New York State EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES

1 New york State EARLY . LEARNING . GUIDELINES : A Child Development Resource for Educators of Children Ages Birth Through Eight New york Works for building knowledge building careers building futures NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . New york Works for building knowledge building careers building futures New york Works for Children is New york State 's integrated professional development system for the EARLY childhood and school age workforce. Our mission is to positively influence outcomes for young children and families through the development of a skilled, knowledgeable, well-compensated, and committed EARLY childhood education work force. Copyright 2019 by the New york State EARLY childhood Advisory Council. NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . Dear Colleagues, It is our pleasure to bring this publication to you in support of your practice with or on behalf of New york 's young children and their families.

2 The EARLY childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) is committed to realizing the vision that all young children are healthy, LEARNING , and thriving in families that are supported by a full complement of services and resources essential for successful development. We see the publication and dissemination of the New york State EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES as a critical step in moving closer to the ECAC's vision. Understanding child development is key to supporting the well-being of children. When you understand child development, you will be able to anticipate developmental changes, have reasonable expectations of children's behavior, act with empathy and provide support. The best EARLY childhood educators are always LEARNING and developing their skills. The New york State Core Body of Knowledge: Core Competencies for EARLY childhood Educators, describes the knowledge, skills and dispositions you need to work with young children.

3 The EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES are designed for you to use in concert with the Core Body of Knowledge as a daily resource and reflection tool. The GUIDELINES provide information about devel- opmental milestones and specific instructional, environmental and family engagement supports you can use to support young children's development and are an ideal companion to the State 's EARLY LEARNING standards developed by the New york State Education Department. The GUIDELINES are also aligned with strategies recommended by the Pyramid Model, an evidence-based framework for building the social and emotional competence of all EARLY care and education settings. When you use the EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES , you work toward the goals of the Pyramid Model by building nurturing and responsive relation- ships with children, creating high quality supportive environments and becoming more effective in your work.

4 It is important to make the distinction that The EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES are not standards and cannot be used as a replacement for standards. LEARNING standards are goals for New york State students; they describe LEARNING ideally intended to be accomplished by the end of each instructional year. New york State Education Department publish- es LEARNING standards and guidance documents for children in pre-K through 12th grade. The New york State EARLY LEARNING Standards were revised in 2017, and the Office of EARLY LEARNING published the consolidated Prekindergar- ten LEARNING Standards: A Resource for School Success, and the New york State Kindergarten LEARNING Standards: A. Resource for School Success in 2019. You can find these documents and additional resources at gov/curriculum-instruction Thank you for all that you do to support the success of young children and their families.

5 Patricia E. Persell Sherry M. Cleary ECAC Co-chair ECAC Co-chair NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . Table of Contents Introduction New york Works for Guiding The Importance of Understanding Child Culture, Equity, and the EARLY LEARNING 10. Emergent Multilingual Learners and the EARLY LEARNING 11. Children with Disabilities and the EARLY LEARNING 12. The Arts and the EARLY LEARNING 13. Standards and the EARLY LEARNING 14. How to Read the EARLY LEARNING 15. How to Use the EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES (Cycle of Intentional Teaching and LEARNING ).. 16. Development by Domain I. Approaches to 21. A. Curiosity and 22. B. 26. C. Persistence and 30. D. Creativity and 34. II. Physical Well-Being, Health and Motor 41. A. Large Motor 42. B. Small Motor 46. C. Sensory 50. D. 54. E. Healthy 58. III. Social and Emotional 64. A. Trusting Relationships with 66. B. Sense of 70. C. Sense of 74. D. 78. E. Cooperation and 82.

6 F. Emotional 86. G. Rhythms, Rules, and 90. NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . IV. Communication, Language, and 96. A. 98. B. Listening and C. Social D. Engagement with Stories and E. Phonological F. G. Creating and Interpreting Multimedia V. Cognitive 129. A. Understanding Stability and B. C. Memory and D. Investigating and E. Understanding Cause and F. Engineering: Problem-solving with G. 1. Comparing and 2. Number Sense and 3. 4. Spatial Sense and 171. 172. 1. Home Language 2. Funds of Knowledge 3. Observation 4. Responsive Planning Form ..175. 176. Appendix 179. Selected Children's Books .. 180. 182. NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . New york Works for Children: The State 's Integrated Professional Development System Well-educated and committed EARLY childhood educators are among the most valuable resources that we can offer young children. Healthy development depends on the quality and reliability of children's relationships with trusted adults.

7 New york Works for Children's (NYWFC) the State 's EARLY childhood professional development system is designed to positively influence outcomes for young children and families through the development of skilled, knowledgeable, and committed EARLY childhood educators. New york Works for Children publications: 1 2. The New york State EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES The New york State Core Body of Knowledge: The NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES represent New york State 's Core Competencies for EARLY a child development resource for all EARLY childhood Educators childhood educators working with children from birth through age eight, across all EARLY LEARNING The NYS Core Body of Knowledge: New york settings. The GUIDELINES describe how children State 's Core Competencies for EARLY childhood develop and provide strategies that educators Educators (CBK) outlines the knowledge, can use to promote child development.

8 Dispositions, and skills required to work with young children. The CBK describes the actions that educators can take to build meaningful relationships with children, families, and colleagues; create stimulating environments;. and develop professionally in this incredibly important field. The New york State EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES provide a critical reference tool for trainers, coaches, and educators. The strategies suggested within the GUIDELINES are aligned with five CBK domains: (1) Child Growth and Development, (2) Family and Community Relationships, (3) Observation and Assessment, (4) Environment and Curriculum, and (5). Health, Safety, and Nutrition. 6 Introduction NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . Guiding Principles To assure alignment, the Core Beliefs of the New york State CBK serve as the guiding principles for the New york State EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . These principles guide a shared vision of quality for EARLY childhood educators in New york State .

9 I. Children are born ready to learn. ii. Every human being is a unique individual, with diverse modes of LEARNING and expression, as well as interests and strengths. iii. Children are worthy of the same respect as adults. iv. Children's needs for shelter and for physical, intellectual, emotional, and social nourishment must be met for them to grow, develop, and learn to their fullest potential. v. Children have the right to secure, trusting relationships with adults and to safe, nurturing environments. vi. Children learn through play. vii. Children construct their own knowledge based on their curiosity and driven by their interests. This active construction is facilitated by interaction with adults and other children. viii. Children's LEARNING is active and follows a recurring path: awareness, exploration, inquiry, and application. ix. Children learn best when exposed to and engaged in high-quality environments, interactions, and relationships.

10 X. Children learn best when adults in their lives work in partnership with one another. xi. Children and families of all ethnic origins, value systems, faiths, customs, languages, and compositions must be equally respected. xii. Families and children have the right to support systems that foster their growth and development. xiii. Teaching and LEARNING are dynamic, integrated, and reciprocal processes. Introduction 7. NYS EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES . The Importance of Understanding Child Development EARLY childhood educators' knowledge of child development is an important protective factor. Protective factors are conditions that improve the health and well-being of children and families and minimize harmful experiences. When educators understand child development, they are able to anticipate developmental changes, have reasonable expectations of children's behavior, act with empathy, and provide support.