Nine papers comprise the proceedings of a 1988 North Carolina symposium on early childhood education. The first paper, "Preschool Assessment" (Nancy Johnson-Martin), focuses on norm-referenced psychological assessment to determine eligibility and programming needs. "Appropriate Use and Interpretation of Assessments of Young Handicapped Children" (Robert Shehan) stresses application of assessment information to educational programming decisions. Next, "Assessing Environmental Provisions of Young Handicapped Children" (Thelma Harms and Richard M. Clifford) includes a description of the Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scale and a reprinted article titled "Comparison of Preschool Environments for Handicapped and Nonhandicapped Children." Sarah Rule and Barbara Fiechtl, in"Developing Functional Intervention Plans--the IEP and IFSP," provide a step-by-step guide to development of the Individualized Education Program and the Individualized Family Service Plan. Next, "Speech-Language Development Within the Classroom" (Mildred Laney Blackburn), offers teaching ideas from a teacher of the hearing impaired and speech-language delayed. Jeanne B. Henry, in "Assuring Learning Through Play," discusses the role of play and offers two examples of play activities which meet multiple objectives. Phillip Strain describes implementation of "Peer Mediated Instruction for Young Children's Social Skill Deficits." Patricia Miller considers teacher training needs in "Public School Teachers for Preschool Handicapped Children--Are They Ready?" Finally, specific suggestions and a case study are offered in "Listening To, Guiding, and Assisting Parents," by Mary Jane Brotherson. References accompany some of the papers. (DB)