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NOTICE:
The Head Start National Reporting System (NRS) has been
suspended. See Improving Head Start Act for School Readiness Act of 2007, Sec. 649(j)(4)
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The following is an excerpt from...
[2003]
The Head Start Child Outcomes Framework
Introduction
Domain: Language Development
Domain: Literacy
Domain: Mathematics
Domain: Science
Domain: Creative Arts
Domain: Social and Emotional Development
Domain: Approaches to Learning
Domain: Physical Health and Development
RELEASED IN 2000, THE HEAD START CHILD OUTCOMES FRAMEWORK is intended to
guide Head Start programs in their curriculum
planning and ongoing assessment of the progress and accomplishments of children.
The Framework also is helpful to programs
in their efforts to analyze and use data on child outcomes in program self-assessment
and continuous improvement. The Framework
is composed of 8 general Domains, 27 Domain Elements, and numerous examples
of specific Indicators of children's skills, abilities,
knowledge, and behaviors. The Framework is based on the Head Start Program
Performance Standards, Head Start Program
Performance Measures, provisions of the Head Start Act as amended in 1998,
advice of the Head Start Bureau Technical Work
Group on Child Outcomes, and a review of documents on assessment of young
children and early childhood program accountability
from a variety of state agencies and professional organizations.
- The Domains, Elements, and Indicators are presented as a framework of building
blocks that are important for school success.
The Framework is not an exhaustive list of everything a child should know
or be able to do by the end of Head Start or entry
into Kindergarten. The Framework is intended to guide assessment of 3-to
5-year-old children— not infants or toddlers enrolled
in Early Head Start and not infants or toddlers in Migrant Head Start programs.
-
The Framework guides agencies in selecting, developing, or adapting an instrument
or set of tools for ongoing assessment of
children's progress. It is inappropriate to use the Framework as a checklist
for assessing children. It also is inappropriate to use
items in the Framework in place of thoughtful curriculum planning and individualization.
-
Every Head Start program implements an appropriate child assessment system
that aligns with their curriculum and gathers
data on children's progress in each of the 8 Domains of learning and development.
At a minimum, because they are legislatively
mandated, programs analyze data on 4 specific Domain Elements and 9 Indicators
in various language, literacy, and numeracy
skills, as indicated with a star in the chart. Local program child assessment
occurs at least three times a year. The National
Reporting System (NRS) child assessment includes measures of the mandated
child outcomes.
-
Information on children's progress on the Domains, Domain Elements, and Indicators
is obtained from multiple sources, such as
teacher and home visitor observations, analysis of samples of children's
work and performance, parent reports, or direct assessment
of children. Head Start assessment practices should reflect the assumption
that children demonstrate progress over time in
development and learning on a developmental continuum, in forms such as increasing
frequency of a behavior or ability, increasing
breadth or depth of knowledge and understanding, or increasing proficiency
or independence in exercising a skill or ability.
The English version of the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework was translated
into Spanish by the Migrant and Seasonal
Head Start Quality Improvement Center. The Spanish version of the Head Start
Child Outcomes Framework can be accessed here.
(From The Head Start Path to Positive Child Outcomes, updated Summer 2003)
DOMAIN: LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
Listening
&
Understanding |
Demonstrates increasing ability to
attend to and understand conversations, stories, songs, and
poems. |
| Shows progress in understanding and
following simple and multiple-step directions. |
| * Understands an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary. |
| * For non-English-speaking children, progresses in listening to and understanding English. |
|
Speaking
&
Communicating |
* Develops increasing abilities to understand and use language to communicate information, experiences, ideas, feelings, opinions, needs, questions; and for other varied purposes. |
| Progresses in abilities to initiate
and respond appropriately in conversation and discussions with
peers and adults. |
| * Uses an increasingly complex and varied spoken vocabulary. |
| Progresses in clarity of pronunciation
and towards speaking in sentences of increasing length and
grammatical complexity. |
| * For non-English-speaking children, progresses in speaking English. |
*Legislatively mandated.
