Children who speak the black dialect usually are low classroom achievers. Teachers must understand differences between Black English (BE) and the reading text. This paper shows how black children experience difficulties with reading programs. Three basal reading series are analyzed. Initial Teaching Alphabet - phonics; Scientific Research Associates - spelling patterns; and Scott Foresman - look-say. Reading comprehension involves external cues, cues within words, cues in the flow of language and cues within the reader. There is abundant evidence that a reading program succeeds as it relates to students' language habits. The phonology, morphology and syntax of BE are analyzed here. The three methods of teaching reading are analyzed, and the Initial Teaching Alphabet method is seen as least valid for teaching black children because of its phonological inconsistencies. It attempts to set up a correspondence between phonetic and orthographic segments of English, without providing for language cues outside this correspondence. The SRA method emphasizes mastery of sound-symbol correspondence, and many exercises require phonetic distinctions not in the black dialect. The Scott Foresman series uses all reading cues and emphasizes comprehension while allowing linguistic freedom. Whichever system is used, teacher skills, attitudes and dialect understanding are crucial to black reading success. (CHK)