October 13, 2021 Edition
IN THIS EDITION...IEFA Book Study Is Live | Dyslexia Awareness Month | Co-op Food Advisory Meetings REVISED | UPDATE TO SSI 2022 | Infinite Campus Resources & PD | NEW Grant Opportunities | SSoM Partner Resources | Joke of the Week | Addt'l Resources | About SSoM

IEFA Book Study - Join us for an online book study course for Montana educators facilitated by IEFA consultant Dottie Susag. In this course, using the book Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Teacher Got Wrong (2018 Edition), you will read about misconceptions, discuss multiple perspectives, and make connections to the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians. The book study will begin on Monday, November 1, 2021.

For more information, and to register for this online course, please CLICK HERE. As always, discounts are available for SSoM Member School employees as well as participants in the Montana Rural Teacher Project.
Visit the International Dyslexia Association's collection of fact sheets about dyslexia, which include topics ranging from implementing accommodations to advocating for students with dyslexia!
Be sure to check our newsletter next week, where we will be going live with our custom professional learning course to support students with dyslexia!
>>> UPDATED <<<
CO-OP FOOD PROGRAM FALL
ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETINGS
ARE SCHEDULED FOR:

Tuesday, October 19: Miles City
Thursday, October 21: Great Falls
Friday, October 22: Missoula

NEW! CO-OP FOOD REFERRAL INCENTIVE PROGRAM
Benefitting existing, former, and new participants!

Because of the support of Montana school districts who participate in our Cooperative Food Purchasing Program, this statewide program has continued to grow and increase our collective purchasing power. Our brand new Referral Incentive Program (RIP) makes participation even sweeter. Here's how it works:

  • A district who refers a new district or child-based organization to our program that places an order will be eligible to receive up to 100% off their admin fees. For example:
  • the new district places a Spring 2022 order and their admin fees total $100
  • your district's admin fee for your Spring 2022 order will be reduced by up to $100, or a maximum of 100% of your admin fee
  • BONUS INCENTIVE: we are also reducing our Spring 2022 admin fees for all new participants in the program by up to 25% (35% for SSoM member districts)
  • 'NEW' includes districts who haven't ordered in the past 2 years or have never participated

We encourage you to share the amazing savings our program has to offer with your colleagues across the state, and please let our Purchasing Manager, Jennifer Brekke, know so you get your RIP discount!

SPRING 2022 ORDER WINDOW OPEN NOV 1 - DEC 1, 2021
CLICK HERE FOR PROGRAM DETAILS, or contact SSoM Purchasing Manager:
Jennifer Brekke | jbrekke@mt-schools.org | (406) 580-7547
UPDATED - NEW DATES!
MONTANA SCIENCE SUMMER INSTITUTE 2022
July 25 - 27, 2022
@ Montana State University-Bozeman

In light of the ridiculous checkbook draining summer hotel rates in the greater-Bozeman area, we have decided to change the dates for the Montana Science Summer Institute 2022. Montana State University on-campus housing will be available during these revised dates at a fraction of the cost of a hotel room, and just a short walk to the MSU Student Union Building with all the SSI 2022 excitement.

Please email Melissa Tovaas with your requests for areas of focus you would like to see at next year's conference. We hope you'll join us!

Melissa Tovaas, Director of Education Services, School Services of Montana
mtovaas@mt-schools.org | (646) 831-7264
SWMSS IC Combo Logo

BRILLIANT USER GUIDES & NATIONAL TRAINING WEEK
GUIDES BY TECH MINION MARY ANNE SKINNER & INFINITE CAMPUS
2ND ANNUAL VIRTUAL NATIONAL TRAINING WEEK November 15 - 19, 2021
  • Livestream Launch Party October 18, 2021, 2pm CST *exclusively for registered districts*
  • WHY join Infinite Campus for National Training Week?
  • Non-Passport Customers login & click HERE
  • Passport Customers login & click HERE
  • Discounts available for SSoM member districts & Passport customers!
  • CLICK HERE FOR NATIONAL TRAINING WEEK DETAILS & REGISTRATION
For refreshers, questions, and assistance please contact SSoM Tech Minion ASAP:
Mary Anne Skinner | maskinner@mt-schools.org | (208) 631-2053
GRANT OPPORTUNITIES

