¶ … Grade 1 Math Standards in North Carolina NCTM vs. Common Core

The most readily apparent distinction between the content and process standards for grade 1 math as outlined by the North Carolina Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards and the North Carolina Common Core state standards is primarily one of scope.

Comparison of Content and Process Standards.

The Common Core state standards are currently much broader in scope, ranging well beyond the a focus on addition and subtraction to include a beginning exploration of geometry and principles and techniques of measurement. Additionally, the Common Core state standards extend performance expectation in the areas of addition and subtraction to addition operations within 100 and subtraction of multiples of 10.

The North Carolina Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards tend to center around addition and subtraction operations, but it also articulates some specific performance expectations for commonly used fractions (1/4, 1/3, and 1/2) and grouping principles (such as sharing equally and equal groupings) that require basic understanding of multiplication and division. The NCTM standards appear to hover in the realm of understanding whole numbers, ordinal numbers, cardinal numbers, place value, and...

Indeed, the Common Core state standards do focus on numbers up to 20, and in the place value performance standards, stress the importance of children learning that numbers from 11 to 19 consist of both a ten and some ones.
The Promise of North Carolina Standards for Mathematics

Both the North Carolina Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards and the North Carolina Common Core state standards show promise for effective instruction of mathematics to students in first grade. An emphasis on understanding mathematics concepts through exploration of different models and manipulation of objects to demonstrate operations and numerical relationships offer motivational and varied opportunities to students. In the Common Core state standards, in particular, the standards are designed to ensure that children understand the fundamental relationships between numbers and are not left with only a rudimentary ability to complete operations.

Many of the state standards appear to have an iterative nature, which is critical to learning more advanced skills and concepts. Through performance standards…