 | MESPA Home > PreK-3 Alignment | | | PreK-Grade 3 Alignment Resources | | Minnesota Early Learning Standards
Click on the MN Early Learning Standards
PDF (below) to download a 68-page collection of early childhood
indicators of progress. These indicators, provided by the Minnesota
Department of Education, create a framework for understanding and
communicating a common set of developmentally appropriate expectations
for children in the preschool periods of ages three to five, presented
within a context of shared responsibility and accountability for helping
children meet these expectations. The responsibility for early
childhood learning is shared by family members, teachers and caregivers,
community members, and policymakers.
Indicators for early childhood learning standards are divided into six categories:
- Social
and Emotional Development
- Approaches to Learning
- Language and
Literacy Development
- Creativity and the Arts
- Cognitive Development
- Physical and Motor Development
Excerpt from the Introduction:
"A large and growing body of research supports the critical relationship between
early childhood experiences and successful learning outcomes. The
responsibility for providing support systems and resources that result
in positive outcomes for young children is a shared one. Families, early
childhood teachers and caregivers, community members, and policymakers
all contribute to the wellbeing of children.
"The Early Childhood
Indicators of Progress document recognizes the importance of this
shared responsibility and accountability in order to achieve positive
outcomes for children. This document stresses the importance of
collective efforts among families, early childhood education and care,
communities, and policymakers in supporting the learning and development
of children. The efforts of each and every one of these groups are
vital in the process of developing healthy, well-functioning children."
Ready 4 K
About Ready 4 K: "Our
mission is to assure that every young child in Minnesota enters
kindergarten encouraged, supported, and fully prepared for learning
success. We are a nonprofit group of people who want to give our
youngest citizens a strong start. We are community leaders, parents,
early childhood professionals, and anyone else who wants to improve
school readiness in Minnesota. We are a grassroots campaign committed to
an early childhood public policy agenda based on a comprehensive,
integrated and accountable system for supporting early childhood
development and learning readiness."
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MN_Early_Learning_Stds.pdf
McKnight_Presentation.pdf
Presentation made to the McKnight Foundation gathering of early childhood stakeholders, Nov. 30, 2010, by P. Fred Storti, MESPA Executive Director.
ESEA_Reauthorization_Overview.pdf
Overview of The Elementary and Secondary Education Reauthorization Act of 2011 (one page)
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| PreK-Grade 3 MN Wiki | Wiki site with Minnesota early ed. resources: - What is PreK-Grade 3?
- Why PreK-Grade 3?
- Resources
- Early Education in MN
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| PreK-Grade 3 Leadership | "The impact of
high-quality early learning experiences is well established, particularly for
children at risk for underachievement. Yet by and large, communities, states,
and their counties have made marginal strides in creating and supporting an
infrastructure that provides all children and families with access to the crucial
learning opportunities that are vital to our state and nations’ education,
civic, and economic prosperity." MESPA Advocate September 2011
"When children
come to kindergarten not ready to learn, not having been exposed to rich
literary experiences and thus lacking conceptual development, they begin school
with an experiential gap that is difficult to bridge...The time is now to
move from disconnected early childhood programming and K-12 curriculum to
PreK-grade3 alignment!" MESPA Advocate May 2011
Excerpts from articles by P. Fred Storti, MESPA Executive Director
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| McKnight presentation | To download a presentation on "Building an Aligned System of Early Learning from PreK-Grade 3" made to McKnight Foundation early childhood stakeholders (Nov. 30, 2010) by MESPA Executive P. Fred Storti, scroll down. The presentation includes next steps and considerations.
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| Status of MN Early Education Programs | How can we better connect with early childhood programs for three and
four-year-olds and expand all-day every day kindergarten? During
the first two weeks of December 2010, we asked MESPA members what early
childhood programs currently exist in their schools and districts. For a
summary and analysis of survey results, visit MN Legislative Issues in the Members Only section of our site.
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| ESEA Reauthorization, 2011 | To compete in the global economy, ensure America’s long-term prosperity, and protect our middle class, America needs to provide every child with a world-class education. The Elementary and Secondary Education Reauthorization Act will set high expectations for all children to graduate from high school with the knowledge and skills needed for success in college and careers, support teachers and principals to help them provide high-quality instruction, ensure disadvantaged students get their fair share of resources, focus federal attention on turning around low-performing schools and closing achievement gaps, and remove federal barriers to give states and communities the flexibility they need to innovate.
To download an ESEA Reauthorization overview, scroll to the left.
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