The unique focus of this text integrates a constructivist/emergent literacy perspective with science-based instructional practices that have proved successful in supporting children's reading, writing, and speaking development. Teaching Language and Literacy: Preschool Through the Elementary Grades begins with a brief overview of the recent key national policies and initiatives that have had a significant impact on the teaching of reading and writing at the preschool level. Renowned and respected authors, Christie, Enz, and Vukelich, describe a continuum of approaches to reading instruction, ranging from emergent literacy to Scientifically-Based Reading Research. They also present their vision of a blended approach to teaching literacy that includes the best elements of these diverging views as well as a set of principles to guide the effective teaching of literacy in preschool and elementary classrooms.