By Stevie Makres, Taylor Weber, and Emily Holtz
The transition to kindergarten can be both exciting and challenging for young children and their families: Entering a new school environment means navigating new routines, expectations, social interactions, and approaches to individualized support. Given these new parameters, young children may struggle to regulate their emotions and behaviors, and families may feel anxious or uncertain about how their children will adjust. This is particularly true for children with disabilities.
Everyone in the early childhood landscape, including teachers, administrators, special education staff, related service providers, and families, plays a role in successful preschool-to-kindergarten transitions. As noted in NAEYC’s position statement on advancing equity, “All children have the right to equitable learning opportunities that enable them to achieve their full potential as engaged learners and valued members of society.” When administrators and school leaders take intentional, collaborative steps to support teachers, children, and families, the result is a smoother, more equitable start to school for every child.
We (the authors) have a combined 21 years of experience in early childhood settings, including as teachers in inclusive pre-K and kindergarten classrooms and as a literacy coach. Drawing on both research and our experiences as early childhood educators, we offer strategies for administrators—both school principals and district leaders—that will help kindergarten teachers welcome children with disabilities into their settings.
The transition to kindergarten can be more challenging than transitions to other grades, and teachers may struggle with strategies to ease it. Children enter kindergarten from a variety of preschool settings and with different strengths, interests, and abilities. These factors can make it even more difficult for educators to prepare adequate classroom structures and supports in advance. In addition, teachers often report feeling unqualified to teach children with disabilities, including supporting them through changes like this one. District and school leaders who direct kindergarten programs play an important role in supporting students with disabilities and their families.
A common barrier to a smooth transition for children with disabilities is a lack of coordination among pre-K teachers, kindergarten teachers, and other professionals. When teachers work in isolation, children can experience abrupt shifts and a more distressing transition to school. For example, in pre-K, children with disabilities may have access to a variety of materials (sensory cushions, visual schedules, fidget toys) or have specialized seating. If the same resources are not available in kindergarten, this can cause confusion for the child and leave the teacher wondering about how best to individualize the environment for them. But when routines are shared in advance and reinforced, children enter the classroom with a sense of familiarity and confidence. (See “Building Bridges Toward Success: Strategies for Seamless Kindergarten Transitions” in this issue.)
School leaders can facilitate collaboration by setting aside time for joint planning to give pre-K teachers, kindergarten teachers, and special education staff an opportunity to co-develop consistent routines and transition practices. They can arrange for classes to be covered by substitute teachers or support staff, create online documents where teachers can share information, or schedule time for teachers to meet on in-service days in place of district-wide professional development.
School leaders could consider assigning children to kindergarten classrooms before summer to help teachers proactively plan for individual students’ needs. With early rosters, kindergarten teachers can visit the pre-K classroom to observe children, ask questions, and begin adapting their routines and environments with specific children in mind.
For example, when Taylor (second author) taught kindergarten, she met with a pre-K inclusion teacher to learn about supports for a child with autism spectrum disorder. Taylor learned that the child was most successful with a visual schedule that allowed him to “check off” each part of the day. She created a visual schedule for the child and shared it with his family before the first day of school, so they could begin talking through the kindergarten day with him.
This classroom visit can be followed up with a meeting among pre-K teachers, kindergarten teachers, and special education staff to collaborate on how to best prepare for this transition before the next school year begins. In our experience, we each had dedicated time at the end of the school year to discuss transitions between grade levels. Emily (third author) recalls when her administrator facilitated a more collaborative approach. Emily, who taught pre-K at the time, and the pre-K special education teacher met with the kindergarten team to collaboratively determine feasible supports for each child in the kindergarten setting.
In addition, school leaders can encourage including other adults who know the child well, such as teacher assistants and teachers of specials like art, music, and gym. Research overwhelmingly demonstrates that other professionals are not routinely invited to participate in transition planning, but their knowledge of a child can offer important information for planning. Administrators can provide them with copies of meeting notes for input or schedule meetings at times they are available.
District leaders might consider staggered start dates (children attending school in small groups once every few days), which can benefit both educators and children. For teachers, these small, staggered groups provide space to make adjustments to the classroom environment and routines in a more manageable way before all children are together for the full day. The staggered schedule also enables the teacher to connect early on with each family before or after school. A staggered start allows children to begin school in smaller groups over the first week or two, giving them time to adjust to expectations and routines in a less overwhelming setting.
If staggered start dates are not a common practice within the district, then school leaders can advocate for changes to the district calendar. They can share what other districts have tried, the benefits they have seen, and the different options for staggering. For example, Stevie and Taylor (first and second authors) found that staggered start dates helped establish classroom routines, relationships, and a smoother transition for children with disabilities. Families received their assigned days in advance, and staggered start schedules took place during the first two weeks of the school year. Kindergarten students attended in small groups once every two or three days, whereas older students followed the regular schedule. Staggered starts can vary across schools, with some offering half-day sessions throughout the first two weeks and others gradually increasing to full days.
School leaders can support kindergarten teachers by providing meaningful professional development opportunities. Many educators report feeling underprepared when it comes to supporting children who have disabilities. Likewise, schoolwide professional development is often delivered with older elementary students in mind. High-quality professional development that focuses on kindergarten and/or children with disabilities can offer teachers practical tools and build their confidence, leading to more equitable experiences for all children and families.
