Kindergarten Peer Assisted Learning Strategies and directly teaching and reinforcing behavioral expectations are empirically supported interventions for building early literacy skills and increasing on-task behavior, respectively. Previous research has not investigated the application of both academic and behavior interventions simultaneously to prevent reading failure. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of KPALS with and without a classroom management strategy (CMS) consisting of posting and teaching classroom expectations and reinforcing them via a token economy for 20 kindergarten students from an urban elementary school in the northeastern United States. Results indicated an increase in the level of active engagement and teacher-directed instruction with the implementation of KPALS and CMS. Moreover, a clear improvement in students' academic skills occurred with the addition of the CMS. Future research and practical implications are discussed. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)