Free Webinar - Partnering with Families to Support Dual Language Learners

Family Engagement, Language, and Literacy Webinar Series

In this webinar series, learn strategies to effectively partner with parents to help their children develop language and literacy skills. Discover ways to use these strategies to meet school readiness goals.

Partnering with Families to Support Dual Language Learners

There’s a common misconception that supporting a child’s learning of multiple languages will interfere with their English language learning. In fact, children raised in a dual or multi-language household can thrive with the right language and literacy support in early childhood. In this third webinar in the series, learn how to partner with families to dispel misconceptions about dual language learning.

Topics for the webinar include:

• Value of engaging families to meet goals for dual language learning
• Planning with families to support their children to retain their home language while learning English
• A preview of future resources to support families with dual language learners

Tuesday 31 October 2017, 01:00 PM - 02:15 PM

Join the Chat after the Webinar!
3:00-3:15 p.m., EDT
Continue the discussion with presenters and your peers.

TELPA Screener for 17-18

Hello all,
As a reminder, the screener for the current year will continue to be the TELPA. Below is the important information from the Iowa DE website regarding English Language Proficiency screening for the current year (scroll to the bottom of the page).

TELPA Screener (ending in spring 2018)

The TELPA is the current required screener used as a placement measure. Iowa will replace it with the ELPA21 Screener for all new English Learners beginning in July 2018.

Ordering the TELPA

Any districts needing to purchase the TELPA screener should place the order directly with Measurement Incorporated (MI). TELPA can only be ordered online. It is sold in packs of 10 and includes all the support materials needed.

If you would like to place an order or have any other questions, please contact the TELPA Helpline at 888-612-0180 or elda@measinc.com. Associates at Measurement Incorporated will provide you with the credentials for your district as well as directions on how to place an order on the TELPA website.

TELPA Administration Training

The TELPA Training Module is located in the AEA PD Online training system. Use the following directions to access the training module:
Directions for Accessing the Webinar/Training Modules for ELPA21

TELPA Administration

1. Download the correct bubble answer sheet (BAS). 
1. TELPA K-2 Answer Sheet
2. TELPA 3-12 Answer Sheet
3. K-2 Student Record Form
2. Score the screeners locally using administration manuals from Measurement Incorporated. 
3. Use proficiency information to inform educational programming decisions. 
4. Place the bubble answer sheet in student’s permanent file 

Required Data Submission

ELL Placement Proficiency is no longer included as a data element for Student Reporting in Iowa. Schools are only required to submit data using the Score Reporting Template. (NOTE: This is a new template updated for the 2017-18 school year. Please discard any previous versions.) Follow these steps:

1. Download and complete the Score Reporting Template to enter student information and TELPA scores. Save each file using your LEA name and Date (e. g., Ames_072716). 
2. Go to the Iowa GSecureMail center at https://game-message-portal.com/s/welcome.jsp?b=iowa. If this is your first time using this site, you will be prompted to register your email and set a password. 
3. After signing in to GSecureMail, click on 'Compose.' Enter Ed.portal@iowa.gov in the 'To' field. In the Subject field, enter your district name and the word TELPA (e. g., Ames TELPA). 
4. Click on the 'Attach File' button and click on ‘Choose file’ to select the file created in Step One. Click on 'Add File' to upload your file, then click on 'Finish.' 
5. Click on ‘Send’ to send your email. If you have any issues using Iowa GSecureMail, please contact the OCIO helpdesk at 515-281-5703, option 2.

ELP Standards Modules License Renewal Credit

Greetings and welcome back to many from summer break. Over the last couple of years, much attention and work has gone into developing and ensuring educators in Iowa who provide LIEP instruction and services, as well as support this work, learn about the ELP Standards. I am happy to say that the final work and process to provide a license renewal credit to those completing this professional learning is finalized. In order to earn the License Renewal credit, go to:  training.aeapdonline.org

Once signed in, click on the catalog in the upper left and search for:

"Implementing the English Language Proficiency (ELP) Standards"

This course is built off of the ELP Standards training modules built by ELPA21 Consortium states and Stanford University. In order to meet the requirements for a relicensure credit in Iowa, additional content and assignments based on the ELP Standards modules has been created.

