Good writing instruction can give students power over their lives. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore teacher perception of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students' funds of identity (FoI) and how reflecting on this information influenced the writing classroom. The purpose of this study was to answer these research questions: How do teachers' perceptions of instructional decisions in the writing classroom reflect CLD student identity? How do teachers' perceptions of their teaching praxis in the writing classroom reflect CLD student identity? How do teachers' perceptions of teacher-student interactions in the writing classroom reflect CLD student identity? This study utilized purposeful sampling of three fourth and fifth grade teachers in a small midwestern town. Over the span of three months, data were collected through pre- and post-interviews, study group meetings, and analytic memos. The instructional decisions that were impacted included changes to writing units, the creation of new mini-units, and support for generating writing ideas. All the participants, as well as the researcher, realized various ways to center CLD student perspectives as we reflected, analyzed, and planned action steps. Teachers perceived that interactions involving communication, grouping practices, and student confidence were impacted by the recognition of FoI. Additionally, the participants reported that FoI work in their classrooms impacted the classroom community, shifted teacher roles, and exposed deficit thinking. The results of this study indicate that teacher recognition of FoI increased the critical nature of teacher conversations; about themselves, their teaching of writing, and their writing curriculum and resources. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]