Early Childhood Assessment

The ongoing assessment of a child’s learning and development is a best practice for early childhood teachers who guide the learning of Preschool through 3rd Grade children. It is also a requirement for publicly funded kindergarten and programs serving preschoolers with disabilities. 

High quality early childhood assessment practices provide families and teachers with information they need to best support the child’s learning needs to ensure success in school. This may look different for young children than for older children. The assessments rely on informal observations of a child’s demonstration of learning rather than on a formal, paper and pencil test. Early childhood educators make notes about what they see a child doing in daily instructional routines and determine how a child is progressing through the curriculum. They also collect work samples to share with parents. 

Colorado strives to support early childhood programs in using high quality assessment practices to advance student learning and development and promote strong partnerships with families.

• The Purpose of Early Childhood Assessment guides teacher planning, supports school and family partnerships and provides information for evaluating program quality.