Often the difference between a successful and unsuccessful reader is that the former is simply better at finding enjoyable books to read. The capacity to select appealing reading is not developed in classrooms where the decision about what book to read is made by someone other than the reader: the teacher, the curriculum planner, the person who…

Reports on four low-income families enrolled in a summer family literacy pilot program. Describes how all of the families used literacy for meaningful purposes. Notes that the purposes and degrees of literacy used differed in connection with the social-contextual factors in their lives. (SR)