DOMAIN: LITERACY
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
* Phonological
Awareness |
Shows increasing ability to
discriminate and identify sounds in spoken
language. |
| Shows growing awareness of beginning
and ending sounds of words. |
| Progresses in recognizing matching
sounds and rhymes in familiar words, games, songs, stories,
and poems. |
| Shows growing ability to hear and
discriminate separate syllables in words. |
| * Associates sounds with written words, such as awareness that different words begin with the same sound. |
|
* Book
Knowledge
&
Appreciation |
Shows growing interest and involvement
in listening to and discussing a variety of fiction and
non-fiction books and poetry. |
| Shows growing interest in
reading-related activities, such as asking to have a favorite
book read; choosing to look at books; drawing pictures based
on stories; asking to take books home; going to the library;
and engaging in pretend-reading with other
children. |
| Demonstrates progress in abilities to
retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act
out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen
next in a story. |
| Progresses in learning how to handle
and care for books; knowing to view one page at a time in
sequence from front to back; and understanding that a book has
a title, author, and illustrator. |
|
* Print
Awareness
&
Concepts |
Shows increasing awareness of print in
classroom, home, and community settings. |
| Develops growing understanding of the
different functions of forms of print such as signs, letters,
newspapers, lists, messages, and menus. |
| Demonstrates increasing awareness of
concepts of print, such as that reading in English moves from
top to bottom and from left to right, that speech can be
written down, and that print conveys a message. |
| Shows progress in recognizing the
association between spoken and written words by following
print as it is read aloud. |
| * Recognizes a word as a unit of print, or awareness that letters are grouped to form words, and that words are separated by spaces. |
|
Early
Writing |
Develops understanding that writing is
a way of communicating for a variety of purposes. |
| Begins to represent stories and
experiences through pictures, dictation, and in
play. |
| Experiments with a growing variety of
writing tools and materials, such as pencils, crayons, and
computers. |
| Progresses from using scribbles,
shapes, or pictures to represent ideas, to using letter-like
symbols, to copying or writing familiar words such as their
own name. |
|
Alphabet
Knowledge |
Shows progress in associating the
names of letters with their shapes and sounds. |
| Increases in ability to notice the
beginning letters in familiar words. |
| * Identifies at least 10 letters of the alphabet, especially those in their own name. |
| * Knows that letters of the alphabet are a special category of visual graphics that can be individually named. |
*Legislatively mandated.
DOMAIN: MATHEMATICS
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
* Number
&
Operations |
Demonstrates increasing interest and
awareness of numbers and counting as a means for solving
problems and determining quantity. |
| Begins to associate number concepts,
vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful
ways. |
| Develops increasing ability to count
in sequence to 10 and beyond. |
| Begins to make use of one-to-one
correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of
objects. |
| Begins to use language to compare
numbers of objects with terms such as more, less, greater
than, fewer, equal to. |
| Develops increased abilities to
combine, separate and name how many concrete
objects. |
|
Geometry
&
Spatial Sense |
Begins to recognize, describe,
compare, and name common shapes, their parts and
attributes. |
| Progresses in ability to put together
and take apart shapes. |
| Begins to be able to determine whether
or not two shapes are the same size and shape. |
| Shows growth in matching, sorting,
putting in a series, and regrouping objects according to one
or two attributes such as color, shape, or size. |
| Builds an increasing understanding of
directionality, order, and positions of objects, and words
such as up, down, over, under, top, bottom, inside, outside,
in front, and behind. |
|
Patterns
&
Measurement |
Enhances abilities to recognize,
duplicate, and extend simple patterns using a variety of
materials. |
| Shows increasing abilities to match,
sort, put in a series, and regroup objects according to one or
two attributes such as shape or size. |
| Begins to make comparisons between
several objects based on a single attribute. |
| Shows progress in using standard and
non-standard measures for length and area of
objects. |
*Legislatively mandated.
DOMAIN: SCIENCE
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
Scientific
Skills
&
Methods |
Begins to use senses and a variety of
tools and simple measuring devices to gather information,
investigate materials, and observe processes and
relationships. |
| Develops increased ability to observe
and discuss common properties, differences and comparisons
among objects and materials. |
| Begins to participate in simple
investigations to test observations, discuss and draw
conclusions, and form generalizations. |
| Develops growing abilities to collect,
describe, and record information through a variety of means,
including discussion, drawings, maps, and charts. |
| Begins to describe and discuss
predictions, explanations, and generalizations based on past
experiences. |
|
Scientific
Knowledge |
Expands knowledge of and abilities to
observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials,
living things, and natural processes. |
| Expands knowledge of and respect for
their bodies and the environment. |
| Develops growing awareness of ideas
and language related to attributes of time and
temperature. |
| Shows increased awareness and
beginning understanding of changes in materials and
cause-effect relationships. |
DOMAIN: CREATIVE ARTS
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
Music |
Participates with increasing interest
and enjoyment in a variety of music activities, including