The License Renewal Course

The course has four modules.

Self-Paced Course Introduction

Overview of the requirements for completing a self-paced course.

Implementing the ELP Standards; Introduction

This will provide an overview of the course objectives and required assignments. This module should take half an hour.

Supporting English Language Learners

This module will provide information on English Learners and ways to support them in school settings. This module should take approximatelly two hours.

Implementing the ELP Standards; Conclusion

This module will review requirements for completion. You will upload certificates of completion for the ELP Stanards modules 1-6 and assignments. The ELP Standards modules should take approximately 11.5 hours of time to complete. It is expected that participants have viewed all module videos in their entirety. The assignments should take approximately one and a half hours.

Lau Plans for 2017-18

Greetings all,

Summer break has been underway for some time, however I wanted to take this opportunity to pass on information regarding Lau Plans for the 2017-2018 school year.  Lau Plans will need to be developed as in year's past.  There are minimal changes form last year regarding required components and to the template.  With that being said... it is highly recommended that district teams closely review plans to ensure all services and actions documented in your Lau Plans match district/building practices and services.

State Approved Lau Plan Documents

As a reminder regarding the three shared documents:

• Lau Plan Template - This provides a bare-bones indication of broad sections required with narrative explanations.
• Lau Plan Guidance Doc - More specific version of Lau Plan Template, provides sections with sub-headings to complete (works well as a checklist and matches the Lau Plan Checklist).
• Lau Plan Checklist - This is the document used to review Lau Plans for approval (highly recommended to have this document out when reviewing/writing your Lau Plan)

At this time, there is no specific guidance regarding submission of Lau Plans (e.g., date due, procedures to follow, etc.).  As soon as this information is shared, I will pass that on as well.

If districts choose to work ahead on their plans and would like to consult about sections, please feel free to reach out.

Take care,

Joe

Our Kids, ICLC, and an Art Show

It's hard to believe summer is upon us!  Apologies for the long post, but there is a lot to share. As districts finish out the 2016-17 school year and look forward to 2017-18, there are some reminders and items to put on our calendars.

Our Kids 2017

If you have not registered for the Our Kids Summer Institute on June 13th and 14th, please complete the below registration by Wednesday the 31st of May (to be included in the next PO# for payment of the registration fee):  

Green Hills AEA Our Kids Registration

Iowa Culture and Language Conference 2017

Make sure to put the Iowa Culture and Language Conference on November 7th and 8th, 2017 on your calendars.  For those interested in presenting, click here to submit a proposal by June 5th.

ICLC Diverse Student Art Show

The Iowa Culture and Language Conference is organizing a student art show to showcase the talent and diversity of our Iowa students. The deadline to apply is October 15th. The ICLC Art Show is open to all Iowa K-12 students. Submissions must be two-dimensional and no larger than 24” x 36”. Each submission should be original, signed work. Artwork will be displayed at the conference November 6th-8th, 2017, at the Coralville Marriott in Coralville, IA.

ICLC Art Show Documents and Application

Information: For additional information, please contact:
Lynn Tiemann, ICLC Art Show Coordinator
ltiemann@gwaea.org

Thank you to everyone for their tireless work to support and provide quality educational experiences to our Green Hills English Learners.

EL Teacher Resources: LessonPick and Skype Translator

Greetings!  A couple new resources came to my attention this week that I feel compelled to share.

LessonPick

LessonPick is an online resource for sharing lessons for serving English Learners.  Initial reviews by myself and other EL Consultants across the state indicate that the resources are generally of high quality.

Skype Translator

Skype Translator is a new technology building on neural digital networks.  This allows for individuals speaking different languages to have a real-time translated conversation.  Currently it is only available on PCs, but work is ongoing to bring this tool to Apple computers as well.  This again has been tentatively tested by EL Consultants across the state with initial thumbs up.

Thanks for everyones hard work for English Learners!

Our Kids Summer Institute 2017 Reminder

Iowa's Our Kids Summer Institute is scheduled for June 13th and 14th.  

