This interim, progress report to the President and Committees of the House and Senate describes activities of the National Commission on Children in six communities across the country. The report contains information from hearings, town meetings, site visits, and forums in the communities. Included in the report are discussions of: (1) the framework that guides the commission's activities; (2) the commission's activities in relation to mother and infant health, children and families in rural areas, enhancement of school readiness through support for early childhood development, children and the drug crisis, and economic pressures on families; and (3) salient themes and issues that have emerged in the process of inquiry. These themes and issues concern the critical role of parents and other caring adults in children's lives, children in poverty, the pervasiveness of drugs, the crisis in health care, the need for school readiness, and services that reorient children toward coordination and prevention. Because the commission's investigation was not complete, no recommendations are offered. Witnesses, programs, groups participating in forums, and focus groups are listed in the appendix, as is a schedule of activities. (RH)