A questionnaire on reading was administered to every student in the St. Joseph, Missouri, "Rainbow" program for gifted and talented readers. The same questionnaire was administered to a cross sectional sample of fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students in regular classrooms in the same district. Among other things, results showed that (1) 75% of the Rainbow students reported reading when they entered kindergarten, while only 46% of the regular children made the same claim; (2) the largest percentage of Rainbow students learned to read at age 4, while the largest percentage of regular students said they did not learn to read until age 6; (3) 97% of Rainbow students and 86% of regular students responded that someone at home had read to them before they entered school; (4) 56% of the Rainbow students and 49% of the regular students first learned to read from a family member; and (5) a high percentage of both groups used basal readers in kindergarten and first grade. Although some of the self-reported responses may be inaccurate, particularly from the regular students, the research still seems to support the conclusion that an eclectic, differentiated approach to reading instruction is the best for gifted and talented students. (The questionnaire is included.) (JL)