In order to understand better the elemental processes involved in beginning reading (specifically, how cognitive skills are acquired and whether a relationship exists among basic skills), Robert Calfee and colleagues conducted a first-grade reading diary study. Forty target children in 1973-1974 and 50 children in 1974-1975 were observed as they were being taught to read and were given systematic and continual tests designed according to the development of their reading skills. This paper describes the construction of the network of tests which were used for the study and which were designed to identify the specific skills directly related to reading acquisition and to control for those general abilities which influence a student's performance on virtually any task. Although data from the study have not been completely analyzed, it is apparent both that the elemental processes being measured did provide the basis of beginning reading achievement and that this method of assessment offers teachers precise diagnostic information about the instructional needs of beginning students. (JM)