Beaufort County classrooms will be full of “Wit & Wisdom” in the coming years.

Starting this year, Beaufort County Schools will employ the “Wit & Wisdom” curriculum for kindergarten through eighth grade. The curriculum focuses on grammar, writing and reading standards, while also integrating social studies and science concepts, according to Chocowinity Primary School Principal Alicia Vosburgh, who recently attended a training workshop.

“It’s going to be a very good program,” Vosburgh said. “I feel like it’s going to be a challenge for our teachers, but it’s going to be a productive challenge.”

Instructional specialist Suzanne Brantley said the “Wit & Wisdom” curriculum is a rigorous one.

“It has quality texts that students use on a daily basis, and it increases knowledge base with students in science, the history and the arts,” Brantley said. “It’s not a watered-down text. We had this quote that we heard while we were in training that said, ‘Stop watering it down and build the ladder up,’ so don’t lower your expectations.”

K-8 teachers attend one of two training workshops, the first of which was held July 24, according to Andrea Lilley, executive director of instructional services. Professional development sessions are also scheduled throughout the school year, she added.

Lilley said selecting this curriculum was a team effort of school officials and instructional staff.

“The curriculum department researched through several different companies and products, and then Suzanne and Nancy (Phipps) brought the teachers in and talked with them about a couple,” Lilley said. “Then we chose ‘Wit & Wisdom’ from that.”

Vosburgh said she is also excited for the technological aspect of the new curriculum. There are plans for virtual learning, she said — from a close-up look at the heart, to a trip through space.

Teachers across grade levels will be teaching the same learning strategies, but those strategies grow in complexity throughout the years, according to Vosburgh.

Lilley said it will be a tough transition at first, but any struggles will pay off for students and teachers in the end.

“We’re in it together, and we’re going to get there as a team, and you know, from everything we’ve heard, the first year is the hardest,” she said.

Vosburgh agreed. “It is going to be tough because anything with change is tough,” she said. “It’s going to be academically challenging for students, but it’s going to be a benefit for students.”

For more information about “Wit & Wisdom,” visit greatminds.org/English.