The Title I, Part A Carryover application, iGrants Form Package (FP) 200 will launch in mid, to late January, and will be due in mid, to late February. An email notification will be sent through iGrants when the form package launches.

After submitting FP 200, districts with Title I, Part A carryover funds must complete a budget revision in FP 201. Budget revisions to include carryover are also due in February. A short time frame to complete FPs 200 and 201 will allow us to reallocate any unclaimed funds to other districts in a timely manner.

We are updating our Funding Early Learning Guide and reaching out to find new or updated examples of how Local Education Agencies (LEAs) utilize Title I, Part A funds to implement activities in their Early Learning (EL) programs. Examples could include a brief overview of what your EL programs offer, specific goals your LEA has met, or give examples of how your EL program supports/implements any of these subjects (all from the perspective of leveraging Title I, Part A funds):

• Transitional Kindergarten
• Infants and Toddlers
• Transition Activities
• Professional Development/Training
• Parent and Family Engagement
• Home Visits
• Social Services
• Homeless Children

We truly value the perspective and ideas you have to share and would be grateful to include them in our guide to inspire all Washington schools. Please keep responses to 350 words and send them directly to Emily.statler@k12.wa.us at your earliest convenience.

Share Your Story is provided by the Title I, Part A and Learning Assistance (LAP) department at OSPI to gather descriptive information from K–12 schools on specific PFE strategies, e.g., larger LEA-wide initiatives or smaller projects involving one or more classrooms, that have helped to increase student academic outcomes.

West Valley Yakima–Kindergarten Nights: Preparing ELL, Migrant, and Monolingual Families for School

Read how West Valley Yakima School District offers Kindergarten Readiness Nights for migrant and ELL children who have not received support to prepare them for Kindergarten. In addition, they offer a home visiting summer program where monolingual families learn ways to support their children at school.

Learn From Our Own–Voicing Culture Through Family Engagement with Selah School District. Watch Selah School District demonstrate the importance of an integral program where families' voices count. Their goal is to strengthen families and to deliver opportunities to learn, participate, and gain a better perspective of how the school district identifies gaps in the program and areas of improvement. The techniques and strategies mentioned in this presentation apply to families of different backgrounds and will show how to break down barriers for parent participation. This presentation is in Spanish with closed captioning in English. PowerPoint in English | Spanish, Work Sheet in English | Spanish. Recording

Additional Resources

• Flamboyant Foundation–Ongoing Communication Reflection Tool. Designed for any educator that has direct access to students and their families, this tool is a powerful way to reflect on your individual practice of building trusting relationships and meaningful partnerships with families through ongoing communication. Spanish | English. More resources click here.
• New Video Series Available: Connecting Classroom Instruction to Learning at Home. REL West is excited to share a new three-part video series for educators, based on the popular family and caregiver activities (FCAs) to support early language development at home. The nine different FCAs, based on recommendations from the What Works Clearinghouse practice guide, Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School, provide research-based, simple, and fun activities for families and caregivers to use in English or the home language.
• The Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL) is excited to announce that registration for the 2022 National Community Schools and Family Engagement Conference (CSxFE), happening June 1–3, 2022, in Los Angeles, is now open! At the conference, you'll have the opportunity to learn and engage in pre-conferences, plenaries, workshops, state-based networking sessions, a block party, and much more! Visit the website.
• In July 2021, the U.S. Department of Education Released the “Frequently Asked Questions: Using American Rescue Plan Funding to Support Full-Service Community Schools & Related Strategies.” The document “Frequently Asked Questions (English or Español)” guide was designed to support state and local efforts to use ARP ESSER funds and other ESSER funds to advance or start an evidence-based community school strategy.

Attention educators serving P–6 students in Title I, Part A schools. These are grant funds to purchase computer science tools and resources for use by elementary educators and students. Grantees will also receive free professional development and information about earning computer science credentials. An informational webinar will be held on January 13, 2022 at 4:00, and more information is available on our website.

The Elementary English Language Arts (ELA) department of OSPI has developed a survey about district implementation of the K–2 literacy screeners and subsequent interventions. Elementary principals and teachers, teaching and learning directors, or other educational leadership are invited to complete the survey. Your feedback will provide vital information about implementation processes and interventions districts are using. You can access the survey here.

Ready to learn more about Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS)? Listen to experts across the nation explain MTSS in this video. You can also learn more about essential components of MTSS on the resource webpage, including new videos on the role of teams, using data to drive decisions, delivering a continuum of supports, and selecting evidence-based practices.

Using educational research to determine which evidence-based intervention programs and practices will be the right fit can be intimidating. REL West created user-friendly resources to break down the basics of reviewing research for educators. Check them out below:

• The Basics of Reviewing a Research Study (Guide)
• Effect Size Basics: Understanding the Strength of a Program’s Impact (Guide)
• Reviewing Research Studies: Examples and Applications (Guide)
• Basic Elements of High-Quality Research: What to Look for in a Research Study (Webinar) 

If you have any questions, please check out our LAP Q&A document.

Over the coming months, CPR efforts for 2021–22 will begin. To provide additional support and an opportunity to connect with OSPI, if you are participating in a CPR in 2021–22, you are invited to attend one or more of the following CPR Office Hours. CPR Team Leads will be present, along with other available staff, to answer questions about the CPR process, individual program items, or best practices. An additional office hour is scheduled for February. The Zoom link will follow in the February newsletter.

January 7, 2022 | 11 am–12 pm | Zoom