This paper discusses beginning reading instruction in the light of Piaget's theory, which demands that we think more broadly about the term "where the child is" in terms of his level of thinking, not simply his reading level or reading skill level. Using Piaget's four major developmental stages as the basis, the task of instruction in reading becomes matching the child's level of thinking with the skills which the school requires. This paper examines the thinking of children during the pre-operational and concrete operational stages, and suggests that the attainment of the stage of concrete operations, or the attainment of conservation, is what constitutes readiness for reading printed material written by someone else. Reading programs constructed from this perspective, must deal with the reading "process" first, utilizing the different strategies available to a child at each stage of thinking. (CS)