Missouri Early Learning Standards: A Comprehensive Overview
The Missouri Early Learning Standards (MELS) serve as a foundational framework, outlining expectations for children's capabilities from infancy until they enter kindergarten. These standards have been developed through extensive research about children and their development. As an early care and education professional implementing the MELS, there's an opportunity to collaborate with families, enhancing their understanding and application of the standards throughout their child’s development, from infancy to five years of age. Videos can be shared with families to help deepen their understanding of child development and how they can support their child’s growth and development.
The Rise of Early Learning Standards
Over the past decade, significant strides have been made in bolstering early childhood education and reinforcing accountability for child outcomes. The development of early learning standards for individual states has been central to these efforts. These standards forge a consensus on vital educational outcomes and pedagogical approaches, delineate clear expectations, and sharpen the focus of curriculum development.
According to the Office of Early Childhood Development, early learning standards act as frameworks that define children’s developmental goals at specific milestones. These standards are rooted in research concerning what children should understand and do-encompassing their abilities and skills-across various domains of learning and development. They articulate the desired results, outcomes, and learning expectations for children from birth to pre-kindergarten age.
State-Specific Standards
Early learning standards are not uniform across the United States; each state bears the responsibility of defining its own. This process often involves collaborative efforts among state agencies. While the state sets the standards, educators, childcare staff, and families must collaborate to ensure that children achieve their developmental goals.
Here's a glimpse of early learning standards across different states:
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- Alabama: Alabama Developmental Standards for Preschool Children
- Alaska: Alaska Early Learning Guidelines, Birth to Five
- Arkansas: Arkansas Child Development and Early Learning Standards: Birth through 60 Months
- Connecticut: Connecticut’s Early Learning and Development Standards, Birth through Age 5
- Delaware: Delaware Early Learning Foundations (Infant/Toddler) & Delaware Early Learning Foundations (Ages 3-5)
- District of Columbia: DC Common Core Aligned Early Learning Standards
- Georgia: Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS)
- Illinois: Illinois Early Learning Guidelines
- Maine: Supporting Maine’s Infants and Toddlers: Guidelines for Learning and Development & Maine’s Early Learning and Development Standards (MELDS)
- Maryland: Maryland College and Career-Ready Standards, Early Childhood Standards of Quality for Birth to Kindergarten
- Minnesota: Minnesota's Early Childhood Indicators of Progress
- Nebraska: Nebraska’s Early Learning Guidelines (ELGs)
- New Hampshire: The New Hampshire Learning Standards: Birth through Five
- New York: New York State Early Learning Guidelines
- North Dakota: North Dakota Early Learning Standards Birth to Kindergarten
- Rhode Island: Rhode Island Early Learning and Development Standards
- South Dakota: South Dakota Early Learning Guidelines
- Texas: Texas Infant, Toddler, and Three Year Old Early Learning Guidelines & Texas Prekindergarten Guidelines
- Utah: Utah’s Early Learning Guidelines for Birth to Age Three & Utah’s Core State Standards for Early Learning for Ages 3 to 5
- Vermont: Vermont Early Learning Standards
- Wisconsin: Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards
Holistic Child Development
Early learning standards are crucial for holistic child development because they provide the framework for curriculum development. They also define how educators and families can support their child’s growth. These standards champion the holistic growth of children. They emphasize curriculum development, enabling teachers and caregivers to deliver a holistic, developmentally appropriate education. It is important to remember that 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.
Missouri Early Learning Standards (MELS) in Detail
The Missouri Early Learning Standards (MELS) were created to cover a broad spectrum of education. In alignment with the Missouri Early Learning Standards (MELS) set by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE-MO), Saint Louis Public Schools Pre-Kindergarten Program utilizes the state-approved Project Construct Curriculum. The Pre-K curriculum is designed for all families to feel safe and included, regardless of religion or nationality. The MELS are a framework of expectations for what children are able to do from infancy to kindergarten entry. These expectations are assessed quarterly and reported to parents via the district report card.
The guide has created developmentally appropriate learning, focusing on literacy, math, physical development, health and safety, science and social and emotional standards. The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education emphasis that each child is unique in their development, and therefore the standards are a guide, and not a strict curriculum.
Standards-Based Grading in Saint Louis Public Schools
Saint Louis Public Schools employs standards-based grading which, unlike traditional letter grades, is focused around individual core ideas in each domain, or subject area, rather than a single overall score. For example, instead of an overall grade for literacy, students are assessed on their level of mastery for each of the literacy standards. Thus, teachers and parents are able to pinpoint exactly which skills students have mastered and which are a focus for individualized instruction. Additionally, students aren't limited based on past performance because scores aren't averaged together.
SLPS uses a grading scale from 1-4, which reflects students' increasing skill:
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- 4: Exceeds expectations. In addition to the objectives set for meeting expectations, the student consistently demonstrates an advanced understanding of the skill.
- 3: Meets expectations. The student consistently meets all criteria identified as being on-level.
- 2: Partially meets expectations. The student demonstrates a partial understanding of the skill or can perform with occasional prompting or assistance. They're "almost there."
- 1: Does not yet meet expectations. The student is forming an initial understanding of the skill or requires significant adult intervention to achieve success.
It's important to note that when starting a new skill, many students do not have prior knowledge and begin at a 1. Parents should not be alarmed if their child has many 1's on his or her first quarter report card. This is typical.
Tools for Implementation
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.
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