Comparisons were made of the contexts and incidence of child- and teacher-initiated behavior in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms in Japan and the United States. The "Child/Teacher Initiation Behaviors Checklist" was developed and used to obtain data on nine general initiation categories, such as: gains attention; initiates classroom control; and makes decision without teacher direction. Observations were made in 20 U.S. kindergarten classrooms and in 10 classrooms at each of the primary grade levels. In Japan, 12 classrooms at each grade level were observed. Kindergartens in both countries were designated as either child-directed or teacher-directed. Findings demonstrated that teacher-directed environments have significantly fewer child initiations in the classroom. The greatest cross-cultural difference in teacher initiations was in the child-directed kindergartens. In the United States, initiation frequency of children making unsolicited comments decreased through third grade, while in Japan unsolicited comments increasd from first through third grade. During primary years, frequency of initiations was consistently higher in Japan. While affection was not initiated very often by teachers in either country, children initiated more affection in child-directed environments. U.S. teachers gave more praise to students than did Japanese teachers. It is concluded that findings do not support formalizing education for young children to improve their learning. Among other recommendations, it is suggested that teachers should encourage child initiations in their classrooms. (Author/RH)