Effective Transitions in the Early Years - By Dr Alistair Bryce-Clegg
Looking at effective transition in the Early Years - By Dr. Alistair Bryce-Clegg
Hey PLAY People,
James here! I’ve put together another pack of activities, just for PLAYlist subscribers.
This month’s ideas are based around a period of time that all practitioners and children experience every year....transition, from one year group to another. It affects us all, regardless of whether you work as a childminder, nursery nurse, teaching assistant, teacher, or child. A well-planned and executed transition is vital for all.
As Alistair has previously said: ‘Transition is a process, not an event.’ These ideas will give you effective ways in which to support children (and perhaps adults) in settling into new spaces, building relationships with those around them and laying the foundations for the best possible start in their developmental and academic journey.
Alistair’s article (below) helps to provide some useful context for the activities and gives some food for thought for when we look ahead to year one.
If you haven’t already read it, Alistair’s article ‘A Good Transition into Year One’ is a great read.
If you’d like to access the activity packs for this month, consider becoming a paid subscriber today and access this month’s activities, as well as a while back catalogue of interesting ideas to bring into your learning space.
Enjoy!
Effective Transitions in the Early Years [Listen Along 🔊]
By Dr. Alistair Bryce-Clegg
When we talk about transition in Early Years, it is very easy to reduce it to a timetable, a visit afternoon and a new peg with a child’s name on it. But effective transition is much more than moving children from one place to another. It is about emotional security, brain development, relationships and a child’s sense of belonging.
The science behind transition tells us that young children learn best when they feel safe, connected and emotionally regulated. If a child is anxious, overwhelmed or dysregulated, then the brain prioritises survival over learning. This is why children who appear ‘not ready’ for transition often do not need more formal preparation. They need stronger relationships, predictability and emotional support.
Research into self-regulation and executive function highlights the importance of emotionally secure environments in helping children manage change. Executive function skills, things like impulse control, attention and working memory, are still developing rapidly in the early years and are heavily influenced by adult interaction and environmental stability.
This matters because transition places huge demands on those developing systems. New adults, new routines, new spaces, unfamiliar expectations, different noises, different smells, even different toilets, all require cognitive and emotional adjustment. For some children that adjustment is manageable. For others it can feel enormous.
One of the biggest mistakes we make is assuming that transition is mainly about information gathering or academic readiness. In reality, research suggests that the strongest indicators of successful transition are linked to social and emotional wellbeing, self-regulation and relationships. Children’s ability to communicate needs, manage feelings, engage socially and cope with routines matters more than whether they can count to 20 or write their name.
Effective transition starts long before the first day. Children need opportunities to build familiarity gradually. Repeated visits help because the brain responds positively to predictable experiences. Familiarity reduces cognitive load. Seeing the same adults, resources and routines multiple times helps children feel safer because their brains are not constantly trying to process novelty.
Relationships are central to this process. Attachment research reinforces the idea that children use trusted adults as a ‘secure base’ from which to explore unfamiliar environments. A warm, responsive adult can literally help regulate a child’s stress response.
The most effective transitions involve continuity wherever possible. Familiar songs, visual prompts, routines, stories and even language patterns can reduce anxiety and increase confidence. Research into routines shows that predictable structures are strongly associated with positive developmental outcomes, particularly in relation to self-regulation and emotional wellbeing.
This does not mean that we need rigid routines or highly controlled environments. Children need predictable structures alongside emotionally available adults and opportunities for play.
Play is one of the most powerful transition tools we have. Through play, children can rehearse experiences, explore uncertainty and regain a sense of control. Small world play, storytelling and open-ended discussion all allow children to revisit experiences at their own pace. Give children lots of time and resources that enable them to talk about and replay their transition experience
It is also important to remember that transition does not end after the first week. Research highlights that some of the most significant difficulties appear later, once the initial excitement has worn off and expectations increase.
The move from Reception to Year One is often identified as particularly problematic because children experience a sudden shift towards increased structure and reduced play opportunities.
This is why school need to think carefully about continuity of pedagogy as well as continuity of care between EYFS and Year 1
If children move from an active, play based environment into one dominated by sitting, waiting and adult direction, then we should not be surprised when dysregulation increases. The issue is not that children are incapable. It is that the demands placed upon them are not aligned with child development.
Effective transition therefore requires flexibility from adults, not just adaptability from children.
Parents matter in this process too. Children are highly tuned into adult emotion and can absorb parental anxiety very quickly. So, a calm and positive message helps children feel safer and parents can only give that message when they feel informed and secure in what is going to happen next in their child’s journey.
Ultimately, effective transition is about understanding how young children develop. Good transition practice takes TIME and needs to focus on safety and connection first - that is where the real learning starts.
Who Makes Our Activities?
Hello PLAYlisters! My name is James Davolls and I am an Early Years Lead and author working at Charborough Road Primary School in Bristol. I currently teach Preschool-aged children and have over a decade of Early Year’s teaching experience (I know, I don’t look that old, thanks guys!) I have two children of my own, 4 and 6, so I am very much living and breathing the Early Year’s life at home and in school. I have worked across several diverse settings across Bristol, leading in all of them.
I am passionate about outdoor and adventurous/risk play and love developing provisions that inspire and challenge children’s development.
Fun Facts....growing up, my dream job was to be a Butlin’s Redcoat (I never achieved this!) I am one of seven children, and I love pizza. My wife always says that without her, I would have the diet of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle!