Early childhood educators set a foundation for learning that can stay with children throughout their school years( and beyond). The transition from preschool to kindergarten is an important part of this foundation: Research has shown that it can have lasting effects on a child’ s well-being, including both short- and long-term academic impacts.
However, children often struggle with the shift to kindergarten. Not only are they adjusting to new people, they’ re also encountering more academic and behavioral expectations. Many of these are related to on-task persistence, cooperation with peers, problem solving, and independently choosing and engaging in their work. While navigating this transition has traditionally been thought of as a kindergarten teacher’ s responsibility, it ideally involves both preschool and kindergarten educators working together to bridge the two years and build upon children’ s assets and growth.
Andover Elementary School in Andover, Connecticut, is a public school that serves children from prekindergarten to sixth grade. It has earned NAEYC accreditation for its four pre-K and two kindergarten classes. Jennie Morrell( the second author) and Leslie Barone( the third author) teach kindergarten and pre-K, respectively. The two met when Leslie was a preservice teacher and did her field work in Jennie’ s kindergarten class. After Leslie graduated and joined Andover as a pre-K teacher, the educators began to look at ways they could support and scaffold preschoolers’ transitions to kindergarten. As a former parent in the school and current professor and researcher at Central Connecticut State University, Lori L. Blake( the first author) examined the thinking and intentionality behind this collaboration.
In this article, we( the authors) describe how kindergarten and preschool educators can work together— with administrators’ support— to create and implement strategies to ease children’ s move to kindergarten. We highlight the ways Jennie and Leslie collaborate and the activities they introduce to support children’ s growth through this transition. While the two educators work in the same building, their approach can be adopted by other programs looking to bridge the gap between preschool and kindergarten( see“ Strategies to Support Smooth Transitions” at the end of this article).
Building a Cohesive Transition to Kindergarten
Strong preschool-to-kindergarten transitions begin with strong relationships among preschool and kindergarten educators. A relationship based on respect and openness will set the foundation for the important work ahead. Teachers must develop a shared understanding of each other’ s curriculum and learning goals so that they know where children are coming from and where they’ re heading. Building this kind of collaborative relationship takes time and consistency. It also requires patience and persistence.
Through the partnership they have built, Jennie and Leslie intentionally plan and implement joint, age-appropriate learning experiences( like the school garden) throughout the year. This is part of developmentally appropriate practice and its emphasis on planning challenging curricular experiences that engage children in meaningful ways and invite their exploration and active involvement in learning.
36 Educating Young Children
Spring 2026