The title of the book is taken from the first essay in the volume, in which Fulghum lists lessons normally learned in American kindergarten classrooms and explains how the world would be improved if adults adhered to the same basic rules as children, i.e. sharing, being kind to one another, cleaning up after themselves, and living "a balanced life" of work, play, and learning.

In his introduction, Fulghum describes these as having been "written over many years and addressed to friends, family, a religious community, and myself, with no thought of publication in book form."

[citation needed] Fulghum addresses this in an essay in his subsequent book, It Was on Fire When I Lay Down on It wherein he mentions "grown-up" subjects such as sexuality.

Over nearly two decades, the title essay, "All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten", has spawned countless parodies involving television shows, movies, books, and other phenomena.

[1] The standard format mirrors Fulghum's own work, starting with "All I Really Need To Know I Learned From [name]", followed by a list of quotes and/or in-jokes from the subject being parodied.