State Education Department checklist aids in transition planning
Though it has an intimidating name: “Tool to Assess the Effectiveness of Transitions from Prekindergarten to Kindergarten,” this checklist quite easy to use—it has recently been redesigned with color-coded categories.
The downloadable document is divided into three areas: community early childhood programs, professional development and instruction. With these areas are items educators can rank from “not at all considered” to “ almost always considered.”
“It’s a self-assessment tool that school districts can use to help them think about how they’re handling transitions,” says Tina Rose-Turriglio, from the SED’s Office of Early Learning. “Using the checklist can help identify areas where you’re doing well—and may pinpoint things you’d like to do to provide better transition.”
When many of a community’s four-year-olds are in school district Pre-K programs, the tool can be used to plan for the transition for three-year-olds to Pre-K.