Noting that reading aloud to preschool children significantly influences their reading development, this master's thesis examines the many benefits from reading aloud to preschoolers. The thesis reviews research indicating that when parents read aloud, they help their children learn vocabulary, complex sentence structure, and story structure. Furthermore, by reading aloud, parents build their child's self-esteem, encourage curiosity about words, and introduce the pleasures of reading. The thesis identifies additional research showing that early readers experience more success in school than later readers. Children who have been read to develop print awareness and become familiar with language patterns. Their imagination and interest in reading grow as they hear storybooks and poetry. The research cited indicates that parents can model the joy of reading and introduce their children to the richness of literature, thereby fostering their child's development of a lifelong love of reading. Also included in the thesis is a discussion of implications for further research and implications for parents, including obstacles to reading aloud, reading at a young age, and when to begin reading aloud. (Contains 45 references.) (KB)