The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how secondary teachers implement culturally responsive literacy instruction in their content areas. Culturally responsive instruction makes connections with students' backgrounds, interests, and experiences to teach the standards-based curriculum. Learning becomes more meaningful and relevant as teachers draw upon students' prior knowledge (Guthrie & Wigfield, 2000; Raphael, 1986). This paper describes culturally responsive lessons observed in public secondary classrooms in mathematics, physics, biology, social studies, and English. One school was in a rural setting, another was an alternative school housed in a village church, and three were located in urban areas. The objective of this paper is to describe and portray culturally responsive instruction so educators can have a more concrete understanding of the teaching and learning successes in secondary schools in which poverty issues and diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds of students seem to contribute to academic failure. [This report was published by Learning Point Associates.]