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

44 Educating Young Children

Spring 2026