A whole language approach is emphasized in the reading clinic at the University of Missouri (St. Louis) because disabled readers need to practice their skills simultaneously in speaking, listening, and reading. At the clinic, teachers are encouraged to learn and use several approaches to teaching reading. However, the language experience approach is emphasized because it is the least known by graduate students. Teachers encourage children to share real experiences, as well as vicarious ones, and then stimulate thorough oral discussion of any shared experience before attempting to recreate a real story. The child's story is recorded in standard English, without attaching labels of correctness or incorrectness. Follow-up activities are designed to improve more specific skills. A balanced approach to word recognition is taken, with the use of context, sight words, phonics, and morpheme analysis emphasized in proportion to their usefulness in reading and to the child's particular learning style. Teachers report a positive jump in the level of interest in reading and a marked increase in willingness to participate, with measurable and significant growth recorded for most children. (EL)