The Iowa Department of Education is excited to launch IowaCore.gov. This website is for educators, parents and other stakeholders to better understand, access, and deliver the Iowa Core standards.For the education community, this website is the centerpiece of what's called the Iowa Core Resources Project. This project is about providing the concrete tools and resources that teachers need to put the Iowa Core into practice.
The Iowa Core Resources Project was made possible with a $1 million state appropriation approved by Iowa legislators in 2013. This funding was used to develop a new Iowa Core website and to secure examples of optional instructional resources that teachers can use, if they so choose, to implement the Iowa Core in kindergarten through 12th grade. More than 8,000 resources are available at no charge in a central, searchable online location called IowaLearns.org, which is accessible through IowaCore.gov. The materials are adaptable to fit the individual needs of local classrooms.
The new Iowa Core website also provides much more information about the standards to parents and other Iowans. The Explore the Core section provides the standards in a user-friendly format that is searchable by grade level and subject. The parent guides found under the Parents & Community section provide an overview of the Iowa Core standards, examples of what students are expected to know and be able to do, and activities that can be done at home to support this learning. The math and English language arts portions of the parent guides were completed in partnership with the National PTA, while the science, social studies, and 21st century skills portions were developed by Iowa teachers.
