In recent years, there have been calls in many countries to ensure that children come to school "ready to learn." This paper is the first in a series that explored what is meant by this term by different groups of people and the ways in which the beliefs underpinning such a term influence decisions such as when children start school, the classes they enter, and whether or not they progress annually. In this initial investigation, groups of parents, school teachers, and children associated with two schools in suburban Sydney, Australia were asked to identify elements of school readiness and the ways in which they could be identified. Results showed that parents and teachers were united in their focus on adjustment and disposition as the major elements of readiness, although particularly with adjustment, different features were identified. Teachers and parents emphasized the importance of children separating comfortably from parents, while teachers alone added that children's abilities to concentrate, sit for periods of time, and use initiative were important. Children's responses, unlike those of the adults, focused on rules, indicating that children have firm views about what it means to be ready to go to school and that these views differ considerably from those who make the decisions about readiness. (Contains 29 references.) (EV)