Students' mastery of subject matter rests heavily upon their ability to read proficiently. Likewise, a teacher's capacity to cover all the material in a course and cultivate successful learners depends largely on the students' reading skills, as these skills are inextricably linked to problem solving, critical thinking, writing, researching, organizing ideas, reasoning, and creativity. Through specific examples, real-life scenarios, diagrams, and detailed guidelines, this book conveys the most fundamental and effective means to boost secondary school student learning and teacher performance. Key features in the book include: exploration of the seven core reading challenges--and corresponding strategies for success; tips for tailoring each strategy to distinct disciplines, from science and mathematics to English and social studies; a "Strategies for Struggling Readers" section in each chapter that highlights ways to meet the needs of students with learning disabilities and other special needs; and practical applications that implement and reinforce research findings, including the five common characteristics of successful readers. Chapters in the book are: (1) "The Challenge of Textbook Reading"; (2) "Becoming a Thoughtful Note Maker"; (3) "Managing and Mastering Vocabulary"; (4) "Reading beyond the Information Given: Thinking and Reading in the Content Areas"; (5) "Turning Questions into Quests"; (6) "The Reading-Writing Connection"; and (7) "Reading Styles: The Key to Reading Success." (Contains 89 references.) (NKA)