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The Iowa Core: Rigorous Expectations for All Students

Great school systems have clear and rigorous expectations, or standards, that educators help all students reach. In Iowa, those standards are known as the Iowa Core. The Iowa Core academic standards describe what students should know and be able to do from kindergarten through 12th grade in math, science, English language arts and social studies. In addition to the content standards, the Iowa Core also defines 21st century skills goals and universal constructs for all students that are critical for success for college, career and citizenry.

The Iowa Core is a set of common expectations, not a curriculum. Decisions about how to design Norwalk’s scope and sequence is in the hands of our local teachers, administrators and school board. Iowa Core implementation in Norwalk is ongoing and is fully integrated with both our curriculum review and Professional Learning Community (PLC) process. The Iowa Core sets appropriate academic expectations for all students, and reflects the real-world knowledge and skills students need to graduate from Norwalk High School fully prepared for college or career.

For more information about the Iowa Core Curriculum, including the grade level standards and parent guides, please visit the Iowa Core Parent Resources page developed by the Iowa Department of Education.

Norwalk’s Curriculum Review Process and PLC

While the Iowa Core defines grade level expectations, our teachers work in collaborative Professional Learning Communities (PLC) to design a rigorous and engaging curriculum for students. PLCs work in recurring cycles to improve student learning.  PLCs operate using DuFour’s four guiding questions:

  1. What is it we want students to learn?
  2. How will we know if students are learning?
  3. How will we respond when students don’t learn?
  4. How will we extend learning for students who are highly proficient?

For more information regarding our curriculum development process, please review the Norwalk Curriculum Review Process Overview.

Elementary K-5 Curriculum Areas

  • English Language Arts
  • Mathematics
  • Science
  • Social Studies
  • Specials: Art, General Music, PE/Health, Library/Technology, 21st Century STEM

Elementary K-5 Curriculum Resources

 K-8 Social and Emotional Competencies

Iowa Social and Emotional Learning Competencies

Second Step Program

Secondary 6-12 Curriculum Areas

Click on each subject area below to access course guides for those curricular areas.

Secondary Course Guides

CTE Course Guides/Pathway

Exploratories

Contact Teaching and Learning