Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines: A Comprehensive Overview

Are you interested in learning about the expectations for your child's development based on their age? The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines describe the path of children’s learning and development from birth to 8 years old. Broken down by age and major milestones, the guidelines are a sort of map, helping parents and caregivers navigate their child's early years. Experts from across Colorado developed these guidelines to create a shared understanding and a coordinated approach to learning and development. Curious about what your little one is thinking at this age? Wondering what you can do to help them thrive and reach their developmental milestones?

The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines work to provide a vision of development for all children from birth to eight years of age. The guidelines work as a predecessor to the Colorado Academic Standards for preschool through third grade. The guidelines were created to provide a standardized foundation for development and learning. As each child is unique, the guidelines allow for the inclusion of all children, including children from diverse backgrounds and languages as well as those with disabilities.

Purpose and Goals

The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines allow for the tracking and proper documentation of the growth of a child. As the guidelines focus on the growth and development of children from birth to eight years of age, The Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines aims to ensure all those included in the life of a child, from parents and teaches to health providers as well as home visitors understand the importance of the early years and early development.

Guiding Principles

The Guiding Principles below shaped the Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines. These Principles are about children and the environments that best support children’s growth and development. They were adopted from two highly regarded resources, Neurons to Neighborhoods and The Irreducible Needs of Children. Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines are based on the following principles:

Nature and nurture affect children’s development. All children are shaped by the interaction between their biology and their experiences.
Culture influences every aspect of human development and is reflected in childrearing beliefs and practices designed to promote healthy adaptation.
The growth of a child’s self-regulation is important to the development of knowledge and skills in all domains of development.
Children are active participants in their own development. They naturally explore and learn to master their environment.
Relationships are the building blocks of healthy development.
Young children develop and learn at different times and in different ways. This makes it difficult to tell the difference between normal variations in development from temporary disorders and long-term impairments.
Development is rarely a smooth process. There are times when children develop and learn quickly. There are other times when a child forgets skills they seemed to have mastered. Brief disruptions in development and learning are common for most children.
The timing of early experiences can matter, but, more often than not, the developing child remains vulnerable to risks and open to protective influences throughout the early years of life and into adulthood.
The course of development can be altered in early childhood by effective interventions that change the balance between risk and protection, thereby shifting the odds in favor of more adaptive outcomes.

Environments That Foster Growth

The Guidelines promote environments that foster growth in young children, which include:

Ongoing nurturing relationships that provide the basis for physical and emotional well-being.
Physical protection, safety, and regulation for children’s security.
Experiences that are tailored to individual differences so that children have choices and are respectful of others' choices.
Developmentally appropriate experiences that build children’s skills.
Stable, supportive communities and cultural continuity.

Key Sections of the Guidelines

The Colorado Early Learning and Developmental Guidelines are divided into three sections by child age:

Birth to age three
Ages three to five
Kindergarten to third grade (Ages five to eight)

Each of these sections describes child development for children within the age band. This information in each section covers all areas of development. An area of development, also called a domain, includes a set of related capabilities, skills, and knowledge. A domain is an area of development such as physical health, social (how children interact with others), emotional (how children express their feelings), language and literacy (how children learn to communicate and read), cognitive (how children learn), and approaches to learning. For example, the social and emotional domain describes how children develop the ability to express their emotions and interact with adults and other children; the language and literacy domain describes how children develop the skills to speak and read.

Understanding the Structure

This graphic orients readers to how the Guidelines are organized by domain across age ranges. The inner circle represents development for children birth to three years old. The middle circle outlines development for children three to five years old. The outer circle outlines development for children five to eight years old and aligns with the Colorado Academic Standards.

Within each age range, there is a description of what skills and abilities a child can typically do at a certain age and what adults can do to support the child’s growth and development. It is important to understand that each child learns and develops at his or her own individual pace and the Guidelines are intended to be used as a framework to help parents, caregivers, child care providers, and any adult who interacts with young children to easily incorporate the Guidelines into their everyday activities. This quality standard addresses the learning experiences offered to children. A well-balanced educational approach or curriculum supports the development of the whole child and incorporates ongoing assessment of children’s learning. This section includes general information on the instructional practice quality standard and links to other resources aligned with this standard. As long as these four essential criteria are met, preschool providers may choose the learning approach that works best for the children they serve.

