This article explores teachers' discourses on teaching English Literacy Development (ELD) students in mainstream elementary school classrooms through an examination of their philosophies of teaching and reflections on literacy. The findings are based on empirical qualitative data collected from interviews with two English-as-a-second language (ESL)/ELD teachers in two school boards in Ontario. Both participants discussed the importance of developing awareness of and including in classes students' learning and language experiences from outside the formal education system. Challenges perceived in the school communities included the structure of schooling, the demands of the curriculum, the incorporation of students' unwritten first languages, and negative views of ELD students.