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This an email newsletter about lifelong learning opportunities from the Montana State Library.
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Summer Reading Webinars
Beanstack Reading Challenges - Let's get ready for Summer Reading!
CSLP Manuals
MLN Virtual Programming 2025/2026
Documenting Montana’s Constitutional History: 1867, 1884, 1889, & 1972
Early Literacy Programming
1,000 Books Before Kindergarten in Beanstack
Parent Powered Texting Program
Books Before Bedtime
Early Literacy Titles Added to MontanaLibrary2Go
Montana Talking Book Library
SDOH Corner
Funded Program Opportunity
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3/25 Beanstack Reading Challenges - Let's get ready for Summer Reading!
Register to come learn about new Summer Reading Beanstack Challenges and training on getting the best use out of your staff+ account
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CSLP Codes are available.
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The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) hosts an annual summer reading program featuring free virtual events, storytelling and activities for all ages. The 2025 program launches in mid-June with online events, including author talks, music, and special programming. Participants can use NLS's talking books, braille, and BARD mobile app for all reading.
Documenting Montana’s Constitutional History: 1867, 1884, 1889, & 1972
Did Thomas Francis Meagher take a copy of the 1867 Montana Constitution with him to the grave? Why did statehood take so long? Ever wonder why the 1884 constitution went from viable to liable, and yet laid the groundwork for 1889 and statehood? Constitutional writing in the 20th century, will it stand the test of time?
Join Montana State Archivist Rich Aarstad as he tracks Montana’s constitutional history through the historical records of the Montana Historical Society Library & Archives collections, followed by a presentation by Jennifer Birnel, the Director of the Montana Memory Project where you will learn to search digital archives of Montana's past.
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Rich Aarstad joined the staff of the Montana Historical Society in 2001 as the Lewis and Clark Expedition Reference Historian. He became a full time archivist in 2006 working with donations and the oral history collection. Six years later Rich became senior archivist, a position he held until becoming the State Archivist in 2021. A Montana native by way of Wyoming, Rich grew up in Libby, MT. He attended the University of Montana where he received his BA and MA degrees. He’s been married to Kim Cummings for thirty one years. They have a son, Rick, two grandchildren, Chesnie and Kashlyn, and his boon companion is the bucktooth cowdog Teddye Blew. |
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Jennifer Birnel has been the Director of the Montana History Portal for the Montana State Library since 2013.
Jennifer taught middle school Language Arts and Social studies for 12 years before becoming an employee of the State Library. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in communications and a master’s degree in literacy.
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Click anywhere on the programming series line up below to visit the landing page and register for this program and any others you would like to attend!
 If you work for Montana libraries and would like to cohost one or more of these programs, please contact the Lifelong Learning Librarian to sign up. When you sign up to cohost you will get marketing materials to share with your community.
Use the printable flyers and bookmarks to promote the event.
Add them to your newsletter or your web page,
and/or
Become a co-host on social media to share it from your library's page
and/or
Hold a watch party event in your library!
Invite community members to the library to watch and contribute questions for speakers to answer in real time.
Program around reading goals and badges in Beanstack
1,000 Books before Kindergarten!
Looking for ways to run a program around this reading challenge? Contact the Lifelong Learning Librarian to discuss how to supplement your early literacy programs and story time with this tracker!
Reading helps build social and emotional skills, sparks creativity and imagination, promotes bonding, and helps kids do well overall in school. Take that motivation, open one book, and get started. And remember, 1000 is just a number. The goal is to work reading aloud into your regular routine, and let the magic of stories do the rest. Log each time you read a book to earn awesome badges. Happy reading!
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The texting program sends early literacy and learning tips along with fun activities to enrolled families with kids aged 0-4.
Visit The Early Learning section of the Lifelong Learning page to download a printable with space to add your own library logo to the bottom and make the texting program part of your collection of library services.
We are also working on getting the printed early literacy bookmarks out to all library locations and other places that serve families with kids under 5. These have reading tips on the back and instructions to help them sign up for the texting program.
We have gotten a lot of them out the door, but if you have not received your bookmarks yet (shown on the left) please reach out to the Lifelong Learning Librarian to have them mailed to your library!
Want to sign up for the texting program to see what its all about? Text MSL to 70138
If you or the families you serve would rather enroll online do so here.
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April Program: We have started to sign families up for the April 7th program. The book is Bark Geoge by Jules Feiffer - Read by Molly Hudson, Childrens Services librarian at the Lewis and Clark Library with copies of the book to be handed out on site.
Those who sign up online before March 9th will receive the book shipped right to their door. Supplies are limited. When we run out of books we will shuffle everyone who couldn't get one to the top of the list for the April program. Anyone who lives in Montana and has a child under five can sign up!
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Thanks to funds from the Birth to Five Grant we were able to expand the MontanaLibrary2Go collection of ebooks with 157 new beginner reader and decodable titles.
These were designed for Pre-K beginning readers to support early literacy and help families teach their little ones to read. This addition fills an important gap in our collection, offering engaging, age-appropriate resources for our youngest patrons across the state.
Explore these new titles today!
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Montana State Library Talking Books provides FREE reading materials in accessible formats to Montanans who are unable to use standard print materials due to visual, physical, and/or reading disabilities.
The library provides audio and Braille books and magazines. Materials are available for direct download or are sent through the US Postal Service. Librarians, did you know you can certify individuals for access to Talking Books?
For more information, please visit this link, or call (406)444-5352
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Libraries Partnering with Public Health – Check it out
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March is National Kidney Month, a time for libraries and health organizations to raise awareness about chronic kidney disease (CKD) and promote kidney health. Some helpful kidney month activities and resources include: *setting up educational displays featuring topics like the "ABCs of Kidney Disease," renal physiology, and kidney-friendly nutrition; *raising awareness by highlighting that 9 in 10 adults with CKD are unaware of their condition, emphasizing risk factors and the importance of early detection; *utilizing free patient education resources from the National Kidney Foundation, Urology Care Foundation, and Organdonor.gov to provide brochures on kidney health, dialysis, and transplantation; and *offering materials on healthy low-sodium kidney-friendly recipes. For more information, local libraries can partner with organizations like the American Kidney Fund, which provides materials to bring kidney disease into the spotlight. Also, you can contact Margaret Mullins SDOH Program Manager for additional information.
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The Montana State Library provides lifelong learning support to all Montanans through a combination of librarian professional development and training, program development, and meaningful partnerships.
Learn more on the Lifelong Learning webpage on the MSL Website. Interested in other goings on at MSL? Subscribe to other MSL newsletters.
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