British Infant School programs to aid language development for disadvantaged children 3 to 8 years old are discussed, with reference to ideas and practices in the United States. In general, English Infant School teachers believe that language development must be nourished by the teacher in the context of the child's interaction with his environment. Centrally important is a heightened teacher awareness of means of extension of the child's ideas and language. Other topics discussed are: (1) the value of peer group talk, (2) daily schedules relative to the child's sex, (3) extrinsic reinforcement, contrasted with intrinsic reinforcement, (4) whether or not standard English should be taught, (5) the use of local cultural content, (6) bilingualism in school and out, (7) communication skills, (8) children's written sentences, (9) verbal functioning effectiveness, and (10) compensatory education: the recommendations of the Plowden Report, and the goals of the 3 1/2-year Schools Council project in England and Wales. (NH)