This paper provides a detailed overview of the preschool education system in Queensland, Australia, from the perspective of one of the original designers of that program. The first section of the paper describes the social, political and general educational contexts within which the Queensland preschool system was developed. Steps in state level planning for preschool education are discussed. The second section describes two sub-programs of the major, center-based preschool program: the Pre-School Correspondence Program (PSCP) and the Class IV (small rural) School Project (CIV SP). The PSCP, a home-based, parent taught program of multi-format materials, was designed (1) for children in very isolated areas where school enrollment was less than 35 and (2) for children who would receive primary schooling through correspondence only. The CIV SP, a program for schools enrolling a total of 36 to 100 pupils, was conceived as an experiment to create a special grouping of preschool children and primary school students that was under the administrative control of a school principal. The third section summarizes seven major assumptions underlying the development of preschool education, relates four tentative principles for developing preschool programs, and suggests a functional model of program implementation. (Author/RH)