Early Learning and Developmental Standards

Early Learning and Developmental Standards

EARLY LEARNING SERVICES - Birth to Five Standards

Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards Birth to Kindergarten Standards 2017 Revision Process

The Office of Early Learning will soon begin work to revise the 2011 Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards-Birth to Kindergarten. These standards reflect the expectations regarding a child’s age-appropriate progress. There will be opportunities for input from state/national experts and early learning stakeholders. The revised standards are anticipated to be approved by the State Board of Education in fall 2017. The Office of Early Learning is committed to providing periodic status updates to coalitions, school districts, providers and other early learning stakeholders. For questions regarding standards revisions, contact Florida Department of Education, Office of Early Learning: 1-850-717-8696.

Standards 2017 Revision Process Projected Timeline View Timeline


Whether you are a parent, teacher, trainer, administrator or child care provider, you know how important the first years of life are in a child's development.

To help us know what children should understand and be able to do as they move from birth to 5, Florida adopted the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards.

Read, search or download a printable version of the standards here and use them to plan experiences and activities with young children in your care. You will find valuable information and tips for supporting your child's development in the first five years.

Child care professionals now have brand new courses available to them online -- the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards: Birth to Five.

A child care worker playing and holding two small children.
Documents - Downloadable PDFs

• View Complete Standards - English
 



One Set of Standards for Florida’s 4-Year-Olds

The Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards for Four-Year-Olds (2011) create a common framework and language for providers of both the School Readiness and VPK programs.

Based on collaboration with a state panel of experts, national and state expert reviewers, and public input from citizens across Florida, the Standards for Four-Year-Olds reflect the latest research on child development and developmentally appropriate practices for 4-year-old children. Standards and benchmarks are organized into five domains.
  • Physical Development.
  • Approaches to Learning.
  • Social and Emotional Development.
  • Language, Communication and Emergent Literacy.
  • Cognitive Development and General Knowledge.
Benchmarks are available for two domains–the domains of Language, Communication and Emergent Literacy, and the Mathematical Thinking section of Cognitive Development and General Knowledge–to help explain further what Florida's children should know and be able to do by the end of prekindergarten.

An electronic version of the Standards for Four-Year-Olds document is available.
Training is available to help teachers of 4-year-olds use the standards effectively. Based on the most current early childhood research, the training–titled Standards for Four-Year-Olds–is appropriate for instructors and directors of programs serving 4-year-olds. Register for this instructor-led course.

Here is more information about standards and benchmarks in Standards for Four-Year-Olds and how they compare to other standards.

The State Board of Education formally adopted the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards on October 18, 2011. They were created using multiple resources, including the state of Alaska Early Learning Guidelines. It is important to note that Alaska's guidelines were adapted from Washington state guidelines and revised by Alaskans to meet the unique concerns of children in their state. We wish to acknowledge Alaska and Washington for their guidance in the work for the Early Learning and Developmental Standards.