North Carolina’s NC Foundations: The official early learning standards framework
North Carolina’s early learning standards are organized under the North Carolina Foundations for Early Learning and Development (NC Foundations, 2013), administered by the NC Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Division of Child Development and Early Education (DCDEE). NC Foundations applies to all licensed childcare programs, Head Start programs, and NC Pre-K programs serving children from birth through 60 months.
NC Foundations defines developmental expectations across all 8 domains and guides curriculum planning, developmental assessment, and program quality statewide. Programs can view current guidance at the DCDEE NC Foundations page.
North Carolina’s QRIS is called the Star Rated License System, one of the nation’s oldest (established 1999), administered by NC DCDEE. Programs earn one to five stars based on staff education levels and program standards. All licensed programs are rated. Using a research-based curriculum aligned to NC Foundations supports higher star ratings in the program standards domain.
Explore by developmental domain
North Carolina’s NC Foundations domains and Experience Curriculum alignment
Select a developmental domain below to see how North Carolina’s NC Foundations defines that domain, the key milestones by age group, and exactly how Experience Curriculum activities and skills map to each NC Foundations indicator.
Social-Emotional Development
Self-regulation, peer relationships, identity, empathy, and emotional expression
Explore North Carolina Social-Emotional Development standards →Language & Literacy
Receptive and expressive language, phonological awareness, early reading and writing
Explore North Carolina Language & Literacy standards →Mathematics & Reasoning
Number sense, patterns, measurement, spatial reasoning, and early problem-solving
Explore North Carolina Mathematics & Reasoning standards →Science
Observation, inquiry, cause-and-effect, and exploration of the natural world
Explore North Carolina Science standards →Social Studies
Community, family, cultural identity, roles, and civic understanding
Explore North Carolina Social Studies standards →Creative Arts
Visual arts, music, movement, dramatic play, and creative expression
Explore North Carolina Creative Arts standards →Physical Development
Gross and fine motor skills, body awareness, health, and self-care
Explore North Carolina Physical Development standards →Approaches to Learning
Curiosity, persistence, initiative, flexibility, and attention
Explore North Carolina Approaches to Learning standards →Curriculum alignment
How Experience Curriculum aligns to North Carolina’s NC Foundations
Experience Curriculum is formally aligned to North Carolina’s NC Foundations 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 North Carolina NC Foundations Alignment PDF documents how every Experience Curriculum activity and skill maps to a specific NC Foundations indicator.
For North Carolina programs using brightwheel, developmental observations can be logged directly in the app during or after activities, automatically building each child’s portfolio and supporting NC Star Rated License System curriculum documentation requirements.
The North Carolina NC Foundations Alignment PDF is a free resource documenting how every Experience Curriculum activity maps to North Carolina’s NC Foundations indicators — suitable for QRIS review submissions and licensing documentation.
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