Note: The html version of the newsletter has been condensed for easy reading. For the complete newsletter, please download the pdf.

In this Issue:

• Welcome
• Content Updates
• February County Showcase: Alameda County
• Plan4Preschool Future Projects
• Plan4Preschool News and Notes

Welcome

Plan4Preschool wishes you a late Valentine’s Day. Along with our usual content, this issue of our monthly newsletter we will highlight new documents and future projects that will Plan4Preschool will embark on to make the site more useful to our users.

Updates to the Website

• The 2008 California Report Card: The State of the State’s Children , the annual report by Children Now has been added to the portal. This 40-page report details how California children are faring and makes recommendations on critical children’s health and education policy improvements needed in 2008.
• The California Preschool Learning Foundations, from the California Department of Education, have been posted on Plan4Preschool. These foundations present a clearer understanding of what children should know before entering kindergarten.
• Looking for a particular document? The Plan4Preschool web search has been updated to yield \better results both within and outside of the portal.
• Two new documents regarding curriculum have been added to Plan4Preschool. These documents highlight the High/Scope Educational program. The Validity of the High/Scope Preschool Education Model discusses the validity of the model and compares and contrasts it with other programs. The High/Scope Preschool Educational Approach: A Prospectus for Pre-Kindergarten Programs presents an overview of the model, its objectives of professional development and how it can be aligned with state standards.

Plan4Preschool plans to add many more curriculum models in the near future. If there are curriculum models you would like to see featured please do not hesitate to contact us with your recommendations or feel free to upload content to the portal!

February County Showcase: Alameda County

Alameda County launched a comprehensive planning effort in January 2006 to address early care and education for all children from birth to five years of age. The process was built on the work of many experts, including community and business stakeholders, early childhood practitioners and K-12 professionals. Led by County Superintendent of Schools Sheila Jordan, Assemblywoman Wilma Chan, the Child Care Planning Council, and First 5 Alameda County, the Alameda County Early Care and Education for All Plan was completed in November of 2006.

The Alameda County Showcase page at Plan4Preschool.org hosts the Alameda County Early Care and Education for All Plan, the 2005 California Child Care Portfolio for Alameda County and the Alameda Strategic Plan for 2005-2009. The Alameda County Showcase page also hosts Two Years in Early Care and Education, a report profiling child care quality and the center-based, licensed family, and license-exempt child care workforce in Alameda County, California, from 2001 to 2003. This report was authored by Marcy Whitebook, Deborah A. Phillips, Dan Bellm, Nancy Crowell, Mirella Almaraz, Joon Yong Jo of the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment.

Have we missed something? Plan4Preschool.org hosts County Showcase pages for all 58 California counties. Please visit your county’s homepage, and if you don’t see a document or local event that you think should be there, contact us or upload it yourself! We encourage our users to take active participation in showcasing your county efforts towards improving early childhood education.

NEXT MONTH’S FEATURED COUNTY: San Mateo

Plan4Preschool Future Projects

• Curriculum Expansion – Plan4Preschool will acquire additional curriculum models, research and approaches to be added to the library of content.
• ECE Programs – Plan4Preschool will be listing a chart of ECE/Child Development Programs in California at public and private institutions. This list will include associates, bachelors and graduate degree programs as well as certificate program available throughout the state.
• Super Users – Plan4Preschool is looking for users willing to test the site for quality assurance and make recommendations for improvement. Please contact Ariana Sani at asani@karenhillscott.com if you are interested in becoming a Super User.