Most very young children seem to have a natural interest in books. As children grow, some maintain this disposition, learn to read early, and become lifelong lovers of books; however, some children lose the disposition or do not develop it at all, and they never experience the joy of the written word. This paper looks at the educator's role in developing and sustaining this disposition in young children. The paper explores the characteristics of a child who has a disposition to be a reader, what can be learned from literacy-rich home environments where children learn to read "on their own," and which classroom strategies might discourage the disposition to read and which strategies might enhance or help develop the disposition to be a reader. (Contains 14 references.) (Author)