Colorado Early Learning & Development Guidelines

Colorado Early Learning & Development Guidelines

The Colorado Early Learning & Development Guidelines

Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines i

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements Introduction

Guiding Principles Development of the Guidelines Purposes Structure of the Guidelines Birth to Age 3 Physical Development & Health Social Development Emotional Development Language & Literacy Development Cognitive Development Approaches to Learning Birth to 4 Months Ages 4?8 Months Ages 9?18 Months Ages 19?36 Months Ages 3?5 Physical Development & Health Social & Emotional Development English Language Development Language Development Literacy Knowledge & Skills Logic & Reasoning Mathematics Knowledge & Skills Science Knowledge & Skills Social Studies Knowledge & Skills

iii

Creative Arts Expression

105

1

Approaches to Learning

108

2

Kindergarten through 3rd Grade

110

3

Comprehensive Health & Physical Education

111

3

Colorado English Language Proficiency

113

3

World Languages

113

5

Reading, Writing, & Communicating

114

7

Mathematics

116

7

Science

117

7

Social Studies

118

8

Music

119

9

Dance

120

9

Visual Arts

121

10

Drama & Theatre Arts

122

11

References

123

30

Birth to 3 Years

124

56

3-5 Years

128

82

Kindergarten-Third Grade (5-8 Years)

128

84

87

Appendix A:

90

Correlation to the Colorado Academic Standards

92

for Preschool

130

94

Appendix B:

97

Concept Connections for Kindergarten?Grade 3

98

Colorado Academic Standards

137

101

103

Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines ii

Acknowledgements

The Program Quality, Coordination and Alignment Committee of the Early Childhood Leadership Commission (ECLC) of Colorado would like to acknowledge many individuals and organizations for guidance and contributions to these Guidelines.

Colorado Early Childhood Leadership Commission ELDG Advisory Board:

Rosemarie Allen Lori Goodwin Bowers Michelle Boyer Barry Cartwright Heather Dubiel Amy Engleman Jodi Hardin Pamela Harris, Ph.D Lenita Hartman Anna Jo Haynes Jo Koehn Fernando Pineda-Reyes Bryan Sevier Jennifer Stedron Ayelet Talmi Heather Tritten Nan Vendegna

Drafts of the Guidelines were reviewed by members of the Colorado early childhood community. Their unique perspective and understanding of Colorado's early childhood programs is reflected throughout the Guidebook. We gratefully acknowledge them for their service.

Rashida Bannerjee, Ph.D. Ellen Hall Janet Humphreys Office of Early Learning and School Readiness Office of Standards and Instructional Support Dr. Steve Vogler, MD Jane Walsh Dr. Toni Linder Melissa Taylor Isebel Arellano

Additionally, we'd like to recognize members of the early childhood community at the national level for their time in reviewing drafts of the Guidelines.

Charles Bruner, Ph.D Dr. Carol Copple, Ph.D Sandra Petersen, Ph.D

Finally, the Birth to Three portions of this document were built on the efforts of the California Department of Education and Peter Mangione.

Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines iii

The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines (Guidelines) describe the trajectory of children's learning and development from birth to 8 years old in Colorado. They include a broad description of children's growth to ensure a holistic approach to creating positive early childhood environments. For each age level, this document addresses approaches to learning, health and physical development, social and emotional development, language, literacy, numeracy, logic and reasoning, and other subject-specific learning. Although the specific domains used to organize descriptions of children's development evolve within the Guidelines to reflect the specific requirements of each age group, they maintain a broad view of the whole child and describe all aspects of children's growth.

Also of importance to the Guidelines is that they acknowledge and are responsive to variations in culture, languages, and abilities. For instance, child rearing practices, developmental expectations, the role of different family members, and the child's own individual versus collective identity may vary across cultures. To address this, the Guidelines include examples and resources that address the particular requirements of children for whom English is a second language and children with learning or physical challenges. The Guidelines also acknowledge the great variation in when and in what order children attain particular developmental milestones. The knowledge and skills described are designed to provide support and information to families, caregivers, and educators concerning children's development within certain age spans, rather than dictate exactly when or how each child should progress.

These Guidelines are aligned with the Colorado Academic Standards for preschool through third grade and with the Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework. They are designed to show the continuum of development from birth through age 8, while complementing the variety of existing expectations and models being used in the State of Colorado with each age group. Thus, the Guidelines were informed by a wide variety of state and national documents, including current research on early learning and best practices in early education. Additionally, representatives from a wide variety of Colorado agencies were involved in planning the document's design, providing input and information, and reviewing its final contents.

By including the full breadth of children's development, addressing diversity, and aligning content across all early childhood settings and early grades, these Guidelines are intended to effect greater collaboration and consistency across early childhood systems in Colorado. With collaboration and common reference points, we can create positive early childhood environments that lay a critical foundation for our young children's later success.

The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines

? focus on children throughout the birth through age 8 continuum;

? are inclusive of all areas of development and learning;

? recognize and are responsive to variations in cultures, languages, and abilities;

? recognize and are responsive to variations in a child's and family's developmental trajectories and environments;

? are relevant to a variety of settings including, but not limited to, child care, preschool, Head Start, K?3, health care, home, and other community settings;

? are targeted to parents, caregivers, teachers, higher education personnel, early interventionists, health providers, home visitors, early learning professionals, and family educators;

? are based on research or promising practices; and

? complement and align with the Preschool?3rd grade portion of Colorado's P-12 Academic Standards and the Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework, as well as build from other relevant state and national initiatives.

Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines 1

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