This paper examines how various elements of five early- childhood-to-elementary school transition programs are being developed and carried out. Five transition programs were identified and investigated in regard to shared leadership and decisionmaking among stakeholders, comprehensive and integrated services, family involvement and empowerment, cultural and linguistic sensitivity, family-school communication, joint staff development, developmentally appropriate practices, and program outcomes and effectiveness. The paper provides an inventory of specific approaches and program components that have proven to be effective in easing the transition from early childhood programs to elementary schools. The programs examined included: (1) the Head Start/Public School Early Childhood Transition Demonstration Project in Santa Clara, California; (2) Very Important Preschoolers (VIP) Village, which serves Imperial Beach and South San Diego, California; (3) the Head Start/Public School Early Childhood Transition Demonstration Project in Phoenix, Arizona; (4) Transitional Bilingual Education Program in Irvine, California; and (5) the Head Start/Public School Early Childhood Transition Demonstration Project in Reno, Nevada. An appendix provides the addresses and telephone numbers of the five transition programs. (Contains 23 references.) (MDM)