The purposes of this study were to survey expressed reading interests of first and second grade children from different geographic areas of the United States, with differing racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds; to compare expressed reading interests of children in grades one and two in an attempt to determine if interests change; and to probe the derivation of children's reading interests. The subjects were 1,078 first and second graders who were asked on a one-to-one basis to outline what they would like to read or have read to them. A structured interview followed. Responses were arranged into topics and classified in seven prearranged categories; information scientific, information historic, information 1970s, realistic fiction, imaginative fiction, humor, and poetry. The results indicated that significant differences in expressed reading interests were found in reference to sex, I.Q., and reading level; girls showed greater interest in realistic fiction and less in information 1970s than boys; sex and racial ethnic group appeared to affect reading interest significantly for second graders; and significant differences in reading interests apparently existed between first and second grade children. (Author/WR)