Katims, David S., “The Emergence of Literacy in Elementary Students with Mild Mental Retardation,” in Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, Vol. 11, No. 3 (Fall 1996), pp. 147-157.

This study examined effects of immersing four primary grade students with mild mental retardation in a literacy-rich environment. A variety of instructional strategies was used to assist students in understanding stories read aloud by adults, developing decoding skills, and developing prereading/writing skills. Results indicated the students made measurable progress.

 Katims, David S. The Quest for Literacy: Curriculum and Instructional Procedures for Teaching Reading and Writing to Students with Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. MRDD Prism Series, Volume 2, 2000.

The second volume in MRDD's Prism series is a practitioner-oriented monograph presenting an optimistic perspective on outcomes for emerging readers with mental retardation. The text includes many practical strategies for assisting students with developmental disabilities to gain meaning from text and to communicate in written form. This monograph presents a collection of methods, materials, and techniques for assessing and teaching students with mild to moderate mental retardation to become successfully literate. Part 1 offers a foundation for literacy instruction and considers whether students with mental retardation can learn to read and write, the existence of multiple ways to teach literacy, characteristics of a teacher with a progressive literacy perspective, and evidence of literacy achievement for students with mental retardation. Part 2 focuses on literacy assessment including reasons for assessment, the important stages of literacy development, and assessment techniques and devices. Part 3 is on teaching word identification and comprehension strategies to students with mental retardation and also discusses what teachers must know about the English language to teach reading. Part 4 addresses the teaching of writing strategies to this population with specific consideration of the nature of writing, how students with mental retardation progress in writing, and how teachers can help students improve their expressive writing. The final section offers analysis of an example of a successful classroom.