The standards for accreditation of public schools, adopted by the Arkansas State Board of Education, required the development of these course content guides. The standards also required that essential skills be identified for each course taught in the public schools of Arkansas. Committees of classroom teachers, curriculum specialists, principals, superintendents, staff members from institutions of higher education and Department of Education personnel jointly identified the skills included in each of the guides. These guides are offered as a framework on which a curriculum can be built. Included are guides for Mathematics--Grade 7, Grade 8; Math I, II and III (Grade 9); and General Mathematics and Advanced Mathematics (after Grade 8). At each grade level, skills have been identified at three instructional levels: basic, developmental, and extensions. The basic skills are those skills which all students must master. They are also the skills on which the Minimum Performance Test items are based. A comprehensive guide should exceed minimum levels of expectation. Developmental skills and extensions are also included. Developmental skills are those skills beyond the basic level that should be introduced and taught, but not necessarily mastered by all learners. Often developmental skills at one grade level become basic skills at a later grade or in a more advance course. Extensions are suggested for those learners who have mastered the required basic and recommended developmental skills. Extensions stress the higher order thinking, processing and problem solving skills. These extensions suggest ways for the teacher to broaden student learning on grade level without introducing more basic skills from subsequent grade levels. (TW)