[In this text], some of [the] core beliefs about reading and learning to read include the following: children use language to seek and construct meaning from what they read, hear, and view; reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing are interrelated and mutually supporting as children learn and use them; learning to read involves learning how to decode words quickly and accurately; children learn to read as they read to learn, enjoy, communicate, and solve problems; children need to be exposed toa broad spectrum of reading materials and literature, including electronic texts; children develop skills and strategies through explicit instruction and purposeful, meaningful use; children deserve assessment techniques and processes that mirror the authentic ways they demonstrate their continually developing literacy children benefit from classroom communities in which materials, curriculum, instruction, practice, and assessment celebrate their diverse constitutions; teachers, parents, and administrators should make decisions based on how children learn and how they can best be taught. [The text] continues to emphasize a contemporary, balanced approach to teaching reading and writing with a renewed emphasis on integrating technology, accommodating the needs of diverse learners, developing early and beginning readers with a strong focus on phonemic awareness and strategies for teaching phonics, and teaching young adolescents in middle school.-Pref.