Considering the difficulties associated with learning through reading in history, this study seeks to better understand the relationship between the reading resources made available and the learning through reading (LTR) of Grade 6 students in LTR situations that include teachers’ support. The objectives pursued are to: 1) describe students’ LTR in the context of a textbook or of documentary works and fiction; 2) compare the advantages and limitations of these two choices for the students’ LTR; 3) describe in an exploratory manner, students' spontaneous use of images as informative support. For this study, a mixed research methodology was used: a multiple case study analysis (Yin, 2003) inserted into a pre/post design. The results are consistent with previous studies that validate Cartier's (2007) model of LTR, showing the interaction between the assigned activities, the texts selected, opportunities for LTR, and the field of study. They specifically illustrate the beneficial effect of planning for and supporting LTR in the specific context of textbook use and, simultaneously, the many challenges raised by the use of a body of work in the context of LTR. The results also highlight that students do not spontaneously use background images as informational sources in an LTR context, which requires thinking about how to channel more specific supports in that direction.