The Skills Achievement Monitoring (SAM) program, developed by teachers and administrators in the public schools of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, is described. The program, used in writing and mathematics, is based on three assumptions: (1) that classroom teachers are the primary untapped resource in schools, (2) that tests of any kind must be used as the imperfect measures of student learning which they are, and (3) that teacher efforts to focus their instruction must be encouraged and supported. The five key components of SAM - skill expectation, focused instruction, focused monitoring, instructional resources, and staff development - are explained and discussed. SAM is described as a dynamic program designed to link effectively instruction and testing in a symbiotic relationship. Instruction is the vehicle for helping students learn, while testing is the vehicle for monitoring the success of instruction. (Author/MK)