"In today's schools where writing is used as a means to promote clear thinking, it appears that reading a variety of literary genres has a related positive effect on writing. In a study of second graders, Eckhoff (1983) examined their writing after one group read a highly simplified textbook and another group read a text containing many literary forms. The children's compositions reflected the writing models in their texts. Students exposed regularly to various literary forms seemed better able to use different literary forms in their own writing. Eckhoff concluded that the students' writing was affected by their reading models and recommended that teachers provide students with a variety of literary models."

From: Helping Children Understand Literary Genres. ERIC Digest.