Located in the Portland neighborhood in downtown Louisville, Atkinson Elementary has a very high incidence of poverty – more than 98 percent of its students receive free or reduced lunch. Atkinson has traditionally been one of the lowest performing schools in Kentucky, consistently ranking among the bottom five in statewide reading scores.

Atkinson has a new literacy curriculum in place as well as other new literacy initiatives, some traditional and some unique.

In this video, principal Dewey Hensley talks about schoolwide efforts to engage students in higher order thinking. Time is set aside daily for H.O.T.S. (Higher Order Thinking Skills) during which teachers at all grade levels engage their students in activities that challenge them to think at very high levels. Ongoing professional development and leadership supports teachers in asking questions that result in higher order thinking in authentic assessment and instructional activities.

This video was originally part of a multimedia professional development resource, Literacy Leadership: Stories of Schoolwide Success, produced by KET in 2008 in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Education.

Literacy Leadership

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