This paper describes the assessment and instructional strategies used in a migrant education programme that had positive academic outcomes for a group of 11 eight-to-12-year-old Spanish/English-speaking students of Mexican descent. Students attended this four-week summer programme, jointly sponsored by the University of Illinois and the local public school district, while older siblings and parents harvested crops in the central Illinois region. Curriculum-based measures of students' oral reading fluency and comprehension, along with strategies for teaching reading and writing, allowed the teacher to tailor instruction. The article provides useful suggestions for teachers working with students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.