New Jersey Standards
New Jersey Kindergarten Math Standards
All 23 New Jersey math standards for kindergarten, each explained in plain English. The official wording is one click away under each one.
23 standards
Counting and Cardinality
7 standardsKnow number names and the count sequence
K.CC.A.1
Count out loud to 100, one number at a time and by tens, like 10, 20, 30.
Official wording
Count to 100 by ones and by tens.
K.CC.A.2
Start counting from any number, like 7, and keep going without going back to 1.
Official wording
Count forward beginning from a given number within the known sequence (instead of having to begin at 1).
K.CC.A.3
Write the numerals 0 to 20 and write the number that shows how many objects are in a group, with 0 for none.
Official wording
Write numbers from 0 to 20. Represent a number of objects with a written numeral 0–20 (with 0 representing a count of no objects).
Count to tell the number of objects
K.CC.B.4
Count a group by touching each object once, know the last number said tells how many, and know the next number means one more.
Official wording
Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality.aWhen counting objects, say the number names in the standard order, pairing each object with one and only one number name and each number name with one and only one object.bUnderstand that the last number name said tells the number of objects counted. The number of objects is the same regardless of their arrangement or the order in which they were counted.cUnderstand that each successive number name refers to a quantity that is one larger.
K.CC.B.5
Count up to 20 objects in a line, grid or circle, or up to 10 scattered ones, and count out a given number of objects.
Official wording
Count to answer “how many?” questions about as many as 20 things arranged in a line, a rectangular array, or a circle, or as many as 10 things in a scattered configuration; given a number from 1–20, count out that many objects.
Compare numbers
K.CC.C.6
Tell whether one group of up to ten objects has more, fewer or the same number as another group, by matching or counting.
Official wording
Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies. (Clarification: Include groups with up to ten objects.)
K.CC.C.7
Look at two written numbers from 1 to 10 and say which is bigger, like 8 is more than 3.
Official wording
Compare two numbers between 1 and 10 presented as written numerals.
Operations and Algebraic Thinking
5 standardsUnderstand addition as putting together and adding to, and understand subtraction as taking apart and taking from
K.OA.A.1
Show adding and taking away within 10 with fingers, objects, claps, drawings, acting out a story, words or number sentences.
Official wording
Represent addition and subtraction up to 10 with objects, fingers, mental images, drawings, sounds (e.g., claps), acting out situations, verbal explanations, expressions, or equations.
K.OA.A.2
Solve simple adding and taking-away story problems within 10, using objects or drawings to help.
Official wording
Solve addition and subtraction word problems, and add and subtract within 10, e.g., by using objects or drawings to represent the problem.
K.OA.A.3
Break a number up to 10 into two parts in more than one way, like 6 = 2 + 4 and 6 = 5 + 1, and record it.
Official wording
Decompose numbers less than or equal to 10 into pairs in more than one way, e.g., by using objects or drawings, and record each decomposition by a drawing or equation (e.g., 5 = 2 + 3 and 5 = 4 + 1).
K.OA.A.4
Find the number that goes with any number from 1 to 9 to make 10, like 7 and 3, and show it with a drawing or equation.
Official wording
For any number from 1 to 9, find the number that makes 10 when added to the given number, e.g., by using objects or drawings, and record the answer with a drawing or equation.
K.OA.A.5
Add and subtract within 5 quickly and correctly, like knowing 3 + 2 = 5 and 4 - 1 = 3 right away.
Official wording
Demonstrate accuracy and efficiency for addition and subtraction within 5.
Number and Operation in Base Ten
1 standardWork with numbers 11–19 to gain foundations for place value
K.NBT.A.1
See the numbers 11 to 19 as ten ones plus some more, like 14 = 10 + 4, and show it with objects, drawings or an equation.
Official wording
Compose and decompose numbers from 11 to 19 into ten ones and some further ones, e.g., by using objects or drawings, and record each composition or decomposition by a drawing or equation (e.g., 18 = 10 + 8); understand that these numbers are composed of ten ones and one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, or nine ones.
Measurement
3 standardsDescribe and compare measurable attributes
K.M.A.1
Talk about what can be measured on an object, like how long or how heavy it is, and name more than one for the same object.
Official wording
Describe measurable attributes of objects, such as length or weight. Describe several measurable attributes of a single object.
K.M.A.2
Put two objects side by side to see which is longer, taller or heavier, and say how they differ.
Official wording
Directly compare two objects with a measurable attribute in common, to see which object has “more of”/“less of” the attribute, and describe the difference. For example, directly compare the heights of two children and describe one child as taller/shorter.
Work with money
K.M.B.3
Recognize coins and dollar bills as money, and name what a penny, nickel, dime, quarter and one-dollar bill are each worth.
Official wording
Understand that certain objects are coins and dollar bills, and that coins and dollar bills represent money. Identify the values of all U.S. coins and the one-dollar bill.
Data Literacy
1 standardClassify objects and count the number of objects in each category
K.DL.A.1
Sort objects into given groups, count how many are in each group of up to 10, and put the groups in order by how many they hold.
Official wording
Classify objects into given categories; count the numbers of objects in each category and sort the categories by count. (Clarification: Limit category counts to be less than or equal to 10)
Geometry
6 standardsIdentify and describe shapes (squares, circles, triangles, rectangles, hexagons, cubes, cones, cylinders, and spheres)
K.G.A.1
Name the shapes of everyday objects and say where things are using words like above, below, beside and behind.
Official wording
Describe objects in the environment using names of shapes, and describe the relative positions of these objects using terms such as above, below, beside, in front of, behind, and next to.
K.G.A.2
Recognize a shape by name even when it is turned sideways, upside down, big or small.
Official wording
Correctly name shapes regardless of their orientations or overall size.
K.G.A.3
Tell flat shapes, like a square, from solid shapes, like a cube.
Official wording
Identify shapes as two-dimensional (lying in a plane, “flat”) or three-dimensional (“solid”).
Analyze, compare, create, and compose shapes
K.G.B.4
Compare flat and solid shapes in everyday words, like counting sides and corners or noticing sides of equal length.
Official wording
Analyze and compare two- and three-dimensional shapes, in different sizes and orientations, using informal language to describe their similarities, differences, parts (e.g., number of sides and vertices/“corners”) and other attributes (e.g., having sides of equal length).
K.G.B.5
Build shapes from sticks, clay or blocks and draw shapes seen in the world.
Official wording
Model shapes in the world by building shapes from components (e.g., sticks and clay balls) and drawing shapes.
K.G.B.6
Put simple shapes together to make a bigger one, like joining two triangles to make a square.
Official wording
Compose simple shapes to form larger shapes. For example, “Can you join these two triangles with full sides touching to make a rectangle?”.
The official New Jersey documents
- New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Mathematics, 2023 · adopted October 2023 · since 2025-26
New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Mathematics, New Jersey Department of Education.
Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.
The plain-English lines are EMStudio's own explanations, shown beside the official wording. They are not part of the standards.