As part of a larger study on the levels experienced by deaf children in acquiring knowledge about printed letters, words, and stories, an investigation was undertaken to discover the effects of a reciprocal teaching method on deaf children's learning of four prereading skills--finger spelling, book reading, story reciting, and word recognition. Subjects, 23 prelingually deaf kindergarten and first grade students with severe-to-profound and profound hearing losses, met in groups of five or six for 30 minutes each week with the teacher. The teacher read and signed an experimental storybook containing three to five new words in a picture context with a manual sign illustration. After discussing the new signs, the children performed a number of activities involving the four target skills. In addition, the children took the books home to read with siblings, parents, and friends. Gains made in prereading were measured through pretesting and posttesting. Results indicated that the reciprocal teaching procedure could build prereading skills in young deaf children. The training was beneficial for students with a wide range of abilities. (FL)