WHEELING — A review of the new “Wit and Wisdom” reading series in Ohio County Schools is complete, and a small number of stories were pulled from classrooms in favor of others.

Raquel McLeod, student services director for Ohio County Schools, addressed board of education members this week about concerns raised by the public about stories their children were reading. They reported to administrators that some of the stories provided to students for summer reading were “too sexually explicit,” or at least not appropriate for the grade level students reading them.

None of the stories that raised concern were part of the “Wit and Wisdom” program recently approved for use by McLeod and teachers comprising the school district’s reading adoption commission, she explained.

But McLeod said nevertheless she and committee members went back and reviewed all 113 stories in the series. In the end, the group decided they would find “alternative texts” to replace 10 of them.

“That’s less than 9%,” she said. “Not all of them were pulled because they were inappropriate. Sometimes the stories were just bad.”

She provided an example.

One story titled “Feelings” on each page talks about a specific feeling, but offers no suggestions on how to address that feeling, McLeod explained. It didn’t provide discussion about how to act better, or where to turn when one has a specific feeling.

As teachers read through the texts, they offered suggestions on books known to them that would be better alternatives.

“It was a long process, but it brought out such great conversation, and it brought out improvements to what we are going to instruct,” she said. “It brought cohesiveness to the county.

“If a child is here at Madison and has to move to Steenrod at the middle of their year, they’re teaching the same concepts and stories. It’s helping everyone come together and no one is missing out.”

The Wit and Wisdom series incorporates phonics, reading and comprehension into one package, and that is needed in the district, according to McLeod.

“When we look at our reading scores, we have some troubles,” McLeod said. “What we have always been doing hasn’t worked — that’s giving out a textbook with 30 stories in it, reading one story a week, taking a test on it and moving to another story. It isn’t making a lasting impression on our students.

Wit and Wisdom takes a different approach, by focusing on a different theme each nine weeks, she explained. As an example, the theme for one class is “The Five Senses,” she said.

There are classroom books to go with the theme, as well as one-on-one books for the students to read on their own.

“They’re learning to read informational texts, and we’re starting it at a young age,” McLeod said.

McLeod said most adults today as a child had one reading text containing multiple reading stories when they were youngsters..

“Now the books are individual books,” she said. “Some are picture books, some for the older grades are chapter books — it just depends on the level.”

McLeod said the district considered six different reading programs — with five of them being of “the read a story, take a test” variety. But Wit and Wisdom is different, she explained.

“It helps with higher order thinking skills,” she explained. “The students are learning to work with partners, and in small groups. It is taking what they are learning and actually applying it.”

Wit and Wisdom also has a writing program component, she said. Students start in kindergarten learning how to write different types of essays.

“We’re teaching them the skills they need once they get past the school year,” McLeod said.

The next step of the committee will be to go through the teacher’s editions of the books and see if there are any suggested activities for students “that just aren’t going to work,” McLeod explained.