In this workshop, participants will build a deep knowledge of the science of how emergent bilingual students learn to read in ways that are different from monolingual, English-speaking students. So, what has research revealed for dual language programs that's been excluded from the reading wars? Participants will learn to apply an approach to literacy instruction that requires both meaning making and reading words, efficiency of practice, and focus on purpose, all while systematically leveraging students' first language as the most useful resource they have. This session also outlines pedagogical implications across literacy components, methods, strategies, and practices that are essential to integrating print concepts, phonics, and phonemic awareness instruction with a focus on developing readers & writers who are able to make meaning. Teachers will learn and practice essential strategies designed to explicitly teach and reinforce cross-linguistic connections.