Christine E. McCormick, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois, where she teaches courses in developmental psychology, early childhood assessment, and early reading. She has a doctoral degree in educational psychology from the University of Minnesota and is a former Montessori teacher and school psychologist. Widely published, she brings to this book over 25 years of experience in developing early reading materials for young children. Rebecca N. Throneburg, PhD, is Associate Professor of Communication Disorders and Sciences Department at Eastern Illinois University, where she teaches courses in normal language development, phonological awareness, and language and literacy. Her doctoral degree in speech-language pathology is from the University of Illinois. She conducts research in the school setting regarding service delivery and collaboration among professionals. Jean M. Smitley, MS, is Associate Professor of Communication Disorders and Sciences Department at Eastern Illinois University, where she teaches a course in phonetics and phonological development. She has also collaborated with kindergarten teachers to provide phonological awareness training to kindergartners. Her master's degree is from Eastern Illinois University, and she has focused on reading development and disabilities in her postgraduate course work.