Transitional Kindergarten Implementation Guide

Transitional Kindergarten Implementation Guide

• TK Implementation YouTube Video (Video; 4:16)
  YouTube videos of implementation are with closed-caption for alternate accessibility.
  
  
• TK Professional Development Modules-funded by Packard Foundation
  These TK modules, which were developed by the Packard Foundation, in collaboration with county offices of education, provide strategies and resources to support the implementation of TK. An overview of  The Alignment of the California Preschool Learning Foundations with Key Early Education Resources is also included.
  
  
• California State University (CSU) TK Project
  The CSU Office of the Chancellor, in collaboration with CSU Fullerton and with support from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, has developed a series of modules for TK teachers, coaches, and administrators. The CSU TK Project supports the integration of TK into pre-service teacher and administrator preparation.
  
  
• American Institutes for Research (AIR): California’s Transitional Kindergarten Program: Report on the First Year of Implementation: Executive Summary (PDF)
  
  
• AIR: Study of California’s Transitional Kindergarten Program: Report on the First Year of Implementation (PDF)
  
  With the support of the Heising-Simons Foundation and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, AIR conducted an investigation of the planning and implementation of TK in the 2012–13 school year.
  • Transitional Kindergarten in California: A Review of the First Year (PDF)
    A research brief providing an initial glimpse of transitional kindergarten in its first year of statewide implementation.
  • Transitional Kindergarten in California: Comparing Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten Classrooms (PDF)
    This second research brief in a series highlights findings from the study focusing on characteristics of transitional TK classrooms compared with those of kindergarten classrooms.
  • Transitional Kindergarten in California: Early Outreach, Enrollment, and Parent Perspectives (PDF)
    The third in a series of briefs investigating TK implementation in Year 1, and focusing on district outreach efforts, parent perceptions of TK, and TK student demographics.
    
    
• AIR Study Finds California’s Transitional Kindergarten Gives All Students an Advantage for Kindergarten (Press Release)
  According to the AIR report, students who attend California’s TK programs enter kindergarten with stronger mathematics and literacy skills and are more engaged in their learning than students who did not attend TK. TK provides advantages for all students, with particular benefits for English learners and low-income students, and TK benefits remain regardless of variations in instructional practices or classroom structure.

• The Impact of Transitional Kindergarten on California Students (AIR Study report)
  The California Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 established TK, the first year of a two-year kindergarten program. The bill phased in the required age for kindergarten from December 2 to September 1. This final report from the TK’s evaluation focuses on results from a five-year study. The study used a rigorous regression discontinuity design to examine whether TK, as a new approach to pre-kindergarten education for age-eligible children, leads to positive outcomes, for which children, and under what conditions.

• Dr. Patricia Wolfe Introduction
  The Amazing Developing Brain, Part 1
  The Amazing Developing Brain, Part 2
  The 2013–14 Transitional Kindergarten Conference was held in Pasadena, California, on May 1, 2014. Dr. Patricia Wolfe presented the keynote presentation on brain development in the early years, and enlightened listeners with her thoughts, dispelling common misconceptions and providing practical advice on how educators can make the most of the marvelous opportunity to educate young children.

• Transitioning to Kindergarten: A Toolkit for Early Childhood Educators
  The National Center for Learning Disabilities and the American Federation of Teachers have collaborated to offer a comprehensive resource for educators that includes tools and materials to help implement strategies to facilitate and enhance children’s transition to kindergarten.

• TK Professional Resource Guide for Administrators (PDF)
  This guide provides an annotated list of accessible online resources for administrators to support transitional kindergarten.

• Board of Education Waiver Requests
  Letter from State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson presenting the updated waiver request requirements for kindergarten and TK.