Success Maker Program -
One of the
supplemental programs at Mellette Elementary School is the
Success Maker software program. It uses innovative
strategies to assist teachers in improving students' reading and
math skills.
The Success Maker program
provides individualized, self-paced instruction for each student
in reading and math. After the student completes 300
questions in math and 250 questions in reading, Success Maker
places the student at the appropriate grade equivalent based on
data gathered during this time. After this initial
placement, the Management System tracks each student's progress
and automatically provides the level of instruction appropriate
to each student's needs. Additionally, it mixes the
content, skills, and strategies taught and provided additional
practice in areas in which performance is weak. Because
each student proceeds at his or her pace, this allows the
student to to take on greater academic challenges while building
new skills, knowledge and strategies. Success Maker has
proven to be extremely effective in motivating students.
Immediate access to on-demand
assessment tools is another innovative strategy employed by
Success Maker. Teachers have access to numerous reports, which
provide immediate and accurate information detailing student
performance. Examples of the information available from
the reports include:
-
Number of
correct problems out of the total number attempted and the
length of the session.
-
Cumulative
number of problems, percent correct and total time.
-
Grade level
equivalent gains in reading and/or math to date.
-
Specific
objectives with which a student or group of students is
struggling.
-
Projection of
the time needed to achieve a certain gain or to reach a
particular grade level goal.
The teachers to monitor growth
and to prescribe any needed intervention, use these reports on a
daily and weekly basis.
Each student in grades 1 - 6
spends 1/2 hour per day in the lab working with the math and
reading components of Success Maker. Students who have
been identified as scoring more than 1.5 years below grade level
in math and /or reading receive compensatory time on Success
Maker using classroom computers, extra computers in the lab, the
learning centers and during the Kidscope after-school program.
The keys to the success
Mellette students have experienced lies in the effort put forth
by the classroom teachers. Faculty and staff members have
actively contributed to and participated in the successful
implementation of this program. Each teacher accompanies
his/her class to the lab and along with learning center
teachers, teacher aides and the Success Maker staff provides one
- on - one tutoring as students work with Success Maker.
In addition to this on - the - spot intervention, teachers also
carry the responsibility of reviewing reports and prescribing
any needed intervention while motivating students to achieve.
Community members and parents
are welcome to come and visit the Success Maker Lab.
