This second edition of a text has been organized into a sequence that reflects how students learn language--from listening and speaking to reading and writing. The book begins with an overview of the language arts and the teacher's role in planning instruction. Chapters 2 and 3, "Listening to Learn" and "Developing Oral Language," initiate the language arts program because they begin at the students' level and give strategies that help students become actively involved in their own learning. Chapter 4, "Words and More Words," focuses on vocabulary development through direct instruction and contextual reinforcement. The fifth chapter, "Reading, Literature, and Children," reflects the recent model of reading as a meaning-making process. Chapter 6, "Putting Words to Use," focuses on words again but from the perspective of preparing students for writing. Chapter 7, "Children Can Write," presents the various states of the writing process, with an emphasis on getting ready to write. Accompanying the writing chapter is Chapter 8, "Teaching Poetry." Chapter 9, "Language Arts in the Content Areas," includes an argument for implementing all the components of a language arts program. The last chapter provides a selection of resources, including books and audiovisual materials. (MS)