New Mexico Early Learning Guidelines - Center For Education ...

irth through kindergarten age. In contrast, the New Mexico Early LearningGuidelines can serve as a guide for helping early childhood professionalsobserve what the child can do, have a general idea of what to expect next,and identify ways to support the childís learning and development. Theycan contribute to curricular planning and inform teaching practices.ï To authentically assess childrenís developmental progress throughobservation and documentationThe New Mexico Early Learning Guidelines can be used in a criterion-referencedassessmentprocess. Teachers determine childrenís performance related to the indicatorsthroughobservation that is supported through anecdotal documentation as well as worksampling. Theyuse this information to formulate goals and objectives meaningful for thechild and family. Whenconsidering referral for special services, the guidelines can be used to raisered flags and identifythe need for further assessment with norm-referenced screening tools or otherassessmentinstruments. These indicators have been aligned to the outcomes from othersystems in order thatthey can be used by multiple early childhood programs including:Head StartEarly Childhood Special EducationTitle 1New Mexico PreKChild Care Programs