Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS: The official early learning standards framework
Louisiana’s early learning standards are organized under Louisiana’s Early Learning and Development Standards (ELDS), 2025 revision, administered by the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE). Adopted as Bulletin 136 in the Louisiana Administrative Code Title 28, Louisiana ELDS applies to licensed childcare centers, Head Start programs, and publicly funded early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 5.
Louisiana ELDS defines developmental expectations across all 8 domains and guides curriculum planning, developmental assessment, and program quality statewide. Programs can view current guidance at the Louisiana Believes Academic Standards page.
Louisiana operates a Unified Statewide Early Childhood Quality Rating and Improvement System administered by LDOE. Louisiana’s system uses CLASS-based classroom observations and Performance Profiles that assess curriculum use, teacher qualifications, and teacher-child ratios. Using a research-based curriculum aligned to Louisiana’s ELDS supports higher performance profile ratings.
Explore by developmental domain
Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS domains and Experience Curriculum alignment
Select a developmental domain below to see how Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS defines that domain, the key milestones by age group, and exactly how Experience Curriculum activities and skills map to each Louisiana ELDS indicator.
Social-Emotional Development
Self-regulation, peer relationships, identity, empathy, and emotional expression
Explore Louisiana Social-Emotional Development standards →Language & Literacy
Receptive and expressive language, phonological awareness, early reading and writing
Explore Louisiana Language & Literacy standards →Mathematics & Reasoning
Number sense, patterns, measurement, spatial reasoning, and early problem-solving
Explore Louisiana Mathematics & Reasoning standards →Science
Observation, inquiry, cause-and-effect, and exploration of the natural world
Explore Louisiana Science standards →Social Studies
Community, family, cultural identity, roles, and civic understanding
Explore Louisiana Social Studies standards →Creative Arts
Visual arts, music, movement, dramatic play, and creative expression
Explore Louisiana Creative Arts standards →Physical Development
Gross and fine motor skills, body awareness, health, and self-care
Explore Louisiana Physical Development standards →Approaches to Learning
Curiosity, persistence, initiative, flexibility, and attention
Explore Louisiana Approaches to Learning standards →Curriculum alignment
How Experience Curriculum aligns to Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS
Experience Curriculum is formally aligned to Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS across all three age bands — Baby (birth to 18 months), Toddler (18 to 36 months), and Preschool (3 to 5 years) — and all 8 developmental domains. The Louisiana ELDS Alignment PDF documents how every Experience Curriculum activity and skill maps to a specific Louisiana ELDS indicator.
For Louisiana programs using brightwheel, developmental observations can be logged directly in the app during or after activities, automatically building each child’s portfolio and supporting Louisiana’s Unified Statewide Early Childhood QRIS curriculum documentation requirements.
The Louisiana ELDS Alignment PDF is a free resource documenting how every Experience Curriculum activity maps to Louisiana’s Louisiana ELDS indicators — suitable for QRIS review submissions and licensing documentation.
Frequently asked questions