Success for All: A Reading Program for Elementary School Students

Success for All (SFA) is a reading program that targets early-grade students, particularly those in high-poverty schools, with the goal of ensuring that every child learns to read well in the elementary grades. SFA includes several specific features: a kindergarten through grade 6 reading program that emphasizes phonics for beginning readers and comprehension for all students; instruction that is characterized by 'scripted,' briskly paced lesson plans that make extensive use of cooperative learning in pairs and small groups; cross-grade ability grouping for reading, with many students leaving their homeroom to receive reading instruction from another teacher, and quarterly regrouping; frequent assessments of student learning; computerized small-group tutoring and individual tutoring for students who need additional assistance; staff committees ('Solutions Teams') that address academic, behavior, and attendance issues and that promote parent and community involvement; and schoolwide and classroom programs to develop social and conflict resolution skills. The program also includes initial and ongoing professional development for