The Afterschool Alliance, in partnership with MetLife Foundation, is proud to present the fourth in a series of four issue briefs examining critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. This brief focuses on literacy education. While literacy's definition continues to expand to encompass more fields, reading and writing still stand as two of the most important pillars in every child's education. Low-income students across the U.S. are falling behind in basic literacy skills due to unequal opportunities to learn both at home and in the classroom. Afterschool programs are uniquely positioned to fill those opportunity gaps and support the acquisition of reading and writing skills among underserved youth to help them build a brighter future. Intervention during the middle school years is vital to overturn losses that occur in elementary school and give children who have fallen behind a second chance to get back on track to successful literacy development. All in all, more time to learn in an afterschool program that provides innovative literacy enrichment opportunities can be a great avenue for middle school students to make academic advances in the classroom and developmental advances in life. (Contains 15 endnotes.) [For the related reports, see "Aligning Afterschool with the Regular School Day: The Perfect Complement. MetLife Foundation Afterschool Alert. Issue Brief No. 50" (ED522625); "Afterschool: A Strategy for Addressing and Preventing Middle School Bullying. MetLife Foundation Afterschool Alert. Issue Brief No. 51" (ED539793); and "Service-Learning in Afterschool: Helping Students Grow and Communities Prosper. MetLife Foundation Afterschool Alert. Issue Brief No. 52" (ED539821).]