What happens when children in creative, Reggio-like preschools go to a more traditional elementary school? In this book, William Corsaro and his Italian coauthor, Luisa Molinari, tell a complete and important story about the lives of children as they grow from young preschoolers to preadolescents in Modena, Italy. The authors both explore and participate in the history and development of the Italian early education system. This ethnographic study: (1) Documents how young children in Italy are prepared, or primed, for the transition from preschool to elementary school; (2) Examines how the transition relates to academic and social development, including details about the children's school and peer cultures before, during, and after the transition; (3) Includes interviews with parents, teachers, and children, engaging anecdotes, and examples of children's art and literacy projects; and (4) Suggests different approaches that schools and communities can take to support children's and families' development and learning. Following a Foreword (Carolyn Pope Edwards), Preface and Acknowledgments, the book is divided into four parts. Part I, Community, Priming, and Transitions, includes: (1) Exploring the Context: Early Education in Modena, Italy; and (2) A Framework for Understanding Children's Early Life Transitions. Part II, Living, Learning, and Preparing for Change at Giuseppe Verdi Preschool, includes: (3) Building a Community of Learners and Looking to the Future: Priming Events in the School Culture; (4) Sharing, Growing, and Anticipating Change: Priming Events in the Peer Culture; and (5) The Coming Transition to Elementary School: Perceptions of Teachers, Children, and Parents. Part III, Studying and Deepening Friendships at Giacomo Puccini Elementary School, includes: (6) Rules, Lessons, and Literacy: Developing Membership in the First-Grade School Culture; (7) New Routines, New Friends, and a New Group Identity: The Peer Culture in First Grade; (8) Reflections onthe Transition to First Grade; (9) Becoming a Community of Learners and Friends: The School and Peer Cultures in Grades 2-5 and (10) Priming Events for the Transition to Middle School. Part IV, Applying Key Findings to Early Education Policy and Practice, includes: (11) Summing Up and Looking Ahead in Italian Early Education; and (12) Drawing Implications for Fundamental Change in American Early Education. The book concludes with an Appendix, References, Index, and About the Authors.