Assessment and Improvement

Research shows that on-site observation by appropriately trained observers using valid and reliable observation tools is a critical part of quality assessment and improvement. Preschool providers receiving an Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale, Third Edition (ECERS-3) observation of their classroom through Colorado Shines are already meeting this requirement. Use this checklist to help determine which of the following requirements are already being met by your preschool.

Onsite Observations: At least every three (3) years, eligible preschool providers will receive an independent on-site observation of environmental quality conducted by the Department.

Colorado Shines is a quality rating and improvement system that monitors and supports early learning programs. This section includes tools and templates to help preschool providers meet the Instructional Practice quality standard. View a checklist to help determine which requirements are already being met by your preschool. As long as the four essential criteria ( | ) are met, preschool providers may choose the learning approach that works best for the children they serve.

Demonstrating Instructional Practice Quality

There are three options for demonstrating the quality of your instructional practice.

Whole-Child Published Curriculum: Does your preschool use a publicly or commercially available whole-child curriculum?
Third-Party Verification List ( | ): Is your preschool accredited or evaluated by a third-party organization? Check the list to confirm that their review process addresses the four essential criteria. NOTE: Accrediting organizations are responsible for submitting documentation regarding how their accreditation meets the criteria to be included on this list.
Independent Approach Guidance ( | ): Does your preschool use an independently developed/home-grown learning approach or a blend of supplemental curriculum (such as a curriculum focused only on social-emotional, literacy, math, etc.)?

An on-site observation by appropriately trained observers using valid and reliable observation tools is a critical part of quality assessment and improvement.

Pathways to Meet Observation Requirements

Pathway #1 Colorado Shines On-Site Observation: Preschool providers who have had an ECERS-3 or FCCERS-3 observation of their classroom through Colorado Shines are already meeting this requirement.
Pathway #2 Other On-site Observation: Preschool providers who have not had an ECERS-3 or FCCERS-3 observation of their classroom through Colorado Shines, but have had an independent, on-site observation that meets the rule requirements (ex: Pre-K CLASS) should complete the Instructional Practice On-site Observation form.

Practical Application of the Guidelines

Colorado’s Early Learning and Development Guidelines describe a child’s learning and development from birth to 8 years old. The Guidelines provide practical tips and fun ideas that anyone can use to support young children’s healthy development! Find expert information that is based on the latest research.

Read also: The history of Colorado Mesa

0-4 MONTHS: Learn about how babies grow and change in the first few months of life.
4-8 MONTHS: Learn about how babies this age are exploring their world with their mouths and by moving their bodies.
9-18 MONTHS: As older babies become able to crawl and walk, they have new and exciting experiences that help them learn.
19-36 MONTHS: Toddlers are gaining independence. They are learning how to have control over the environment and often want to do things on their own.
3-5 YEARS: At this age, kids are building important skills that will help them be successful in school and in their life and relationships.
KINDERGARTEN - 3RD GRADE: For children this age, their learning is becoming more formal and focused on academic subjects.

Holistic Approach and Key Components

The Colorado Early Learning and Development 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. Approaches to learning, health and physical development, social and emotional development, language, literacy, numeracy, logic and reasoning, and other subject-specific learning are included for each age level. The domains used to organize descriptions of children’s development evolve within the Guidelines to reflect the specific requirements of each age group.

The Guidelines:

Focus on children throughout the birth to age 8 continuum.
Include 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.
Apply to a variety of settings including, but not limited to, child care, preschool, Head Start, K-3, health care, home, and other community settings.
Provide targeted information for parents, caregivers, teachers, higher education personnel, early interventionists, health providers, home visitors, early learning professionals, and family educators.
Include strategies based on research or promising practices.
Complement and align with the Preschool-3rd grade portion of Colorado’s P-12 academic standards and the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework, as well as build from other relevant state and national initiatives.

Addressing Diversity and Individual Needs

The Guidelines are designed to acknowledge and be responsive to variations in culture, languages, and abilities. For instance, child rearing practices, developmental expectations, the role of different family members, and a child’s individual versus collective identity, may vary across cultures. Therefore, the Guidelines include examples and resources that address the particular requirements of children who are learning English as 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.

Alignment with Standards and Frameworks

These Guidelines are aligned with and complement the Colorado Academic Standards for preschool through third grade and with the Head Start Early Learning and Outcomes Framework. They show the continuum of development from birth to age 8 and complement 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 practice in early education.

