SOAR TO SUCCESS

Houghton Mifflin Publsihing

Goal of the Program: Soar to Success has been developed to help students learn to apply and use the comprehension and decoding strategies and skills of an effective reader as they read across the curriculum.

Grade Level(s): 3rd – 8th

Type of Program:  Supplemental

Instructional Delivery Mode:  Teacher directed in a small guided reading group. 

Technology Required:  None

Reading Components Addressed: Comprehension

Recommended Instructional Minutes:  30-40 minutes/ 5 days a week

Student/Teacher Ratio:  7:1

Each grade level kit comes with materials for a 7:1 ratio.  Each kit consists of 7 copies of 18 titles, a scripted Teacher’s Manual, and posters.

Overall Design: The instructional plan for Soar to Success is a 30-minute to 40-minute daily lesson that is fast-paced and uses authentic literature, reciprocal teaching, graphic organizers, and scaffolded support to accelerate students’ reading growth.  In the Teacher’s Manual, each book has a set of lesson plans that are clearly organized and scripted into five-steps.  Teachers and students become familiar with the uniform, consistent lesson plan which allows them to focus on the use of reading comprehension strategies.

Assessments:  Manual

Placement into Program: Use standardized testing 30th-49th percentile on CORE Reading.  Students must be able to decode simple words. It is recommended that English Learners be intermediate or above to fully benefit from the program.

Frequency of Progress Monitoring: Retelling protocols and oral reading checks, and Soar to Success Informal Reading Inventory are given as needed throughout the program.  Every other day, there is time in the lesson plan for the teachers to conduct a quick retell protocol to monitor progress and check for understanding.

Professional Development Requirements: One day training

Who Can Deliver Program: Classroom teacher or trained instructional aide

Strengths of the Program:

• High interest reading materials
• Use of reading comprehension strategies and reciprocal teaching

Weaknesses of the Program:

• Lacking formalized progress monitoring assessments
• Lots of materials to keep track of year to year

Cost: $950.00 per grade level kit. Components of the kits can be purchased separately to replace missing materials.