For students with moderate or severe disabilities, developing literacy skills is a critical component of successful communication, employment, and community participation. Finally, educators have a practical, concise guidebook for helping these students meet NCLB's academic standards for literacy. Appropriate for use in all settings, including inclusive classrooms, this book is the lifeline every K-12 teacher needs to: (1) Address Reading First. Educators will discover ways to teach Reading First's six key literacy components--phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, text comprehension, and oral language--to students with disabilities; (2) Implement proven strategies; (3) Plan better lessons that get results; (4) Teach students with a wide range of disabilities; (5) Make the most of assistive technology; and (6) Understand the latest research. The authors highlight reliable, up-to-date research on effective literacy practices and put it in the most accessible terms. A must-have resource on one of today's hottest emerging topics, this easy-to-use book will help everyone involved in education. Following about the authors, about the contributors, a foreword, by Diane L. Ryndak, and acknowledgments, this books contains eleven chapters: (1) The Power of Literacy (Susan R. Copeland); (2) Creating Rich Literacy Learning Environments for All Students (Jonathan D. Brinkerhoff and Elizabeth B. Keefe); (3) The Role of Language and Communication as the Basis for Literacy (Julia Scherba de Valenzuela and Marilyn Tracey); (4) Word Recognition Instruction (Susan R. Copeland and J. Anne Calhoon); (5) Fluency (Elizabeth B. Keefe); (6) Reading Comprehension (Susan R. Copeland); (7) Vocabulary Development (Elizabeth B. Keefe); (8) Written Communication (Susan R. Copeland); (9) Supporting Literacy Development with Assistive Technology (Beth Foley and Amy Staples); (10) Organizing Literacy Instruction (Elizabeth B. Keefe); and (11) Literacy for Life (Susan R. Copeland).