Parents are the child's first and most important teacher. This booklet begins with a story about the parent of a first grade reader. The parent in the story models methods which a real life parent could employ to help a child learn to read such as finding words that begin with the first letter of a child's name, or taking turns with the child reading aloud. Also included in this guide is a list of activities that parents can use to engage their children in vocabulary building, and further enrich their child's reading skills. A check list is provided to help parents in thinking about their child's reading skills, and planning further activities. Examples of discussion questions a parent might use to lead a young reader into a dialogue about the story are also provided. The guide further suggests that parents could talk about new words in the story, and their meanings, or words that rhyme in the story, or different words that have the same meaning as certain words in the story. [This brochure is based on "A Child Becomes a Reader--Birth to Preschool," published by the National Institute for Literacy.]