Free PD: Mapping A Continuity of Learning Plan- Let DOE be a Guide!

On Wednesday, October 20^th from 3:15-4:30, the Maine Department of Education and the Region 1 Comprehensive Center will host a live webinar to share the Continuity of Learning MAP that was recently developed by the MLTI Ambassadors with support from the MOOSE Team Leaders (all distinguished educators and teachers during the 2020-21 school year).

The session will feature a tour of the MAP and further exploration of some of the ready-to-use resources developed and curated by the DOE to support continuity of learning for students when they cannot attend classes in person.

There will also be some time for breakout sessions where folks can ask questions and provide feedback on the MAP so that DOE staff can enhance and improve the resource.

This session is for all educators and educational leaders who wish to learn more about the continuity of learning resources that the DOE has developed and curated and can offer.

Wednesday, October 20^th 3:15-4:30pm

Please register for the session here: https://air-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAvd–opjItGdP6ys28cp5ykFImdOQItV10

If you’d like more information about the MAP, you can check out the Priority Notice and linked material, here.

Estimated Pre-K Enrollment Counts for New or Expanding Programs in 2022-2023

If your School Administrative Unit (SAU) is opening or expanding a Pre-K program in the 2022-2023 school year, you are eligible to receive funding on your FY23 ED279 for children you enroll in these new or expanded Pre-K programs in 2022. This means you will receive the funding for enrollment in the same year that you enroll the Pre-K children, without a year delay.

If your SAU is applying for one-year grant funding through the recently released Request for Applications (RFA) #202107114 then you DO NOT need to complete this form because you will include the estimate in your application. More information regarding the RFA can be found here. These applications are due no later than November 4, 2021.

If you are planning to start and/or expand public Pre-K in the 2022-23 school year and do not plan to apply to take advantage of the one-year grant funding but would like to receive an FY23 estimate Pre-K allocation, please notify the Maine DOE by completing the FY23 Estimate Pre-K Count Data Form before November 5, 2021. There are 3 questions to be answered on the funding survey:

Choose your SAU from a list
Do you have an existing Pre-K program (FY22)? – Yes/No
Provide your SAU’s Pre-K Estimated Increase Count (new slots available in new or expanding program)

SAUs completing the form must also complete the Pre-K Program Application with DOE’s Early Childhood Team by April 30, 2022 and obtain program approval.

The FY23 Estimate Pre-K Count Data Collection form is meant to capture the FY23 estimate for new and expanding Pre-K program enrollment. The estimate student count data, in addition to the current (FY22) enrollment in an existing Pre-K program, will be used to provide funding on the FY23 ED279. An SAU’s Pre-K total enrollment number, as reported and verified October 1, 2022, should match the combined existing and estimated increase total that was used to calculate funds in the ED279. After October 1, 2022, an audit adjustment, based on actual enrollment reported in NEO on October 1, 2022, will be made to the Pre-K allocation assigned on the FY23 ED279. Please note that this may increase or decrease funding.

For more information about establishing or expanding a Pre-K program, please check out our webpage on the topic, or contact Nicole Madore at nicole.madore@maine.gov. For questions specific FY23 ED279 estimates, please contact Paula Gravelle at 624-6792 or Paula.B.Gravelle@maine.gov.

Maine Schools Join Others Around the Nation to Recognize 2021 National School Bus Safety Week October 18-22

3 color drawings of school buses showing safety measures for drivers 2021 National School Bus Safety Week Theme Be Safe – Know The Danger Zone is derived from the Poster Contest the year before. The 2020 winning poster artwork, depicted above, was drawn by Huyen Pham, a Northbrook Middle School student from Atlanta, Georgia.

Nationally, each year from September to November, public service announcements are aired to help protect 26 million students that ride on nearly 500,000 school buses over 4 billion miles in an average year. Broadcast and digital media and social networking industries disseminate public service announcements that are produced to safeguard children, encourage the driving public to engage in safer driving behavior near school buses where students board and disembark from school buses, and recognize school bus operators and professionals.

