In an effort to teach all children to read as early as possible, educators are failing to teach the basic prerequisites. A model identifies the basic prerequisites for the development of reading skills in young children and suggests a hierarchy of goal acquisitions. The prerequisites are: (1) language development and verbal meaning, (2) perceptual skills, (3) attending skills, (4) listening skills, and (5) thinking skills. These skills form the basis by which the child learns to manipulate letters, words, and symbols and begins to see some form of equivalence between words and sentences and his own mental content. Language then begins to have meaning. The verbal and language meaning that each learner brings with him to school and the degree of equivalence with school language and verbal meaning will determine how easily or slowly the child learns to read. The model discussed is built on an educational program of prevention of reading problems rather than remediation. Methods are suggested for translating the various skill competencies into practical classroom instructional strategies. (CS)