Promoting Collaboration and Consistency

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 produce greater collaboration and consistency across early childhood systems in Colorado.

The Role of Early Learning Standards

Over the last decade, there has been significant progress on strengthening early childhood education and supporting greater accountability for child outcomes. Developing early learning standards for individual states has been the backbone of these initiatives. These standards build consensus about crucial educational outcomes and approaches, outline expectations, and help focus curriculum development.

According to the Office of Early Childhood Development, early learning standards are frameworks for defining children’s developmental goals at specific milestones. These standards are based on research pertaining to what children should understand and do-their abilities and skills-in different areas of learning and development. They describe the desired results, outcomes, and learning expectations of children, from birth to pre-kindergarten age.

Early learning standards vary from state to state, meaning that each state is responsible for defining them. It is often a collaborative effort of state agencies. While the state is responsible for setting the standards, educators, childcare staff, and families need to work together to ensure that children meet their goals. Early learning standards promote holistic growth in children. These standards focus on curriculum development to help teachers and caregivers provide a holistic, developmentally appropriate education for children. All children are unique and require a defined early education approach.

Each state is responsible for its own early childhood education program and for setting its early learning standards. A comprehensive tool like brightwheel's lesson plan feature comes pre-loaded with the learning standards of each state, making it easier for you to plan lessons.

Early Learning Standards Across States (Examples)

The state of Alabama uses the Alabama Developmental Standards for Preschool Children.
Alaska uses the Alaska Early Learning Guidelines, Birth to Five early learning standards.
Arkansas uses the Arkansas Child Development and Early Learning Standards: Birth through 60 Months.
Connecticut’s Early Learning and Development Standards, Birth through Age 5 outlines what teachers and caregivers should teach children from birth to age five. The standards foster teamwork among schools, families, and communities.
Delaware Early Learning Foundations (Infant/Toddler) describes what happens to children through infancy and toddler years. Delaware Early Learning Foundations (Ages 3-5) is a curriculum framework that guides daily, weekly, and monthly early childhood education planning.
The District of Columbia uses the DC Common Core Aligned Early Learning Standards. The standards focus on several domains and inform families and teachers about what children should know and be able to do. See Alignment of the Experience Early Learning Skills with D.C.
The Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS) advocates for quality learning experiences for children and addresses what children, from birth to five, should know and be able to do.
The Illinois Early Learning Guidelines provide teachers, caregivers, and policymakers with a framework for understanding what children should know and do as they grow and develop.
Supporting Maine’s Infants and Toddlers: Guidelines for Learning and Development provides parents, teachers, and policymakers with development and early learning guidelines. Maine’s Early Learning and Development Standards (MELDS) also provide a framework for early childhood learning and teaching.
The Maryland College and Career-Ready Standards prepare children for life outside the classroom. Early Childhood Standards of Quality for Birth to Kindergarten enables teachers to attend to diverse children and families and helps them provide high quality classroom teachings.
Minnesota's Early Childhood Indicators of Progress outlines the framework for equitable access to educational programs for all children.
Nebraska’s Early Learning Guidelines (ELGs) help teachers and families support children from birth to five years old to acquire knowledge for holistic development. Both outline developmental guidelines families and teachers can refer to.
The New Hampshire Learning Standards: Birth through Five outlines supporting and enhancing children’s development from birth to five years. Both guidelines provide the framework for early childhood learning, covering the below.
The New York State Early Learning Guidelines is an integrated, coordinated, multi sector workforce framework for teachers, families, and other education policymakers.
North Dakota Early Learning Standards Birth to Kindergarten provide guidelines for holistic child development from birth to five years.
The Rhode Island Early Learning and Development Standards outline the framework for what children should know and do.
The South Dakota Early Learning Guidelines outline developmental milestones for children at specific stages.
Texas early learning standards are Texas Infant, Toddler, and Three Year Old Early Learning Guidelines and Texas Prekindergarten Guidelines.
Utah’s early learning standards are Utah’s Early Learning Guidelines for Birth to Age Three and Utah’s Core State Standards for Early Learning for Ages 3 to 5.
The Vermont Early Learning Standards outline what children should know and do.
The Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards outline a framework families and educators should follow to facilitate holistic child development.

tags: #colorado #early #learning #and #development #guidelines