There have been sweeping changes in foreign language education in the United States. As the world is experiencing unprecedented globalization, knowledge of a foreign language and familiarity with other cultures have become increasingly important. Public schools are now implementing dual immersion programs to better prepare students for the globalized world. In this dissertation study, I use the term one-way foreign language immersion to describe the context that I am researching. The term is appropriate because the classroom in which the research took place was comprised of native speakers of English who were learning a partner language, Chinese. This study investigated a research problem related to the effects of type of methodology (literature circles instruction vs. traditional literacy instruction) used for Chinese reading instruction at intermediate proficiency levels in a Chinese foreign language immersion program. It aimed to do the following: (1) examine the effects of the two different types of reading instruction on the development of young Chinese learners' character recognition, oral reading fluency, and reading comprehension and (2) determine differences in students' attitudes toward the two types of reading instruction. The data were collected from two sixth-grade classrooms in an elementary school. The results showed that there were no significant differences between the groups on the development of character recognition skills or oral reading fluency; however, there were significant differences between the two groups on reading comprehension, in favor of the literature circles group. It is suggested that the literature circles learners' superior performance in reading comprehension could be attributed to the fact that literature circles instruction provided scaffolded assistance and created opportunities for group discussion among learners, which likely contributed to the learners' comprehension of the text. In addition, the results from the Motivation for Reading Questionnaire showed that learners who were in student-led literature circles had favorable attitudes and motivation toward Chinese reading. The results of the study also suggested that factors related to the design and implementation of literature circles instruction are likely to promote Chinese reading comprehension skills, stronger student engagement, and enhance students' motivation toward reading. The results of this study are important because they have the potential to contribute to our understanding of the effectiveness of intermediate-level Chinese foreign language immersion literacy teaching practices that emphasize reading instruction. In addition, the study has contributed empirical evidence regarding the actual use of a new type of methodology, namely literature circles instruction; therefore, it can be seen as providing teachers with "tools" for future use in foreign language immersion classrooms. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]