A battery of cognitive, personal, and demographic tests were given to 216 children from Title I (of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act) schools, with and without previous school experience, and to 31 children from non-Title I schools. The effects of prekindergarten experience upon subsequent school experience were evaluated. The Title-I sample included 122 prekindergartners, 52 kindergartners with previous school experience, and 42 kindergartners with no previous school experience. Prekindergartners improved on three subscales of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (ITPA) and on color and shape naming. The group having prekindergarten experience surpassed the others only on the vocal encoding scale of ITPA. Title I children surpassed non-Title I children only on the verbal shape name inventory. Non-Title I children excelled in the auditory vocal association and the auditory vocal automatic subtests. No significant differences were found on teacher-rated pupil behavior. It was concluded that prekindergarten experience is related to verbal behavior. Additional research is suggested as necessary to evaluate readiness in disadvantaged children. (DO)