listening, singing, finger plays, games, and
performances. |
| Experiments with a variety of musical
instruments. |
|
| Art |
Gains ability in using different art
media and materials in a variety of ways for creative
expression and representation. |
| Progresses in abilities to create
drawings, paintings, models, and other art creations that are
more detailed, creative, or realistic. |
| Develops growing abilities to plan,
work independently, and demonstrate care and persistence in a
variety of art projects. |
| Begins to understand and share
opinions about artistic products and experiences. |
|
| Movement |
Expresses through movement and dancing
what is felt and heard in various musical tempos and
styles. |
| Shows growth in moving in time to
different patterns of beat and rhythm in music. |
|
Dramatic
Play |
Participates in a variety of dramatic
play activities that become more extended and
complex. |
| Shows growing creativity and
imagination in using materials and in assuming different roles
in dramatic play situations. |
DOMAIN: SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
SOCIAL & EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
|
|
Self-Concept |
Begins to develop and express
awareness of self in terms of specific abilities,
characteristics, and preferences. |
| Develops growing capacity for
independence in a range of activities, routines, and
tasks. |
| Demonstrates growing confidence in a
range of abilities and expresses pride in
accomplishments. |
|
| Self-Control |
Shows progress in expressing feelings,
needs, and opinions in difficult situations and conflicts
without harming themselves, others, or property. |
| Develops growing understanding of how
their actions affect others and begins to accept the
consequences of their actions. |
| Demonstrates increasing capacity to
follow rules and routines and use materials purposefully,
safely, and respectfully. |
|
| Cooperation |
Increases abilities to sustain
interactions with peers by helping, sharing, and
discussion. |
| Shows increasing abilities to use
compromise and discussion in working, playing, and resolving
conflicts with peers. |
| Develops increasing abilities to give
and take in interactions; to take turns in games or using
materials; and to interact without being overly submissive or
directive. |
|
Social
Relationships |
Demonstrates increasing comfort in
talking with and accepting guidance and directions from a
range of familiar adults. |
| Shows progress in developing
friendships with peers. |
| Progresses in responding
sympathetically to peers who are in need, upset, hurt, or
angry; and in expressing empathy or caring for
others. |
|
Knowledge of
Families
&
Communities |
Develops ability to identify personal
characteristics, including gender and family
composition. |
| Progresses in understanding
similarities and respecting differences among people, such as
genders, race, special needs, culture, language, and family
structures. |
| Develops growing awareness of jobs and
what is required to perform them. |
| Begins to express and understand
concepts and language of geography in the contexts of the
classroom, home, and community. |
DOMAIN: APPROACHES TO LEARNING
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
|
Initiative
&
Curiosity |
Chooses to participate in an
increasing variety of tasks and activities. |
| Develops increased ability to make
independent choices. |
| Approaches tasks and activities with
increased flexibility, imagination, and
inventiveness. |
| Grows in eagerness to learn about and
discuss a growing range of topics, ideas, and
tasks. |
|
Engagement
&
Persistence |
Grows in abilities to persist in and
complete a variety of tasks, activities, projects, and
experiences. |
| Demonstrates increasing ability to set
goals and develop and follow through on plans. |
| Shows growing capacity to maintain
concentration over time on a task, question, set of directions
or interactions, despite distractions and
interruptions. |
|
Reasoning
&
Problem Solving |
Develops increasing ability to find
more than one solution to a question, task, or
problem. |
| Grows in recognizing and solving
problems through active exploration, including trial and
error, and interactions and discussions with peers and
adults. |
| Develops increasing abilities to
classify, compare and contrast objects, events, and
experiences. |
DOMAIN: PHYSICAL HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT
| DOMAIN |
DOMAIN
ELEMENT |
INDICATORS |
PHYSICAL HEALTH & DEVELOPMENT
|
|
Gross Motor
Skills |
Shows increasing levels of
proficiency, control, and balance in walking, climbing,
running, jumping, hopping, skipping, marching, and
galloping. |
| Demonstrates increasing abilities to
coordinate movements in throwing, catching, kicking, bouncing
balls, and using the slide and swing. |
|
Fine Motor
Skills |
Develops growing strength, dexterity,
and control needed to use tools such as scissors, paper punch,
stapler, and hammer. |
| Grows in hand-eye coordination in
building with blocks, putting together puzzles, reproducing
shapes and patterns, stringing beads, and using
scissors. |
| Progresses in abilities to use
writing, drawing, and art tools, including pencils, markers,
chalk, paint brushes, and various types of
technology. |
|
Health Status
&
Practices |
Progresses in physical growth,
strength, stamina, and flexibility. |
| Participates actively in games,
outdoor play, and other forms of exercise that enhance
physical fitness. |
| Shows growing independence in hygiene,
nutrition, and personal care when eating, dressing, washing
hands, brushing teeth, and toileting. |
| Builds awareness and ability to follow
basic health and safety rules such as fire safety, traffic and
pedestrian safety, and responding appropriately to potentially
harmful objects, substances, and
activities. |
* Indicates the 4 specific Domain Elements and 9 Indicators that are legislatively mandated.
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"[2003] The Head Start Child Outcomes Framework." Head Start Child Outcomes—Setting the Context for the National Reporting System. Head Start Bulletin #76. HHS/ACF/ACYF/HSB. 2003. English.
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