A study was conducted to examine the relationship of perceptual motor skills as measured by the Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test to word recognition, oral reading, and silent reading. In addition, perceptual motor skill and auditory comprehension were compared as correlates of the three reading variables. Subjects were 60 primary grade students in a clinical setting. Although the sample had been referred to the clinic for suspected reading problems, two-thirds of them were not in need of remedial assistance, and many were reading significantly above their grade placement. All were high within the average range for the WISC Full Scale IQ Test. The subjects were administered the Bender test--scored according to the Koppitz system--the results of which were compared to the word recognition level, instructional level, and independent level achieved on Spache's Diagnostic Reading Scales (SDRS). Auditory comprehension scores were obtained from the potential level of the SDRS. Results showed that perceptual motor skill, as measured by the Bender, was not sufficiently independent of IQ to be useful as a potential predictor of reading skill. Also, auditory comprehension was consistently higher in correlation with word recognition, oral reading, and silent reading than the Bender test. The findings suggest that although the Bender might be a useful tool for many clinicians in helping to recognize other problems, it is not a valid predictor of reading ability. (FL)