"The development of students' conceptual understanding of the world is vital to their academic success at all grade levels (preschool through high school) and across content areas. This professional resource and course text presents expert perspectives on building conceptual knowledge and vocabulary through reading, writing, and classroom discussion. Topics include the importance of word study and informational texts in early literacy, discussion practices that boost comprehension, the use of multimodal and appropriately complex texts, engaging digital literacies, and discipline-specific writing. Ways to strengthen English learners' conceptual skills are highlighted. Each chapter describes current research, explains how to plan and scaffold instruction, distills Implications for Professional Learning, and offers Questions for Discussion. Key words/Subject areas: concepts, conceptual learning, development, developmental, cognitive, understanding, academic knowledge, content knowledge, background knowledge, vocabulary, reading comprehension, content areas, disciplines, disciplinary, informational texts, multimodal, text complexity, digital literacies, writing, speaking, speech, classroom discussions, teaching, instruction, children, adolescents, students, English language learners, ELs, ELLs, culturally sustaining practices, early literacy, elementary, middle grades, secondary grades, high school, textbooks Audience: Teacher educators and graduate students; teachers, literacy specialists, and other educators working with children ages 4-17 (grades PreK-12)"--