For the young child, the onset of speech and language acquisition is a milestone to be expected somewhere between 10-30 months of age. Behaviors exhibited by the people in the child's environment both before and after the onset of speech have infinitely more impact upon language learning--and eventually all learning--than the onset of the event itself. It is the nature of language learning which currently influences success in school. Children from mainstream American homes begin along their path toward a positive school experience almost immediately. Phonemic awareness is a very powerful predictor of whether a child will become a good reader and is one of the elements necessary for students to gain knowledge of the orthographic cipher. Students who arrive at school with little or no exposure to print are not phonemically aware. They need instruction and literacy events which will give them the phonemic awareness necessary for the beginning of reading instruction. (CR)