Superintendent Elsie Arntzen, with approval from the Montana Board of Public Education, has opened the World Languages Standards for review.
The application for the World Languages Standards Review Task Force is now open! The application will close on March 17th. We look forward to receiving applications from across Montana that represent the various stakeholders who believe in serving our Montana students and educators with the best-possible World Languages Standards. Together, we will create standards to guide instruction and prepare our students for their lives beyond the classroom.
This single application is for three separate task forces: (1) An Application Review Team, (2) the Standards Writing Team, and (3) the Standards Review Team.
The Application Review Task Force (1) will be gathered from specialists and applicants to review all applications and select the most qualified applicants to be a part of the other two task forces. The Writing Team (2) will use the research and data analysis provided by the OPI and Regional Educational Laboratory West (REL West) at WestEd to inform revision of our Montana World Languages Content Standards. Then, the Review Team (3) will review the work of the Writing Team, and provide feedback to inform the work of the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee during the final phase of the standards review process before the proposal goes to the Montana Board of Public Education for discussion and approval.
Thank you to all who have expressed interest in participating; we look forward to receiving your application. Please share widely in your newsletters and with your colleagues. If you have questions, please contact project lead Stephanie Swigart at stephanie.swigart@mt.gov
Interested parties can also visit the MT OPI's Montana World Languages Standards Website or the MT OPI's K-12 Content Standards for up-to-date information and announcements.
Superintendent Elsie Arntzen, with approval from the Montana Board of Public Education, has opened the Montana Mathematics Standards for review. The purpose of the standards review process is to assure that Montana public schools are setting high academic standards for all children of our state. The goal is to serve our Montana students and educators with the best-possible mathematics standards to guide instruction and prepare our students for their lives beyond the classroom.
We are currently in the Research and Review Phase of the Standards Review Process. We solicited applications for the Mathematics Standards Review Task Force, with the application period closing on February 10, 2023. We had a great response to the call for applications. Thank you to all who applied to participate in this important work.
Currently, we are in the process of reviewing applications for the Math Task Force with two teams of reviewers made up of members of major stakeholder organizations, respondents to the Mathematics Standards Review Interest Survey, and internal reviewers. The Task Force members will be chosen from applicants representing a variety of stakeholders who are involved with K-12 mathematics instruction across Montana. Thank you to all who are participating in the application review, supporting our goal of forming excellent teams of educators to complete the revision and review process.
The Task Force includes both a Writing Team, as well as a Review Team. During the Revision phase of the standards review process, the Writing Team will use the research and data analysis provided by the Regional Educational Laboratory West (REL West) at WestEd to inform the revision of our Montana Mathematics Content Standards. The Review Team will review the work of the Writing Team, and provide feedback that will inform the work of the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee during the Negotiated Rulemaking phase of the review process.
Thank you to all who have expressed interest in participating and/or have supported the review process through application review. If you have questions, please contact Sonja Whitford, OPI Mathematics Instructional Coordinator at sonja.whitford@mt.gov
Please visit the Montana Mathematics Standards Website for up-to-date information and announcements.
Join the Professional Learning Team's content specialists on March 17th and 18th at the Montana Indian Education for All Best Practices Conference in Helena as we present our evidence-based professional learning workshop on PBL³!
Blending the pedagogical research behind Problem-Based Learning, Project-Based Learning and Place-Based Learning (PBL ³ ), the MT OPI content specialists for science, math, and ELA model how to weave together standards-based learning activities grounded in the unique values of educators' communities.
The workshop infuses authentic IEFA content throughout the model lesson at every stage from planning to project. Utilizing tribal research that honors the contributions of American Indian scientists, engineers, authors and poets, land stewards, and tribal agencies, educator participants practice providing choice to connect learners' personal schema, land connections, community values, and background knowledge to problems affecting their specific communities. Join us to collaboratively engage with interactive learning strategies that inspire critical thinking for student generated solutions!
OPIRUPS@mt.gov to change to OPIPDUPS@mt.gov
The Professional Learning Team continues to transition our language and documents from "Renewal Units" (RUs) to "Professional Development Units" (PDUs) in alignment with the new Administrative Rules of Montana Chapter 57, 10.57.216 APPROVED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND RENEWAL ACTIVITY.
The former Renewal Unit Provider System (RUPS) has successfully transitioned to the Professional Development Provider System (PDUPS) and we are in process of updating documents, webpages, and systems to reflect the change.
Notably, Renewal Unit Certificates, or RUs, have been transitioned to Professional Development Unit Certificates (PDUs). The certificates remain largely the same and certificates that bear the term "Renewal Units" will still be valid during the 5 years preceding an educator's license renewal.
