Theories and practices concerned with cognitive functioning and development and its possible relationship to reading and reading instruction are reviewed. The nature of the strategies involved in reading and thinking are similar. Increase in task complexity for reading most likely involves cognitive functioning that ranges in complexity similar to the stages Piaget and others have described. Like concept attainment, reading requires of the reader problem-solving ability that is logical and mobile. Reading cannot be regarded as a passive process; like thought, it requires action, and it cannot be directed by passive teaching. The basis of reading is rooted in action within a developmental interactionist theory of cognitive development. A bibliography is included. (WB)