Appendix B: Focus Group Questions

District Focus Group Questions: Transition to Kindergarten

Questions for kindergarten teachers:

1. What does the transition into kindergarten look like at your school?
   a. How do you think students/families experience the transition to kindergarten?
2. What are the strengths of the current transitions process? What do you like most about the existing kindergarten transitions process?
3. What are some of the biggest challenges for you during the transitions process?
4. What support and resources may help alleviate those challenges?
   a. If you had more personnel/resources, how would you use it to help transition students and families to kindergarten?
5. What information about individual students do you currently receive (from families, providers, etc.) before their arrival to kindergarten?
   a. What information about individual students do you wish you had access to before the year begins?
6. What did you wish pre-K teachers and providers knew about transitions? What would be most helpful?
   a. If you had greater access to and/or structures in place to work with pre-K educators, what would you hope to gain?
7. What are the most important things you wish families knew about transitions to K?

Questions for pre-K teachers:

1. In what ways do you prepare your students and their families to transition to kindergarten?
2. What are the current challenges around transitions to kindergarten you are facing?
3. What are some opportunities for the district to help transition your students to K? Provide examples.
4. If you had greater access/structure to working with K educators, what would you hope to gain?
5. What are some opportunities for schools to help transition your students?
6. What do families tell you is most needed in the transitions process?
7. How can the district support your current efforts on the transition to K?

Questions specifically for community-based providers:

1. Do you currently have any relationships with district schools and/or principals and teachers?
   a. If so, how is this helpful? How could it be more supported?
2. If the district were to regularly communicate with community pre-K providers, in what way would be most accessible/easiest for you?

Questions for principals:

1. What kind of transitions activities are currently taking place at your school?
   a. Have your school-based events been helpful in transiting your students to K? If so, how? If not, do you have any insight as to why?
   b. What events are currently accessible for you to host?
2. What are current challenges in transitioning students into K?
3. If you had more personnel/resources, how would you use those to help transition students and families to kindergarten?
4. How can the district support you?
5. Have district-based events been helpful in transitioning your students to K? If so, how? If not, do you have any insight as to why?
6. What did you wish pre-K teachers and providers knew about transitions? What would be most helpful?
   a. If you had greater access to and/or structures in place to work with pre-K educators, what would you hope to gain?
7. What are the most important things you wish families knew about the transition to K?

Questions for parents/families of current kindergarteners:

1. What’s one word or phrase to describe your child’s transition to kindergarten?
2. What information did you receive from the school or district prior to the first week of school?
3. What information from the district would have been helpful?
4. What information from your school would have been helpful?
5. At what point throughout the transitions would this info/pieces of info have been most helpful?
6. What did your child’s pre-K teacher do to help with the transition to K? (if applicable)
7. What did your child’s K teacher do to help with the transition to K?
8. How would you have preferred to receive information on the transition to K? Websites, informational mailers social media, etc.?
9. What are you doing, as a parent, to help with the transition to K?

Questions for parents/families of rising kindergarteners:

1. What’s one word or phrase to describe how you’re feeling about your child’s transition to kindergarten?
2. What information have you received from the school or district prior to the first week of school/testing week?
3. What information from the district are you still looking for?
4. What information from your school are you still looking for?
5. At what point throughout the transition would information be most helpful?
6. What has your child’s pre-K teacher done to help with the transition to K? (if applicable)
7. What could your child’s K teacher do to help with the transition to K?
8. How would you have preferred to receive information on the transition to K? Websites, informational mailers social media, etc.?
9. What are you doing, as a parent, to help with the transition to K?