Please contact the Professional Learning Team at OPIRUPS@mt.gov (soon to be OPIDUPS@mt.gov) with any questions.
Professional Learning Portal Closed for Maintenance
The Professional Learning Portal remains closed for maintenance. During this time we are unable to add new events to the calendar and catalog, however, the existing portal professional learning events can still be viewed and searched by interested participants. Please contact OPIRUPS@mt.gov with additional questions.
Questions about Professional Learning?
Contact the Professional Development Unit Provider System Staff | OPIRUPS@mt.gov or 406.444.3538
Teacher Learning Hub News
#1 - No ‘Lion’! Great Courses are Blowing Through in March!
March winds can be stormy in Montana, but not on the Hub! It’s a great time of the year to catch up on some PDUs and get energized for that final push into the sunshine of spring and the end of the school year! Enrollment opened on February 12th for the following facilitated courses!:
Enrollment for facilitated courses that run in April opens on March 12th!
Please check those out here: future facilitated courses.
#2 - Lucky You! PD Possibilities at Your Own Pace!
Don’t want to lock yourself into a timeframe or due dates? Enroll in some of our great self-paced course offerings while still accomplishing your professional development goals!
This is just a sampling:
Check out our Hub Course List for more opportunities!
#3 - Magical Moments Begin with Magnificent Minds! Like YOURS!
We need your input! Please take a minute to complete this Professional Development Survey! We are always seeking to produce new coursework on the Hub that will optimally benefit the needs of Montana educators. You are our BEST resource! We appreciate your time and effort to visit and complete this survey and share your input!
Helpful Hub Tip of the Month:
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Save your completion certificates. A few glitches are still being worked out in regard to the new tech integration with Licensure but we are working closely with the tech company to get these resolved. Continue to follow best practices by downloading and saving your completion certificates for all completed Hub coursework and checking in for our most recent updates and up-to-the-minute happenings on our Hub homepage! Note: Only PDUs that were achieved after the integration was in place will transfer once all is working as it should.
Visit us at www.opi.mt.gov/learninghub to set up an account and sign up for courses.
Click here for the course list, catalog & calendar.
Course List | Catalog | Calendar
Questions? Contact Allyson Briese or Kimberly Evans
opilearninghub@mt.gov | 406.444.3557
English Language Arts & Literacy News
Tier 1 Reading Supports: An Occupational Therapist’s Tips for Helping Elementary Students Feel Ready to Read
Looking for a fresh way to incorporate movement into your classroom to conquer the February doldrums? Wouldn't it be great if you had some movement based strategies that will boost student reading skills and make it easier for students to engage in doing the work of reading?
Occupational therapist and Edutopia author Lauren Brukner has found that "the act of reading relies on many underlying developmental components connected to occupational therapy" and she has strategies to share with you!
"When elementary students between first and fifth grades are physically overstimulated or emotionally dysregulated, you may see rushed reading, difficulty visually scanning words, decreased comprehension, skipping lines, decreased visual focus, choosing books above their level and flipping through pages, decreased stamina, and work avoidance (e.g., getting up to go to the bathroom when they had recently had a bathroom break, looking for something in their backpack, going to speak to a friend, etc.)." (Brukner)
The OPI ELA Webpage is Your Source for Montana ELA Announcements, Opportunities, Resources, and Current Events
Keep up to date on high-quality professional learning conferences and workshops. Stay in touch with our Montana community and nationwide education partners' programs, resources, and news. Learn how to participate in exciting challenges and competitions for your students and school. Your ELA webpage is updated weekly to keep you in the loop on our ELA community’s events and opportunities.
Have an event you want to share with our Montana ELA community? Looking for resources or professional learning collaboration? Contact ELA Instructional Coordinator Stephanie Swigart for assistance!
Questions for our ELA & Literacy Instructional Coordinator?
Contact Stephanie Swigart | stephanie.swigart@mt.gov or 406.444.0736
Please visit the Montana Mathematics Standards Website for up-to-date information and announcements.
Questions for our Mathematics Instructional Coordinator?
Contact Sonja Whitford | sonja.whitford@mt.gov or 406.444.0706
The OPI Science webpage offers the following information for educators:
- Grant or paid opportunities,
- Challenges and competitions,
- Student and classroom opportunities,
- Conferences and professional development
- Connect with the STEM community!
Also available are:
- Science Fair Information across the state
- Refereed Curriculum
- Resources
- Science Content Standards
- News in the world of Science
Questions for our Science Instructional Coordinator?
Contact Michelle McCarthy | mmccarthy5@mt.gov or 406.444.3537
Questions for the Standards, Instruction, and Professional Learning Team Manager?
Contact Susan Catapano |susan.catapano@mt.gov
The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.
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