This book is designed to communicate findings of a research synthesis investigating the bases of reading failure and the curricular and instructional basics to help guide the design and advancement of children's reading performance. It provides in-depth analyses and discussion of six areas of reading, summarizing what the research tells about students with diverse learning needs and abstracts common findings into guidelines for understanding reading failure and reading practices. The volume is organized into six sections corresponding to the six areas of reading reviewed: emergent literacy, phonological awareness, word recognition, vocabulary acquisition, text organization, and metacognitive strategies. The chapters are: (1) "Introduction" (Deborah C. Simmons and Edward J. Kameenui); (2) "Emergent Literacy: Research Bases" (Barbara K. Gunn, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (3) "Emergent Literacy: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications" (Barbara K. Gunn, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (4) "Phonological Awareness: Research Bases (Sylvia B. Smith, Deborah D. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (5)"Phonological Awareness: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications" (Sylvia B. Smith, Deborah D. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (6) "Word Recognition: Research Bases (David J. Chard, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (7) "Word Recognition: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications: (David J. Chard, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (8) "Vocabulary Acquisition: Research Bases" (Scott K. Baker, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (9) "Vocabulary Acquisition: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications" (Scott K. Baker, Deborah D. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (10) "Text Organization: Research Bases (Shirley V. Dickson, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (11) "Text Organization: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications" (Shirley V. Dickson, Deobrah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui); (12) "Metacognitive Strategies: Research Bases (Shirley V. Dickson, Vicki L. Collins, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui; and (13) "Metacognitive Strategies: Instructional and Curricular Basics and Implications" (Shirley V. Dickson, Vicki L. Collins, Deborah C. Simmons, and Edward J. Kameenui." (Each chapter includes references.) (CR)