Alex Pukos works with his fourth-grade teacher, Lisa Wagner, to prepare his end-of-year portfolio, a collection of his work.

Fourth grader
earns perfect score

Alex Pukos knows first hand how hard work can pay off. Alex, a fourth-grader at Churchville Elementary School, earned a perfect score on the New York State English Language Arts test, earning an 800 out of 800.

Lisa Wagner, Alex's teacher, describes him as a "hard worker." Wagner explains, "Since September, Alex has consistently applied himself. He was a high achiever when he came into my class, but he wanted to achieve more." Alex attributes his success to a new initiative implemented in all Churchville-Chili Schools this past school year called Academic Instruction Services for all (AISa). "AISa helped me to learn skills so I could earn a good score," he said.

AISa allows time within each school day for additional instruction in English Language Arts. Students are grouped according to their abilities. Teachers adapt lessons to meet the needs of each child.

Like many other fourth-grade students in New York state, Alex took this ELA exam in February.