The Child Development Project (CDP) was designed to enhance the development of prosocial characteristics in school children in kindergarten through sixth grade. It was developed and evaluated in a school district (San Ramon) in the San Francisco, California area. The features of the program include: (1) an instructional approach that enhances children's helping activities, prosocial values, social understanding, discipline, and cooperative learning; (2) a series of staff development workshops; and (3) comprehensive curricula. The program was evaluated by means of a comparison of four elementary grades in schools that had the program and schools that did not. Classroom observations measured program implementation; interviews and questionnaires measured student attitudes and motives; and observations and group tasks measured children's interpersonal behavior. Results indicated that the five components of the program's instructional approach were used significantly more often in the schools that had the program. Children in program schools showed greater individual autonomy and participated in classroom decision making more often than did children in nonprogram schools. Children in program schools also exhibited more prosocial behavior, better social problem-solving skills, and greater endorsement of democratic values. A reference list of 37 items is provided. (BC)