At least that's what Pat Hunter thinks. Looking at the WASL scores for Maple Elementary, a high-needs school in south Seattle, she might be on to something here. 

Hunter has been principal at the K-5 elementary school for about the last seven years. Just this last year, the 425-student school posted great results on the math WASL, about 82 percent of the fourth graders passed. To explain this, in a school where 65 percent of the children are on free and reduced lunch, Hunter points to the writing and reading pass scores, which were 80 percent and 91 percent respectively.

"The math WASL is really a writing and reading test," she said, as she enjoyed a quick break in an office stuffed with memos, snap shots of her grown children, memos and inspirational words.

If the children know how to read and write well, then when they turn to that math problem, they'll be able to solve it, she said. Maple was ranked eleventh among the 69 elementary schools in the Seattle School District for its WASL scores. The other schools grouped around Maple, however, have free and reduced lunch percentages in the lower digits.

Many of their students, about 25 percent, enter school with one dialect of Chinese as their first language, so the Maple staff have to take the kids from there to gain a foot-hold on the English language. Four years later, the kids have nailed the language, and show it by nailing the WASL.

But that doesn't mean the school has lost its roots or culture. Hunter told me the students revel in the diversity at the school and often participate in cultural events, such as the lion dance shown here.

I got the feeling, after talking with Pat, that she LOVES this school and plans to stay here awhile, trying each day to find good teachers and good technology to help the kids succeed. All the while, having fun.