Achievement in most academic areas depends on reading. This study examines the relationship between play therapy and reading. Twenty-four first graders from two North Louisiana schools, who were repeating first grade and who had scored lowest on the Gates MacGinite Reading Test (GMRT) and the Stanford Reading Achievement Test the previous year, participated in this study. Researchers divided the children into an experimental group and a control group. Those in the former cluster received one 30-minute individual play therapy session each week for 10 weeks. The play therapist followed the Principles of Child-Centered Play Therapy and tracked the children's play, reflected their feelings, and set limits if necessary. The GMRT, the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale, and the Intellectual Achievement Responsibility (IAR) questionnaire were administered to all children one week prior to the play therapy sessions and one week after the sessions' conclusion. Results indicated that children who received play therapy scored significantly higher on the self-concept inventory than children in the control group. However, children who received play therapy did not achieve notably higher mean scores on the IAR (locus of control) and the GMRT. Likewise, play therapy did not appear to increase students' measured reading ability. Contains 31 references. (RJM)