The read aloud helps us to build and experience a sense of community, it provides us with common ground for discussion, it entertains us, it requires no (or very little) formal student response so it gives all learners a time to feel confident and competent, and it connects us to reading and to books as a way to learn and enjoy. For all of these reasons, it is heartbreaking to see students in inclusive classrooms excluded from the read aloud.

Many learners with disability labels are visual learners and are best able to understand and remember content when they can see it represented in some way; in other words, they need to “see what we mean.”

Many a teacher has asked a student to “tell about the story” only to be met with a blank stare. This may be particularly true for students with autism. Some students with autism simply do not have the communication skills to be able to answer the question, others don't know how to communicate the information they do have, and still others don't understand enough about the story to respond.

Too often students who do not follow a typical developmental sequence of literacy are seen as being unable to profit from academic instruction related to reading, writing, speaking, and listening. When teachers expand their understanding of literacy, however, they can facilitate the development of a range of abilities, build on the skills that students do have, and craft learning experiences that meet students' unique needs and capitalize on their strengths.