The 2017 Our Kids Summer Institute will provide participants with the opportunity to network with other educational professionals, to discover new strategies for working with English language learners in Iowa, and to meet national and local experts to enrich practices for increasing EL achievement.

In-depth information regarding presenters as well as the specific registration process for Green Hills area educators will be shared in the coming in 1-2 weeks. Until then, I want to share what is known now in order to help districts to continue determining planned participants in this unique learning opportunity.

Topics Include:

• Strategies for engaging and supporting English learners in Universal Tier Instruction
• Honoring English learner's Home Language/s in the classroom to improve EL student outcomes
• Equitable access to extracurricular activities and college and career readiness pathways
• Cultural proficiency 
• Newcomer programming and instructional best practices
• Using ELPA21 data for instructional decision making and program evaluation
• Diverse ELL Panel of First Person Voices (students) will discuss their challenges and successes from unique perspectives.

As well as a variety of Unconference topics such as: Supplementary resources for ELs, Sheltered Instruction, ELL/MTSS, Dual language program models, and many more.

To enhance your conference experience, prior to June 13, we would like you to join the ELL Community found at the following address: http://moodlesw.aeapdonline.org/course/view.php?id=832

The ELL Community offers teachers and administrators an avenue for networking, professional learning and accessing a multitude of resources to assist with programming, instructional design and meeting student needs.

As a community member, you will have access to the Our Kids Summer Institute:
* Program
* Session Information and resources
* Online discussion related to the Institute

Watch the video at the following address to learn how to join the ELL Community:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIjbRvcyh_E

For a complete overview of the community, view the video at the following address:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdDJFNCUYHo

Testing Accommodations for English Learners

Spring is upon us and for many districts that signals districtwide assessments! With that in mind, as well as recent questions from the field, I felt it was a natural point to share some guidance regarding assessment accommodations for English Learners (ELs).

Importantly, all English Learners are required to complete the same assessments that a particular district requires of all students. For example, if a district opts to administer the Social Studies test of Iowa Assessments, English Learners must participate as well. The one notable exception that exists for ELs addresses those who are considered 'recent arrivals'.

Recently arrived ELs are defined as English Learners' who have attended United States schools for less than 12 months. During this period (first 12 months of US schools attendance) a 'recent arrival' may be exempted from one administration of the State's reading/language arts assessment.

Below is linked the most current guidance from the Iowa Department of Education regarding EL participation in districtwide assessments. While there are dated references to the i-ELDA assessments (we now utilize the ELPA21), the guidance remains of high quality for teams to determine EL participation in districtwide assessments

Iowa Guidelines for K-12 EL Participation in Districtwide Assessments

As always, thank you to everyone for the wonderful supports and services you provide to English Learners in Iowa!

Green Hills AEA's New English Learner Blog

Greetings Green Hills AEA and LEA English Learner educators and advocates.  In my work as the Title III Coordinator for Green Hills AEA, my hope is that I can disseminate important EL related news, resources, and requirements via technology.  Utilizing a blog allows for an archived record of information that may serve to better save information for each of you.  My hope is that this newsletter will be beneficial for each of you and the students, families, and follow educators you serve.

To get started, here are some of the primary resources I want to ensure each of you remains aware of:

• English Language Learners - Iowa Department of Education website
• This is the primary location of State of Iowa EL regulations and requirements
• The ELPA21 Consortium Site, and the Iowa ELPA21 Portal.
• With the ELPA21 testing window being open currently, I would be remiss in not reminding everyone of these two important resources.  When in the ELPA21 Portal, but sure to sign up for announcement updates.
• The new GHAEA English Learner website!
• This is a brand new site, which is still being constructed.  Eventually, this site will be linked directly with the GHAEA website (likely summer of 2017).  Feel free to check it out, see what has been added so far, and I welcome input on features and resources you would like to see there as we move forward.

Finally, this blog will be shared out through email and an assortment of social media sites to allow each of you to follow in the way you prefer.  

• Twitter
• Google+
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

There may be additional information shared through these social media accounts that are not shared through the blog, but I will endeavor to post the most important information needed periodically through this blog.