The Klorane Botanical Foundation is committed to supporting programs to teach respect for the environment and protect nature through the preservation of plant species and biodiversity. The Foundation's Budding Botanist Grant program, administered by KidsGardening, will help students learn about plants, explore their world, and inspire them to take care of the life they discover in their local ecosystems. For the current grant cycle, eighteen high-need schools across the United States will be awarded $1,000 each in grant funding to support their youth garden programs. Applicants must be planning a new or expanding an existing school garden program designed to teach students about environmental sustainability and the importance of biodiversity. Any public school or private school serving students in grades K-12 in the United States that can demonstrate that at least 40% of their student population would qualify for free or reduced-price meals is eligible to apply.
Application deadline is October 29, 2021.

The Rural Schools Collaborative’s Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Fellows program provides grant awards to rural school teachers who engage their students in exemplary place-based learning. Eligible applicants should propose a place-based research project that will be completed by the end of the 2021-22 school year. We understand that this year is providing abnormal learning challenges for many teachers and schools, and they consider projects that lean heavily on digital interactions and virtual work. Also, if the impacts of COVID-19 on your school community necessitate a project revision, they will be pleased to work with the grant recipient in that regard. They anticipate selecting a cohort of dynamic and committed educators with purposeful and creative ideas.
Application deadline is October 15, 2021.
SSoM BUSINESS PARTNER RESOURCES

SSoM Partner COLLABORATIVE CLASSROOM
Now is the time to invest in high-quality curricula that will accelerate literacy learning, attend to students' social and emotional needs, and build inclusive, equitable communities for all learners.
BACK-TO-SCHOOL RESOURCES TO SUPPORT YOUR TEACHING & LEARNING

COLLABORATIVE CIRCLE Newsletter Issue 4, available in 2 formats: PDF and Flipbook
Featuring best practices for equity in writing instruction, SEL essentials, data-informed practices for foundational skills, and an interview with award-winning author and illustrator Juana Martinex-Neal

FALL 2021 SIPPS SYMPOSIUM Oct. 28, 2 - 5 pm EST
Appropriate for all K–12 literacy educators, this virtual Symposium offers free informational sessions for those who are unfamiliar with SIPPS. Click here for a flyer to share with your fellow educators. Learn more & register here!

ONLINE ELEMENTARY READING ACADEMY (OERA) Winter course begins Jan.20, 2022; learn more

  • Caring School Community, K-9 CASEL SELect Program: Nov. 3, Jan. 5
  • SIPPS, K–12: Developing and Supporting Foundational Skills: Nov. 10, Jan. 12
  • Being a Reader, K–2: Comprehensive Reading Instruction: Nov. 22, Jan. 26
  • Making Meaning & Book Clubs, 3–6: Comprehensive Reading Instruction: Nov. 17, Jan. 19
  • Being a Writer, K–6: Comprehensive Writing Instruction: Oct. 20
  • Reaching all Readers: A Aligned System for RTI with Being a Reader & SIPPS: Dec. 8

GET THE RECONNECTING & REBUILDING TOOLKIT DOWNLOAD
JOKE OF THE WEEK
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
MT OFFICE OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION
FREE IMPLEMENTING SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING IN MONTANA SCHOOLS
Five remaining Wednesday Evening Sessions from 4:30 - 5:30 pm: 10/13, 11/10, 1/12, 2/9, 3/9

Developing social and emotional skills builds a foundation for everyone’s success. As schools continue to respond and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the benefits of social emotional learning (SEL) are increasingly advantageous in supporting schools in their efforts to:
  • Address student learning loss
  • Manage difficult emotions in both students and school staff
  • Reconnect students and families to schools

This community of practice series will guide schools through the process of reviewing, adopting, and implementing SEL. This series is for school leaders who are taking steps to explore SEL implementation and/or strengthening their current SEL programs. Click here for details, dates, & registration.
All 5 CSPDs offer FREE VIRTUAL PD for their respective regions. Click for details:
ABOUT SCHOOL SERVICES of MONTANA
SSoM is a non-profit education service agency committed to unlocking the full potential of every child in each and every school we serve across the state. We accomplish this by providing a wide variety of professional learning activities and business services designed to meet the specific needs of Montana’s excellent educators and administrators. Interested in supporting our work? Click here to make a donation, and be sure to read all about our organization on our website.

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