Statewide, nearly 130 thousand students ride on about 3,000 school buses over 30 million miles of rural and urban roads in an average year. School Bus Safety Week offers the people of Maine an opportunity to recognize and thank transportation and public safety professionals, who have the invaluable task of keeping their precious cargo, our students, safe.

School buses are protected by law. Laws protect students who are getting off and on a school bus by making it illegal for drivers to pass a school bus while dropping off or picking up passengers, regardless of the direction of approach. Maine school bus safety laws support good driving behavior. These laws include:

Passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing is a criminal violation punishable by a $250 minimum fine for the first offense and a mandatory 30-day license suspension for the second offense occurring within three years of the first offense.
A vehicle may not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or until signaled by the bus operator that it is okay to proceed.
2021 model year and newer school buses are required to have a crossing arm on the front bumper.
A school bus operator who observes someone illegally passing a stopped school bus can report violations to a law enforcement officer.
School buses are required to stop at railroad crossings.
Unless otherwise posted, the school zone speed limit is 15 miles per hour during school opening or closing hours, as well as recess.

Additional school bus safety resources are available online:

For information about school transportation programs and policy contact Transportation and Facilities Administrator Pat Hinckley at pat.hinckley@maine.gov.

If you have an interest in joining this critically important profession, please reach out to your area schools to learn more, and please thank and support these heroes on the road!

The National School Bus Safety Week public education program is hosted by the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS), National Association for Pupil Transportation (NAPT), and National School Transportation Association (NSTA).

Maine Middle and High Schools Eligible to Win $1,000 in the Life Happens Outside® Challenge

Teens to Trails, with the support of the Maine Department of Education’s WAVES Program, partners with Arcadia to encourage students to spend more time outdoors

Teens to Trails is introducing the Life Happens Outside® Challenge for Maine middle and high schools to foster an appreciation for the outdoors and its many wellness benefits. The weeklong challenge takes place Saturday, October 23 through Friday, October 29.

Over 70 Maine Middle and High Schools are operating Outdoor Clubs as a co-curricular experience for students to build meaningful relationships while sharing outdoor experiences. Most of these clubs have started, increased capacity, or been revitalized through support from the Maine Department of Education’s WAVES program, which works to connect teens and adolescents with each other and the great outdoors.

Arcadia, a green energy tech company, is providing a $1,000 reward to the three Maine middle and high schools with the highest amount of outdoor time proportional to their school size.

To participate in the Challenge week, students will track and submit their activity online. All outdoor activities — at home or at school — count towards earning points, from exploring a local trail with friends to biking to doing homework outside. Winners are selected by total hours divided by school population, so large and small schools have equal chances to win. The three schools with the most hours — one from northern Maine, one from central Maine, and one from southern Maine — will be awarded $1,000 to further outdoor access for their students.

To participate in the Life Happens Outside® Challenge, visit https://teenstotrails.org/events/life-happens-outside-challenge to register and receive promotional materials. Each student must track and submit their hours via a provided Google form by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, October 29. Winners will be announced on Thursday, November 4.

Teens To Trails is a 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit dedicated to connecting teenage students to life-changing outdoor experiences with a vision that all teens have the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors together.

Arcadia gives customers a simple and affordable way to choose renewable energy, connecting their homes and communities to the highest standards of clean energy through its platform technology. Founded in 2014, Arcadia connects with utilities in every state, manages 4.5 terawatt-hours of residential energy demand, and is the largest manager of residential community solar subscribers in the US. Join us in achieving our vision of a 100% renewable energy future at www.arcadia.com.

For additional information, please contact Jennifer Hazard, Communications Manager at Teens to Trails. Phone: 207-749-0249 or email: jen@teenstotrails.org

BEHAVIORAL THREAT ASSESSMENT FREE TRAINING OPPORTUNITY

WHAT IS SCHOOL-BASED BEHAVIORAL THREAT ASSESSMENT?

Violence prevention strategy recommended by the U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Secret Service, and FBI.
Multidisciplinary team approach to identify behaviors of concern, assess the level of risk, and provide appropriate interventions.

COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL THREAT ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES (CSTAG TRAINING)

Consists of 2 levels of training.
Level 1: 8 eLearning modules, taking approximately 6 hours, to be completed at your convenience asynchronously online. Training window opens on November 1^st, 2021.
Level 2: 4-hour Synchronous training to work through practice cases applying the methodology learned in the Level 1 training. November 17^th via Zoom from 9:00-1:00.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

School Administrators
School Safety Teams
Law Enforcement Responding to Schools
School Mental Health Providers/Social Workers/Psychologists/School Counselors
School Resource Officers
Juvenile Community Corrections Officers

HOW TO REGISTER?

Contact Karen Barnes, Threat Assessment/Mental Health Officer at the Maine School Safety Center karen.a.barnes@maine.gov for more information or to be added to the training roster.
Additional training dates TBA.

Exploring Focus on First Professional Learning Community

Between 2018-2021, the Maine Department of Education has engaged in the development of interdisciplinary, open-source instructional programs for Pre-K and Kindergarten. These programs, Pre-K for ME and K for ME, are housed on the Maine DOE’s website. A number of schools across the state have implemented the Pre-K for ME and K for ME instructional programs and the Maine DOE is planning to extend its work related to interdisciplinary, open-source instructional programming into grade one during the 2022-23 school year.

For grade one teachers interested in exploring the Focus on First instructional program developed by the Boston Public Schools that will serve as the foundation for Maine’s work, a PLC experience is being planned for the 2021-22 school year. There is no obligation to implement the program, but this PLC will provide time to learn about the components of Focus on First and how the program connects to Pre-K for ME and K for ME. Teachers, instructional coaches, and administrators interested in this instructional program are encouraged to participate. Grade one teachers who participate may have the opportunity to pilot the program during the 2022-23 school year. An outline of the PLC series for Focus on First and a registration link is included below.

Exploring Focus on First

Second Wednesday of the month, beginning November 10, 2021 and continuing through May 11, 2022, 3:30-4:30 p.m., Registration Link

In the Focus on First curriculum, the Boston Public School System has worked to develop an interdisciplinary instructional program that encourages children and teachers to work together to develop understandings and communicate meaningfully. With texts at the core of classroom experiences, children ask questions about the world around them and consolidate ideas about their place in it as learners and contributors.

Participants will explore the components and design of Focus on First while taking a deep dive into the content of its 4 units: Building Strong Communities, Animals Surviving and Thriving, Resources in Our Communities, and Communicating with Light and Sound.

Exploring Focus on First
November	Overview – A Child’s Experience with Focus on First – Storytelling and Story Acting
December	Text Talk, Knowledge Building, Vocabulary and Language
January	Studios, Thinking & Feedback
February	Science and Social Studies
March	Foundational Literacy
April	Stations and Strategic Small Groups
May	Writing and Assessment

If you have additional questions, please contact Elementary Literacy Specialist, Dee Saucier at danielle.m.saucier@maine.gov.

‘It’s Hardest to Learn Where They’re Least Vaccinated’ by Aley, Anna, and Bill

It is with special permission from renowned artists the Indigo Girls themselves that we present this beautiful nod to their song, “Least Complicated” by Mainers Bill, a music teacher, Aley, a school counselor, and Anna, a parent of a child in school.

This recently recorded, heartfelt song urges communities to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to keep children safe in schools and schools operational.

Check out their music video here:

;

Computer Science Professional Development Grant Application

The Maine Department of Education is thrilled to announce the release of the Computer Science Professional Development Grant Application!

Maine’s 130th legislature, through a bill sponsored by Senator Pouliot, created a pilot grant program to provide funding for high-quality, teacher-developed or teacher-led professional development for PK-12 computer science pedagogy and content.

Priority will be given to applicants that:

Do not currently offer computer science learning opportunities;
Serve socioeconomically disadvantaged school districts;
Prioritize student populations traditionally underrepresented in computer science;
Demonstrate a commitment to pursuing high-quality educator professional development that emphasizes integration of computer science into other course work and curricula or establishes or expands access to courses that offer college credit and other certificates of value, or both; and
Collaborate or partner with other entities, including but not limited to other local education agencies, the business community, nonprofit organizations and private entities.

