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Many programs have been designed for young children with the aim of developing their language skills and preventing underlying difficulties, especially those related to social background. After presenting the intentions, benefits, and limitations of several programs implemented in monolingual contexts for children of 0-6 years, we present the initial results of a program set up in kindergartens. We then present the results of studies on the effects of programs developed in multilingual contexts in kindergartens and elementary schools. The challenges of these programs are discussed, as well as the precautions to be taken in generalizing the results from these different studies in regard to processes of language development and the many pathways to language acquisition.