Core Knowledge Curriculum Sequence

The Core Knowledge approach puts knowledge at the heart of schooling.

Specific and Sequenced: Most curriculum standards provide general goals and objectives but offer teachers little guidance about the specific knowledge students should learn in each grade. In contrast, the Core Knowledge approach is to specify, in a clear grade-by-grade sequence, what students need to know.

Excellence and Equity: Only by specifying the knowledge and skills that all children should share can we guarantee equal access to that knowledge. 

Starting Early: It’s important to begin building strong foundations of knowledge in the early years. The Core Knowledge approach focuses on preschool through grade eight. In these early years, especially the preschool and elementary grades, schools can do the most to help children lay the groundwork for language development and future success.

The Core Knowledge Sequence

What do students need to know? The Core Knowledge Sequence is a detailed outline of recommended content knowledge and skills to be taught in language arts, history and geography, visual arts, music, mathematics, and science from preschool through grade eight. The Sequence complements the general skills and objectives typically found in state and local curriculum guides.

Find out more about the Core Knowledge Sequence. 

The Blueprint for Knowledge-Based Schooling

The Core Knowledge Sequence provides the blueprint for knowledge-based schooling.

Knowledge-based schooling puts the emphasis of early education on teaching and learning an enabling core of broadly shared knowledge—enabling because it builds strong foundations for later learning and opens doors to effective participation and mutual understanding in the wider society. Learn more about the thinking behind knowledge-based schooling.