examples and share evidence to support a main point. All of the skills are basics in Kentucky’s academic standards for reading and writing.

JULY 2018 \ SOUTH HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY in HENDERSON In a high-poverty neighborhood set against an old industrial district, South Heights Elementary has built a decidedly student-centered culture over two decades, with test scores rising and achievement gaps shrinking in the process.