Department of Education
Now Available! - Early Childhood Learning Standards
Pennsylvania's Learning Standards for Early Childhood are connected through a continuum of learning (infant, young toddler, older toddler, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten) and link to 3rd grade academic standards. Practitioners who view children's development across ages will be able to understand the sequential way children learn and become familiar with ways in which adults at higher age levels support learning. The Continuum is included.
Pennsylvania’s Learning Standards for Early Childhood were developed in 2004 through cross-sector collaboration from the departments of Health, Education and Public Welfare (now Human Services), and representatives from child care, early intervention, school districts, Head Start, higher education, family support programs and researchers.
The standards delineate benchmarks along the birth to grade 2 continuum to promote readiness and early school success and are aligned with standards that span to the 12th-grade. Pennsylvania’s standards are research-based according to age and development and form the foundation for curriculum, assessment, instruction and intervention within early care and education programs. They also comprise the primary device for ensuring high quality, consistent childcare across geographies and programs. Pennsylvania was one of the first states in the country to develop and align early learning standards to grade three academic standards.
In 2010 Pennsylvania began integrating its early learning standards into the Standards Aligned System (SAS), the K-12 online resource portal designed to provide educators with a framework and integrated tools to enhance their teaching effectiveness.
Science, Technology & Engineering, Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (STEELS) Standards were adopted by the Pennsylvania State Board of Education in January 2022. The new STEELS Standards will begin implementation in all Pennsylvania Schools in school year 2025-2026.
The Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) revised our Science Standards to ensure alignment to the STEELS Standards. In 2024, revisions have been made to all Pennsylvania Learning Standards for Early Childhood: Infant Toddler, Prekindergarten, Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, and the Continuum.
Additional highlights to the 2024 Pennsylvania Learning Standards for Early Childhood include:
1. The Social and Emotional Development domain was moved to the front of the book, after Approaches to Learning through Play. The Approaches to Learning Through Play and Social Emotional Development domains are found first in our standards because they are foundational skills. These standards provide children with skills needed for school, life, and career success.
2. The Partnerships for Learning section was removed from the 2024 Pennsylvania Learning Standards for Early Childhood. Providers are to utilize The Pennsylvania Family Engagement Birth through College, Career, Community Ready Framework.
