This technical report, published by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Center for the Study of Reading, examines the relationship between children's out-of-school reading habits and their reading achievement. The study involved 155 fifth-grade students who recorded their daily activities for periods ranging from 8 to 26 weeks. The results show that reading books is the best predictor of reading achievement, including gains from second to fifth grade. However, most children spent minimal time reading books on any given day. The study also found that teachers significantly influence the amount of time children spend reading books, with classes that read the most averaging 16.5 minutes per day compared to 4.1 minutes per day in less active classes. Other activities, such as doing chores and homework, had mixed relationships with reading proficiency, while watching television had a negative relationship. The report concludes that increasing the amount of time children spend reading books should be a priority for parents and teachers, as it is a major source of knowledge, vocabulary growth, and reading fluency.This technical report, published by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Center for the Study of Reading, examines the relationship between children's out-of-school reading habits and their reading achievement. The study involved 155 fifth-grade students who recorded their daily activities for periods ranging from 8 to 26 weeks. The results show that reading books is the best predictor of reading achievement, including gains from second to fifth grade. However, most children spent minimal time reading books on any given day. The study also found that teachers significantly influence the amount of time children spend reading books, with classes that read the most averaging 16.5 minutes per day compared to 4.1 minutes per day in less active classes. Other activities, such as doing chores and homework, had mixed relationships with reading proficiency, while watching television had a negative relationship. The report concludes that increasing the amount of time children spend reading books should be a priority for parents and teachers, as it is a major source of knowledge, vocabulary growth, and reading fluency.