A study examined the effect of sustained silent reading and writing on the reading achievement, writing, and reading attitude of students reading two or more years below grade level. Subjects, 97 seventh graders and 104 eighth graders enrolled in a semi-rural, predominantly black, lower socioeconomic status, Southeastern school district, were split into control and experimental groups. The experimental group participated in a 10-week pilot sustained silent reading and writing program while the control group used a basal reading program. Results indicated seventh grade students in the experimental group scored significantly higher on measures of reading, writing, and attitudes toward reading than the control group. Results also indicated, however, that the eighth grade students in the experimental group scored significantly higher than the control group only on the writing measure. (Five tables and two figures of data are included.) (RS)