Abstract
Language and literacy development are tightly interwoven skills, and the active processing of morphemes, or the smallest units of linguistic meaning, is one foundational language skill that influences reading and writing success (Carlisle, 2003). Morphological awareness (MA) refers to the student's ability to understand, analyze, and manipulate morphemes within words, and this explicit awareness of meaning provides a valuable mechanism to help students of all abilities read and write (Carlisle, 2010). In fact, MA may be an especially important skill to improve reading success for students at risk for or diagnosed with specific learning disabilities such as dyslexia and oral and written language learning disability as this skill promotes written word decoding and identification as well as related vocabulary abilities. Indeed, two recent meta-analyses revealed this language skill to have significantly increased benefits for students with such deficits (Bowers, Kirby, & Deacon, 2010; Goodwin & Ahn, 2010). In the following sections, we will examine best intervention practices for students with specific learning disabilities that are related to language and/or literacy deficits (LLD). Finally, intervention ideas and examples will be provided for how to provide support for students with LLD in the academic context.