Illinois Success Stories

Our primary kids really like your programs. We use your software every day in grades one and two. The children immediately feel successful and are motivated by their success. We definitely see significant improvement in developing early reading skills from using this software. A good tech support system is very important and the tech support from Essential Skills has been excellent. I absolutely recommend these programs to other schools.

Judy Wedryk, Grade One Teacher
Sacred Heart School, Chicago, Illinois

Essential Skills is a program that our moderate/severe cognitively challenged students have started using and they are all smiles. It is easy for them to navigate and complete the lessons. They wear headphones and the visual/auditory reinforcements are wonderful. I also found it extremely user-friendly when I entered the student groups, student names and teacher names. I am very impressed with the reports I can generate for our Illinois Alternate Assessment Portfolios. I look forward to watching the happy students who are working on this software. Finally, a program for Special Needs students!

Gayle M. Ryan, Technology Integration
Ray Graham Training Center, Chicago, Illinois

Our lower and upper grades are very fond of the programs from Essential Skills Software. Our older grades use Spelling Stumpers 5-9 in several ways. The teachers put in their own customized word lists for students as well as using the word lists within the program. The program does an excellent job of providing independent activities to teach spelling skills. We also have Super Phonics and Sight Words for our primary grades. This software is used a lot. It is easy to use, teaches the specific skills in a logical sequential manner and provides excellent value for the money.

Janet Kennedy, Software Coordinator
St. Anthony of Padua School, Effingham, Illinois

I have used Super Phonics, Reading Comprehension and Reading Comprehension Level 2 for several years. My students really enjoy using the programs. These programs offer the opportunity for individualized instruction and independence for hesitant learners and learning disabled students. They are easy to use and give excellent reinforcement and feedback. They are better priced than most programs and offer much more for the money.

Jan Burger, Special Education Teacher
Stueben Elementary, Kankakee, Illinois

Phonemic Awareness, Super Phonics and Super Phonics Level 2 from Essential Skills do the best job of reviewing and reinforcing pre-reading, phonics and reading skills of all the software I've previewed and used. My teachers are very, very happy with these applications. These programs offer lots of practice and repetition with many different auditory, visual and tactile approaches. The kids are always fully engaged in the programs and never complain. We also love the versatility of the programs. They are non-linear and not too cutesy, so we can use them with students at all levels.

Sharon Carr, Computer Teacher
Lincoln Elementary, River Forest, Illinois

These programs are very user friendly. They are great at keeping the kids' attention and the students enjoy using them. Your assessment programs provide accurate grade equivalents and skill assessments. I use the printouts at parent-teacher conferences. We did a little research using the Sight Words program, and our findings show that the children made substantial gains, and that their retention rate was excellent.

Gerry Bryak, Reading Teacher
Alden-Hebron Elementary, Hebron, Illinois

We love your software! We use the first three Reading Comprehension programs, Sight Words, and Phonemic Awareness every day. The students really enjoy using the software and there are lots of different activities for all the learning styles. The programs are suitable for children functioning at different levels and our students show strong evidence of retaining the reading skills being taught in the programs. The skills are in alignment with our curriculum and the programs are useful in preparing our students for the ISAT state testing. Our teachers and students love this software and we are thrilled to have it!

Sheila Dobbs, Computer Paraeducator
Adams Elementary School, Quincy, Illinois

The programs from Essential Skills meet the needs of many types of learners and we use them to help differentiate instruction for our students. They correlate with our curriculum and are an excellent supplement to reinforce the skills taught in the classroom. As a bonus, the kids never complain. They love the variety of activities and the reinforcement.

Jill Kocsis, Computer Lab Teacher
W.S. Beaupre School, Aurora, Illinois

Our teachers love using the programs from Essential Skills. The programs are skill based and methodically teach and reinforce in a way that engages the children to learn. We consider Essential Skills Software one of the most reputable software companies. We have never experienced tech support issues and we love the tracking and reporting features of the Marks Manager that comes with each program.

Sheila Watson, Library and Media Coordinator
Pekin S.D. 108, Pekin, Illinois

We find the Essential Skills programs to be excellent for our Pre K to grade two students. Any software where many levels of children can work independently on specific skill development without teacher assistance is good. The activities and skills have a lot of variety and are well paced. The programs always take the students back to where they left off previously. They offer good reinforcement and practice for what we are teaching.

Mrs. Sharon Gahlbeck, Grade One Teacher
White Swan Elementary, Rockford, Illinois