A study determined the effectiveness of strategy instruction for children with reading problems. Subjects, 24 Dutch children in grades 4 to 6 from 2 schools for special education associated with a clinic for intensive child care, were divided into a control group and an experimental group. The experimental program consisted of 13-14 lessons, each taking about 30 to 40 minutes. Instruction in metacognitive and comprehension monitoring strategies was given to groups of three children outside the classroom during regular reading lessons. Children in the control group attended their normal program. Pretests and posttests were administered, as well as retention tests four weeks after the posttest. Results indicated that: (1) the children in the experimental group showed an increase in awareness of strategies for reading comprehension, an improvement that could still be observed four weeks after the training; (2) children who received the experimental instruction showed an increase in comprehension scores, scores that also remained higher four weeks after the instruction ended; and (3) although a trend in favor of the prior knowledge condition could be observed, it could not be confirmed in statistical analyses. Findings suggest that the increase in strategy knowledge had a positive and facilitating effect on the reading comprehension process. (Two figures of data are included.) (RS)