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Two CCSD 89 students earned perfect scores on Wordmasters vocab challenge
Two Community Consolidated School District 89 students earned rare perfect scores on a national vocabulary exam during the 2019-20 school year. Westfield fifth grade student Sasha Bystrukhina and Park View fourth-grade student Shreyansh Vatsa both correctly answered all 20 questions on the first WordMasters Challenge of the year.
The WordMasters Challenge is for third- through eighth-grade students. It emphasizes logic and reading comprehension with analogy problems that are significantly harder than grade level.
There are hundreds of students who participate in the WordMasters challenges. Sasha was one of just 18 fifth graders in the country to get a perfect score on the first test of the year. Shreyansh was one of just 14 fourth graders in the nation to score 20 out of 20 on the first test.
Sasha Bystrukhina, Westfield, fifth grade
Sasha wants to be a lawyer when she grows up because she likes mysteries and helping people. The 11-year-old said she studied for the Wordmasters Challenge by looking up the words in the dictionary, and calling a friend so they could quiz each other.
“I just really like reading and hard words,” she said. “I like that they’re challenging.”
Sasha is fluent in both Russian and English. When she moved to Illinois before preschool, she was in English-language learner classes. Now, her Challenge Program teacher Sue Pumo praises her vocabulary knowledge.
When she’s not in school, Sasha likes to read, go outside, practice fencing, and create pottery.
Shreyansh Vatsa, Park View, fourth grade
Incredibly, this is the fourth time that Shreyansh has earned a perfect score on a WordMasters test. When he grows up he would like to be an entrepreneur. His idea is to start a business that is a combination of Amazon and Costco
“I feel like in that business, we could get a lot of customers,” Shreyansh said.
When he’s not in school, Shreyansh, 9, likes to play sports, especially basketball.
Shreyansh’s Challenge Program teacher is Jessica Bainter.
WordMasters is administered by a company based in Indianapolis, Ind. Further information is available at: www.wordmasterschallenge.com.
Students who participate in the WordMasters competitions are coached and supported by the CCSD 89 challenge teachers. Learn more about the challenge program at: www.ccsd89.org/challenge
Posted: June 15, 2020