For example, fine motor challenges are common in kindergarten, including for children with disabilities, yet teachers often have limited time to address these skills within their curriculum. Professional development can help teachers learn how to embed fine motor skills into content-area activities, equipping them with strategies to tailor materials and instruction to individual learners.
School leaders with less funding for individualized professional development can connect with other districts to pool resources. For example, Emily spent time teaching and working within rural districts in the southwestern United States. These districts often only had one pre-K and one kindergarten teacher and utilized state grant funding to collectively offer professional development. Educators met once in person for initial training, then virtually once a month to learn about evidence-based strategies. They identified one change they wanted to make to their practice. Each virtual session began with a discussion about how this change impacted their teaching and affected children’s learning.
Families know their children best. Including them as partners in the transition to school can benefit everyone involved. Establishing an early partnership builds trust between families and schools, which is especially beneficial for children with disabilities. Families can communicate important information about their children before they begin kindergarten, and educators can share with families key details about the year ahead. Educator-family partnerships provide consistency in routines and expectations at home and school. Changes can be more readily made as the child’s goals are met or adjusted to ensure they have a positive school experience.
School leaders play a critical role in how families of children with disabilities are included in educational planning. In our experience, family participation in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process was limited to receiving a meeting invitation and being presented with predetermined goals for their child. We suggest that leaders disrupt this pattern by creating structures from the start that are positive and reciprocal. For example, leaders might support home visits or pre-IEP conversations in advance of the new school year, in which teachers can learn from families about their children’s strengths, routines, cultural values, and what strategies are most effective at home. Providing families with multiple opportunities to share their priorities and concerns before formal meetings allows for a more equitable approach.
School leaders can help foster connections and build community with families of children with disabilities by hosting informal support groups. These meetings can be as simple as monthly gatherings in the school library or cafeteria. These spaces should center children and families and create opportunities for families to comfortably share their concerns, needs, and experiences.
We recommend that school leaders start the first meeting with a needs analysis to learn about what families want and need. This can be as simple as hanging chart paper around the meeting room with the following three questions: “What brought you here today?”; “What has your experience with the school been like so far?”; “What is one thing you want us to understand about your child and your family?” Families can circulate, discuss, and add their responses to the chart paper. This can help build trust and surface families’ priorities. The school leader can use this information to plan for more focused discussions throughout the year. The most important thing to remember is that the immediate goal is to establish a rapport with families. Families may sometimes wish to include teachers and staff in their conversations. When invited and welcomed by families, staff can help foster more empathetic and productive relationships.
School leaders already carry many responsibilities, and the kindergarten transition may seem like just one more task. However, investing in thoughtful, inclusive practices at this critical moment can create long-term benefits for each child, family, and the entire school community. When all children and families are welcomed and supported from their very first day, they are better prepared to succeed academically, socially, and emotionally in kindergarten and beyond.
How are pre-K and kindergarten educators currently collaborating in your setting to support children with disabilities? What structures could be added or improved to strengthen that collaboration? What would be needed from school leaders to make these changes? How would these changes, in turn, benefit children with disabilities?
What questions or comments have you received from families of children with disabilities about kindergarten? How can you share these with school leaders?
In what ways does your school foster connection and support among families, especially those who may feel isolated or marginalized? How might family connections be cultivated or strengthened?
Stevie Makres is a kindergarten teacher in East Tennessee. Her professional experience spans elementary resource and inclusion classrooms, and her work focuses on inclusive practices for supporting students with disabilities in general education kindergarten settings.
Taylor Weber is a PhD student in elementary education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, a former K–2 teacher, and a graduate assistant whose research focuses on culturally responsive teaching, early literacy, and writing instruction in teacher preparation.
Emily Holtz, PhD, is an assistant professor of elementary education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, whose work focuses on preparing teachers to create equitable and responsive learning environments for all children.
“Successful Transitions into and out of Kindergarten: Supporting Children and Families,” by Eva Phillips and Amy Scrinzi. Focus on Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Equitable and Joyful Learning in Kindergarten, 2024. Focusing on collaboration at the classroom, school, and district levels, this chapter offers strategies that build on children’s experiences to ensure a successful kindergarten year.
“A Successful Kindergarten Transition for Children with Disabilities: Collaboration Throughout the Process,” by Michelle M. Sands and Hedda Meadan. Early Child Education Journal, 2022. This article illustrates how effective transitions to kindergarten for children with disabilities are supported by high-intensity, collaborative practices that bring preschool and kindergarten teams together to plan, communicate, and respond to family and child needs.
“Barriers to and Facilitators of Successful Early School Transitions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Other Developmental Disabilities: A Systematic Review,” by Laura Fontil and colleagues. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2020. This research synthesis highlights that children with autism spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities are best supported when schools implement collaborative, family-centered transition practices tailored to child and classroom needs.
Copyright © 2026 by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. See permissions and reprints online at NAEYC.org/resources/permissions.
This article supports the following NAEYC Early Learning Programs standards and topics:
Standard 2: Families and Community
Engaging in Reciprocal Partnerships with Families and Fostering Community Connections
Standard 8: Professionalism
Demonstrating Professionalism as Early Childhood Educators