The Beginning column on the continua addresses children’s development during the ages of 6, 7 and 8 years of age. We know that children process and assimilate information at different rates, thus it is typical to see the skills listed in this column demonstrated by children in this age range.

Students who are currently operating in this column are able to demonstrate strong basic numeric skills and work independently for an extended period of time. They are comfortable with the concept of addition and multi-digit place value tasks. They are extending their understanding of geometric dimensionality and are beginning to see and hypothesize about complex patterns in numbers that they are able to notice. Conceptually, they are able to start assigning abstract values to a manipulative (one blue block is actually a 9).

Socially, students at this level are highly interested in what’s happening around them. They eagerly watch and listen to the ideas of others and are starting to incorporate the ideas of their peers and teachers into their own work.