Discusses the role of collective creative activity in developing preschool children's multicultural understanding and ability to live together. Notes artistic and language-based activities used in French preschools to teach these concepts and develop critical and responsible behavior. (JPB)

The study trip made by the author to the Education for International Co-operation and Peace Section of Unesco and to nursery, elementary, and secondary French schools belonging to Unesco's Associated Schools network is described. Impressions regarding the network are related. (RM)

Discusses the author's teaching experiences during the 1930s at "La Maison des Enfants," a Montessori school in Sevres, France. Provides photographs and descriptions of the school day, outdoor activities, gardening, cooking and eating, practical activities, and creative activities. (MDM)

Discusses the history, characteristics, and purposes of the "ecole maternelle," the French system of free public preschool education for two- to five-year-old children. Focuses on the classes for two year olds, and particularly their enrollment levels, schedules, and links with day care. Describes research on the classes. (BB)

Public policy in France concerning the articulation of preschool education and primary education, particularly in the area of writing readiness and writing instruction, is discussed. A 1989 law expected to define, for the first time, the expected competencies at each educational level, was met with disappointment by early elementary school…

One way of countering illiteracy is to teach children to read before they enter elementary school, e.g., in nursery school or at home. The "right age" for learning to read is discussed; positive results of a project in France that taught nursery school children to read and write are examined. (RM)