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The article deals with transition from kindergarten to first grade at primary school as a process involving the child, the family and educational institutions of different levels. It discloses the notion of effective transition as a set of conditions in which a child can enter school life, find its place in it, establish communication with adults and peers, show independence, experience emotional well-being, etc. Empirical research shows a connection between preschool educational environment and effective transition to the first grade at primary school. The preschool environment is assessed by the degree of its orientation to the child, democracy, etc. (as described in the method called The scales for comprehensive rating of the quality of education in preschool educational organizations, ECERS). Transition is rated according to the degree of success in how a child gets used to school, the level of his independence, self-confidence and so on, as described in The checklist of a child’s social and emotional development, PSED. The result shows that schoolchildren with greater independence in the first grade are those exposed to a preschool environment where care-givers encourage dialogue, respect between children and adults, contribute to independent resolution of conflicts, emphasize positive behavior, practice a smooth, intuitive transition between different activities and so forth. It suggests that the creation of such an environment is more effective than consistent and targeted training.