One of the nonschool factors influencing children's reading ability is the home environment. Data from recent research point out four factors that promote child readiness for reading in the home: (1) availability and range of printed materials in the home; (2) reading is done in the home; (3) home facilitates contact with paper and pencil; (4) parents and others in the home respond to what the child is trying to do. To be ready to read, a child must develop organically, socially, and symbolically. The child needs to be able to master mechanical problems in reading, to be involved in carrying out a temporal-spatial sequence, and to be able to translate the spoken or visual words into concepts with which he or she is familiar. There is no such thing as "reading readiness," there is only "child readiness." There are many activities that parents can provide that will help develop the child readiness skills for reading. Parents can emphasize talking at a very early age. Sitting a child in one's lap and reading aloud, providing a quiet time and place for children to read, introducing the child to a public library, and showing by example that reading is an important factor in adult life can help a child grow into reading. (HTH)