PLAEA Early Childhood Newsletter
April 2023 Edition
Emmetsburg Podcast Features Preschool Program
Mrs. Sara Straw and Mrs. Thompson from Emmetsburg Community School District have recently started a podcast. The preschool team were their first interviewees with trying to spread the word about preschool registration and round up etc. Their goal with the podcast is to have it be more than a newsletter, another way of sharing out the great news at Emmetsburg West! They will try to have a podcast once a month to cover a vast array of topics.
Link To The Podcast (featuring their preschool team): https://anchor.fm/sara-straw/episodes/Preschool-e1vv6t1
Eagle Grove Preschool Teacher Appointed to State Early Childhood Iowa Board
Angie Anderson (preschool teacher at Eagle Grove preschool program), was recently appointed as a member of the State Early Childhood Iowa Board.
Early Childhood Iowa (ECI) is a statewide initiative housed within the Iowa Department of Management that unites public and private agencies, organizations, and stakeholders under one common vision, “Every child, beginning at birth, will be healthy and successful.”
The ECI Board was created to promote a vision for a comprehensive early care, education, health, and human services system in this state. The board shall oversee state and local efforts to that end.
Congratulations Angie on being "our local voice"!!!
Preschool Updates and Resources
1) From the desk of: Kelly Olson
Happy Spring!
Friendly reminder, it is the time of the year that we need to start planning transition IEP meetings for preschool students moving from preschool to T-K or K . Please reference the training material that was shared at the Module 5 ACHIEVE zooms that was offered for your learning. If you have more questions, please feel free to reach out to your consultant or contact me - Kelly Olson @ kolson@plaea.org.
Thank you,
Kelly Olson
ECSE Department Chair
2) Farm To School in Early Care Grant Available
Farm to early care and education (Farm to ECE) builds connections between kids and local food, focusing on the specific learning styles, needs and environments in which young children learn and grow. Farm to ECE thrives in early learning environments that practice food education and on-site gardening, local food procurement, and family engaging.
There are 3 different grants available:
1) Gardening: Funding is available to start, expand or reinvigorate your on-site garden. Get your garden growing!
2) Local Food Procurement: Purchase and serve local food in your program, during breakfast, lunch, supper, or in snacks.
3) Family Engagement: Apply for funding to engage families in your Farm to ECE work! Funding available for in-person events or virtual engagement. .
3) Self Regulation Tips and Strategies
4) PLAEA Hosting Advanced Autism Class - June 12th
Increasing numbers of persons with a range of disabilities are living in small residential settings in our communities, attending classes in neighborhood schools, holding jobs in local businesses and participating in community recreation and social activities. There is a great need for educators to provide the services and supports these individuals need.
In this Advanced Autism Class, participants will:
- Learn Pivotal Response Training (PRT) as an intervention that integrates principles of child development with those of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).
- Learn Discrete Trial Training (DTT) as an intervention that is used to develop a new response to a stimulus.
Class will be held June 12 at the PLAEA office in Pocahontas. More details, including registration.
5) PLAEA Early Childhood 2023-2024 Professional Development COMING SOON!
6) PLAEA Offering FREE Para Educator Certification I, II, and III (Early Childhood)
PLAEA is offering Para Educator certification for FREE through a secured grant. The Paraeducator Generalist certificate program is delivered in three 30-hour courses. Participants will be expected to attend one virtual session on the first of each class. The remaining hours will be asynchronous learning through online Moodle units with weekly assignments to complete the additional hours needed to receive a passing grade for this class.
7) Focus 2023 Summer Learning Conference
There will be amazing keynote speakers: Dr. Lori Desautels, Tiffany Lanier, and Alexander Hardy.
There are over 25 unique breakout sessions on a variety of topics including - Social Emotional Learning, the science of reading, working with students with challenging behavior, math strategies, Future Ready, early childhood support strategies and supporting adult mental health.
All attendees will receive a gift bag that includes the book Connections Over Compliance by Dr. Lori Desautels. Schools that bring 5 or more staff members will also receive the newly released book by Dr. Desautels, Intentional Neuroplasticity: Moving our Nervous System and Education System Toward Post-Traumatic Growth.
This conference will be packed full of great learning, vendors, wonderful food, and the beauty that is Storm Lake. Registration is open for everyone on February 14 (Happy Valentine's Day)! We hope to see you and all of your schools at this great learning opportunity.
When: June 21-22, 2023
- Day One: 8:30 – 4:30 (Breakfast, Lunch, & Snack included)
- Day Two: 8:30 – 3:00 (Breakfast & Lunch included)
Where: Buena Vista University – Storm Lake, Iow
Additional Preschool Resources
Early Childhood Special Education Supports
ACHIEVE
Professional Learning System (PLS) for ACHIEVE:
The PLS will help you learn how to use the features of ACHIEVE. It is organized into sections. Each section contains topical mini-modules that include videos, written descriptions, and opportunities to practice the ACHIEVE functions addressed in the mini-module. To access the PLS log into ACHIEVE and click on the PLS tab at the top of the screen.
ACHIEVE User Guide For Special Education
**Please do not print as it is over 700 pages.
i3 IDEA Website
i3 IDEA Iowa IDEA Information. This website is full of information, guidance, resources and procedures. i3 - Iowa IDEA Information - Guidance - Resources - ProceduresProcedural Safeguards Manual
Do you ever have a difficult time finding an updated Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents prior to an IEP meeting? Do you ever need a copy for families in Arabic, Bosnian, Lao, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish or Vietnamese? See the links below for updated Manuals.
Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents Rights for Children Ages 3-21
ECTA: Breadth of 3 Child Outcomes
Resources Preparing Parents for IEP Meetings
Parent Information for Initial IEP Meeting
IEP Team Member Roles and Responsibilities
Preschool "Go-Tos"
Iowa Preschool Program Timeline Resource
NCPMI -PBIS - Challenging Behavior Site
ColorinColorado - A bilingual site for educators and families of English language learners
Early Childhood Iowa - Early Childhood Mental Health
Marcie Lentsch - Early Childhood Consultant (Ed Services)
- Supports all Prairie Lakes Area Education Agency school districts that house early childhood programs (3-5 years of age) and SWVPP partner sites (private and faith based preschools).
- Coaching, collaborating, consulting and supporting teachers on evidence-based practices, curriculum, assessment, standards and developmentally appropriate practices.
- Provide professional development and serve as a resource to teachers, administrators and instructional coaches of programs 3-5 years of age.
Email: mlentsch@plaea.org
Website: plaea.org
Phone: 515-705-7170