Although much has been written about the importance of early literacy, we do not have sufficient evidence-based practices to help teachers and parents move their children forward in acquiring literacy. This chapter reviews the evidence on vocabulary, text comprehension, phonemic/phonological understanding and use, and fluency as they pertain to early understanding and mastery of the orthographic code. Further, language facility must undergird all of these components if children are to become successful readers. We explore ways that parents and early education practitioners can address critical skills at the convergence of language and literacy. We provide a review of successful interventions and make suggestions for necessary practices in which parents and early education practitioners should engage. We also address what it is that parents and practitioners can do to feel confident in their decision making when no evidence-based practices are available.