Moving in, on, up and out: successful transitions

This chapter considers transition to school as a joint enterprise shared by the teacher, children and parents. School start is no longer the first educational transition children experience: taking account of the variety of experiences, people and environments children will have already encountered, means effective communication between all involved. Two illustrative cameos highlight similarities and differences between children’s early childhood journeys and consider implications for each of the transitions they make. A case is made for the usefulness of theories as tools to help this transitions process, bringing a particular focus to children's agency, parental engagement and teacher collaboration.