Ever wonder why literacy-across-the-content areas does not always resonate with content areas teachers? Ever wonder why some content area teacher say, "If only those English teachers would only teach them how to read and write, we could teach them (name any content area)."

The statement itself - if only - reflects the distancing from literacy that many content teachers experience through their own initiation into their content area teaching. For example, when someone becomes a band teacher, it is not usually language for learning vocabulary that is used. Vocabulary is quite specific to the content of music and becomes more specific over time as more and more is learned.

Therefore, over time the words used to describe learning in one content area separate from the vocabulary that would connect to other content areas. Differnces become clearer and more distinct over time. There is no hope of connecting student unless content area teachers realize their own content area learning and demonstrate the making of connections and the moving toward specific content area language. An understanding of language evolves over time is a fundamental concept of understanding.