As part of a longitudinal study of 710 children, the role of the home physical environment in the school achievement of third grade children is investigated. Home interviews gathered information on family characteristics and physical accommodations. Children's achievement data was obtained by achievement tests and teacher ratings. It was hypothesized that achievement would vary directly with better quality of housing and provision of suitable study space, and that it would vary inversely with measures of crowding and noise. Two-way analysis of variance tables were computed, with physical and social factors (sharing of homework room, housing type, amount of noise, etc.) as independent variables, and achievement data as dependent variables. The hypothesis proved true, with the exception of one physical variable, overcrowding of persons per room of the dwelling unit. Conclusions are tentative due to certain limitations of the study. It may be that, within reasonable limits, it is not the number of people who occupy a dwelling that influences study and retention, but rather the way the available space is divided and used. (NH)