A study investigated kindergarten children's awareness of how they are learning to read at home and in school. Fifty-six children were selected from two schools with contrasting instruction for beginning reading. Children were interviewed in kindergarten and first grade and asked questions designed to tap their awareness of how they were learning to read. Tasks were administered to obtain measures on phonic awareness and story-reading knowledge. A parent questionnaire was used to assess home support for early reading, and home observations were conducted to examine home literacy interaction patterns. Results demonstrate that most children can talk about how they are learning to read at home and in school, and that the responses match the school instruction and change over time. The case study findings indicate that some parents are deliberate in structuring literacy events, and that children's awareness responses match the interaction patterns in their homes. (Tables, figures, and three pages of references are included.) (Author/HTH)