Planning for Terrific Transitions: A Guide for Transition-to-School Teams. Participant's Guide. Revised

A survey of 3,600 teachers by the National Center for Early Development and Learning (Pianta et al., 1999; NCEDL, 1999) found that teachers were concerned about children's transitions to school. Teachers reported that almost half (48 percent) of children entering kindergarten had moderate or serious problems adjusting to the new experience. These findings suggest that many children would benefit from additional support and resources during this period of transition. In order to address this critical need, SERVE has developed a set of training materials called "Planning for Terrific Transitions: A Guide for Transition-to-School Teams" to help all stakeholders effectively plan, implement, and evaluate their transition process. Topics include forming a comprehensive transitions team, conducting a needs assessment, conducting focus groups, and evaluating goals and strategies. The training focuses on a five-step transition improvement process that teams will use to begin improving their own transition systems. After the training, teams will continue their transitions improvement work and complete each step in the process. Materials for use "back on the job" are included in the participant's manual.