A study examined whether one modality for the act of reading occurred with greater frequency than another among a group of students experiencing difficulty acquiring the skill of reading. A reading style inventory was administered to 40 elementary school students enrolled in a basic skills reading program in Westfield, New Jersey, during the 1995-1996 school year. The purpose of the study was to determine each individual's preferred or dominant modality for the act of reading. Results indicated that the reading process the students attempted to master involves both the auditory and the visual senses, but a strong preference for either one of these modes was not demonstrated. While no one modality was more significantly represented among the sample, findings revealed that the total tactual and kinesthetic responses together were significantly greater when compared with the auditory and visual modalities together. It is suggested that teachers need to recognize their students as individuals and treat them as such: teaching to a student's dominant modality is a low-risk, high-benefit option. (Contains 3 tables of data; 5 pages of modality results by grade level, and 30 references.) (Author/CR)