Friday, November 21, 2008

December 3rd Iowa Core Curriculum Training

Session 3 of the Leadership for the Iowa Core Curriculum training is quickly approaching. Registered participants received an email reminder of their session's date, time and location. The session will focus on building capacity for alignment and assessment and on a preview of the implementation plan.

The session held in Indianola will be offered only in the morning of December 3rd and will move to the Trinity United Presbyterian Church, 200 S. Howard, Indianola, IA for the December session only. Please contact Linda Biermann Hoobin, Teaching and Learning Consultant for the Iowa Core Curriculum, 515-270-0405
ext. 14327, if you have questions.

Preschool Program Requirements for Early Childhood Special Education

Iowa law requires accredited school districts and nonpublic schools operating preschools and child care programs to either meet Iowa Department of Education (DE) Program Standards or obtain Department of Human Services (DHS) licensure [Iowa Code § 279.49, 280.3A].

The DE has defined the Preschool Program Standards as the following:

1.) Iowa Quality Preschool Program Standards (QPPS);
2.) Head Start Program Performance Standards; or
3.) National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Accreditation.

The Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) and Early Childhood (EC) programs serving children on an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) must meet the DE Preschool Program Standards requirement. Therefore, beginning in 2008–2009, ECSE and EC programs serving children on an IEP are expected to select and implement one of the above mentioned three required Preschool Program Standards.


District administrators with ECSE and EC programs serving children on an IEP that implement QPPS may want to consider the following:
  • Contacting area education agencies (AEA) early childhood leadership for information about early childhood professional development;
  • Becoming familiar with the QPPS standards and criteria;
  • Completing the QPPS self-assessment with support from the AEA ECSE/EC staff; and
  • Developing a QPPS quality improvement plan.
Information about the Iowa QPPS is available on the Iowa Department of Education website at http://www.iowa.gov/educate/content/view/681/805/. For additional information regarding implications for Early Childhood Special Education programs, contact Dee Gethmann at 515-281-5502 or dee.gethmann@iowa.gov, or Jerry Gruba at 515-270-9030 or jgruba@aea11.k12.ia.us.

Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Courses

Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Program Level II: Evaluation of Teachers courses are being offered this spring. Courses are being offered on the following dates:
  • February 14, 21, 28, March 7, 28, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at the West Des Moines Learning Resource Center (snow make-up date is April 4, 2009).
  • January 8, 20, February 12, March 10 & April 28, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at the Woodside AEA Office in Ankeny except for February 12 which will be held at Johnston AEA Office (snow make-up date is May 4, 2009).
  • January 12, 19, 26, February 2, 9, 16, 23, March 2, 30 & April 6, 2009 from 6:00-9:00 p.m. at the Johnston AEA Office (Room 8).
Due to the assignments required for the course there will not be any classes offered during the summer. The next course offerings will begin in the fall and end in December. If you need to renew your administrative or evaluator license prior to December 2009, you are strongly encouraged to sign up for one of the spring courses so you will have the required course completed in time to renew your license.

Student Poetry and Art Opportunity

Every year, River of Words® (ROW) conducts an international environmental poetry and art competition in affiliation with The Library of Congress Center for the Book for youth ages 5 to 19 in grades K-12. This free contest is designed to help youth explore the natural and cultural history of the place they live and to express what they discover through poetry and art.

Iowa entries not chosen as finalists or grand prize winners in the international contest are returned to IOWATER, where they are judged in a statewide IOWA River of Words® Environmental Poetry and Art competition.
The IOWATER Volunteer Water Monitoring Program of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources coordinates the IOWA River of Words® Environmental Poetry and Art competition.

Over 350 students from Iowa entered the 2008 contest either through their schools, community art centers, local libraries or on their own. Because of the large number of quality Iowa entries, the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art generously offered to host a juried River of Words® IOWA Environmental Poetry and Art Exhibit. Fifty-one works of poetry and art were selected to be included in the exhibit, held August 30 through September 21, 2008.


If your students would be interested in entering the contest for 2009, entries must be sent to:


River of Words, PO Box 4000-J

Berkeley, CA 94704 USA
Phone: 510-548-POEM (7636)

Fax: 510-548-2095

ROW returns Iowa's entries to IOWATER in April for state competition and Iowa’s state winners are chosen in May.


For more information and entry forms click here or contact Pat Lohmann, IOWA River of Words Coordinator, at (319) 335-1593 or Pat.Lohmann@dnr.iowa.gov.

The deadline for entries is February 15, 2009.