The Fall application window opens Friday October 8th, 2021 and closes November 5th, 2021. Applications will be reviewed in the order in which they are received. All applicants will be notified of their application status within two weeks of the application deadline.

There is no limit to the grant amount awarded per applicant; however, funds will be dispersed equitably across all applications based on county and throughout PK-12. There is a total of $25,000 available for this grant in the Fall.

A Spring application window will become available in January 2022. A minimum of $25,000 will be available in the Spring.

Have questions? Want to learn more? We are hosting three informational sessions, October18th, October 25th, and November 1st.

Interested in applying? Check out our website to register for an informational session, learn more about the grant, and submit an application: https://maine.gov/doe/learning/ltt/computerscience/grant

Need assistance applying? contact Emma-Marie Banks, Computer Science Specialist & Secondary Digital Learning Specialist emma-marie.banks@maine.gov

WEBINAR: Bullying Awareness and Prevention Resources and Strategies

Please join the Federal School Safety Clearinghouse on October 26 at 3:00 PM EDT for an informational webinar on bullying awareness and prevention resources, tactics, and strategies to create safer school environments. This session will provide information and resources to the kindergarten through 12^th grade (K-12) school community.

The session will feature guest speaker and bullying prevention expert Melissa Mercado Crespo, Ph.D., MSc, MA from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Violence Prevention. She will provide an overview of what bullying is and how to identify it, key strategies and actions schools and school personnel can implement to prevent and address it, and the tools and resources available from the government to support schools in these efforts. She will also describe the different types of bullying (including cyberbullying), their impact on school violence, and the relationship between bullying, suicide, and the well-being of school-age youth.

The discussion will also feature additional school safety-related resources on topics like school climate and mental health access and support and a Q&A session for participants to engage directly with Dr. Mercado Crespo.

When: October 26, 2021, 3:00 to 4:00 PM EDT
Where: Adobe Connect (access link to be provided one day in advance of the event)
For: K-12 School Superintendents and Principals; Counselors and Mental Health Practitioners; School and District Administrators; Teachers and School Staff; School Resource Officers; Parents and Guardians; Students
Registration: https://schoolsafetybullyingpreventionwebinar.eventbrite.com

We hope you can join us for this special event during National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. If you have any questions, please contact the Department of Homeland Security’s School Safety team at SchoolSafety@hq.dhs.gov.

3D Printing Elective at China Middle School

The seventh and eighth grade students at China Middle School have a unique opportunity when choosing electives – 3D printing!

This elective is taught by an eleven-year veteran of education, Jamie Dugan. Jamie, a seventh-grade math teacher, is not a stranger to technology. Jamie earned a BS in Math and Computer Science from Springfield College and has been using that degree ever since, saying, “I have been privileged to work at schools that value technology in the classroom.”

Jamie’s latest endeavor is offering a 3D printing elective to her students. In this once-a-week elective, students start by learning the fundamentals of 3D printing either by looking at an example or watching a video. Students then learn how the 3D printer works and how to use it, and finish the class by designing something of their choice in the application, Tinkercad. The goal is that every student prints an object before the elective ends, which is not as straightforward as it seems.

“Not all 3D prints will work,” Dugan says, but “learning and understanding how to create 3D items can lead to creativity and innovation,” which is a goal of the elective.

In the end, students have printed some fantastic things: door stops, octopi, fidget spinners, phone docks, game pieces, and stands for computers. It is not all about the stuff, though, Dugan noted, “As a building, we believe that 3D printing is a great way to make a connection to our content and make it feel authentic.”

To learn more about the work Jamie Dugan is doing with 3-D printing at China Middle School, you can reach out at: jdugan@rsu18.org.

This story was written and coordinated by MLTI Ambassador Erik Wade as part of the Maine Schools Sharing the Success Campaign. To learn more, or to submit a story or an idea for a story, email rachel.paling@maine.gov.