Little Oktoberists ("Oktyabryata" in Russian), a rather harmless organization for all 7-9 year olds (1st through 3d graders in the Soviet educational system), were the first rung in the Soviet social system that led through the Pioneers to the Komsomol, and ultimately Party membership. Little Octoberists were organized into cells of 5, under the tutelage of a responsible Pioneer, and sang and played games while learning such traits as neatness, obeying one's elders, studying hard, and otherwise preparing to become good Pioneers in their own time. They wore lapel pins in the form of a red star with a portrait of a pudgy-faced young Lenin in the middle. The organization's name derived from the fact that when it was formed in 1923-1924, its first members were exactly the same age as the 1917 October Revolution. (from Soviet Propaganda)