Early Learning Guidelines have been developed for South Dakota by a panel of early learning professionals. These guidelines are designed to help teachers, caregivers, and parents understand what research says 3- to 5-year-old children are able to learn, whether at home or in a preschool or child care setting. The panel, which included South Dakota preschool, Head Start, and kindergarten teachers, child care providers, parents, and administrators, stresses the importance of helping children learn through play, which research confirms is the best way for children to learn.

Also known as preschool standards and benchmarks, the guidelines are voluntary and research-based. They include suggestions for encouraging learning through play, as well as suggestions for setting up the home or childcare environment to promote play and learning.

The South Dakota Board of Education has approved the Early Learning Guidelines, which were developed in keeping with the 2002 Bush administration initiative, "Good Start, Grow Smart," that mandated that each state develop voluntary early learning guidelines that align with state K-12 standards. The mandate is a result of research that clearly shows that children do better later in school if they get a good start in the early years. Throughout the three-year development of the guidelines, the panel sought feedback from preschool teachers, home day-care providers, and parents, distributing drafts at conferences, posting them on the Department of Education and Office of Child Care Services Web sites.

The guidelines describe knowledge and skills children can learn; they do not contain requirements or regulations that programs must follow. They cover all areas of children’s development in keeping with research that shows the importance of all areas of children's growth. Not all children are expected to reach each of the benchmarks.

Each of the benchmarks begins with the phrase: “By the end of their preschool years, most children will…” and includes such things as:

• Ask questions to find answers and wonder why;

• Recognize their own first name in print;

• Count by ones to 10 and higher;

• Demonstrate increasing coordination when pedaling, throwing, catching, and kicking.” 

An appendix contains a chart showing how the guidelines relate to the South Dakota kindergarten standards, as required by the Bush administration, in addition to resource books for parents and childcare providers, and a list of recommended children’s books.

Research shows that the early years of life are critical to children’s later development. Experiences children have in the first years of life help form connections in the brain that form the foundation for future learning. The South Dakota Early Learning Guidelines can help parents, teachers, and childcare providers understand what children at this age can be learning and how to help them learn through play and enjoyable experiences.

A copy of the guidelines and appendix is available at http://doe.sd.gov/contentstandards/index.asp. For information on the guidelines and training opportunities involving the guidelines contact Dr. Gera Jacobs at Gera.Jacobs@usd.edu.

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