This project on composing development in the early grades (K-3) aims both to broaden our visions of the kinds of language experiences that can contribute to school literacy success and, at the same time, to support educators' efforts to make literacy curricula accessible to our socioculturally diverse population. The project involves a collaboration between Berkeley faculty and experienced, highly skilled teachers in the Oakland public schools. The teachers, all of whom teach in schools primarily serving low income and minority children, are collectively compiling a set of case studies to illustrate: a) the language resources for literacy learning that children bring to school, particularly as members of various ethnic and cultural communities, and b) the ways in which those resources influence the teaching and learning of written language in classrooms for young children. Ultimately, the project's goal is to examine the impact of sociocultural difference in the early school years, from teachers' points of view.The project is funded by the Spencer Foundation and by the Department of Education through the Writing Center. The principal investigator is Anne Haas Dyson.