On November 16th at 3pm, April Perkins, World Languages & ESOL/Bilingual Programs Specialist, is hosting a webinar on the Maine Seal of Biliteracy.
Teachers, school counselors, and principals are welcome to attend. The webinar will describe the eligibility criteria and application process, as well as the benefits for students who earn the Seal of Biliteracy.
Register here, and contact April at april.perkins@maine.gov with any questions.
Looking for ways to connect your students with national issues and events through a local lens? Three Maine agencies have partnered to create “primary source sets,” themed packets of images, documents, artifacts, and sound recordings that open a window into Maine’s past.
The Maine State Museum, Maine State Archives, and Maine State Library have partnered with the Maine Department of Education to offer these free resources to schools and homeschools across the state.
The structure is simple. Each packet provides an introduction with contextual information on the topic. Then, students receive the primary sources – with no explanation of what they are. Students spend time with their source, finding clues, making observations, asking questions, and interpreting what they see and how it might connect to the broader story. The materials are presented like mysteries that the students can solve, with optional analysis worksheets to walk them through the process. They actively do the work of historians.
Only after these steps do they get the “answers,” labels with the names, dates, and facts associated with their sources. Optional reflection questions and activities offer opportunities for additional depth to the lesson, often drawing the line between the historical materials and issues that impact the present.
The themes and the questions they explore:
Explores sources with information on the local story of smallpox, cholera, tuberculosis, influenza, and polio.
Sources exploring the history of incarceration in Maine.
“Since mass incarceration is such a critical part of our history and our present, we must be able to offer students a way to understand how we got to this point,” said Freedom & Captivity Coordinator Catherine Besteman who worked on some of the materials for this project. “The U.S. is the world’s largest jailer. It is likely that many children have been impacted by the legal system because of the arrest or incarceration of a family or community member. Understanding how the criminal legal system in the U.S. developed, how it has grown, how it impacts families and communities, and what alternatives exist is a profoundly important task for our schools if we are ever to correct the abuses and problems of the past in order to build a healthier future.”
Different elements of Maine’s story leading up to statehood in 1820.
Here is the link to sign up for Joe’s famous Social Studies listserv where you can find out about great resources like this one.
Interested in learning more? Join the next webinar about these great resources. More information can be found below. You can also reach out to Maine DOE Social Studies Specialist Joe Schmidt at Joe.Schmidt@maine.gov or contact Manie State Museum Education Program Specialist Kate Webber at kate.webber@maine.gov.
Part 4: “Maine Pandemics” Primary Source Set
Exploring pre-packaged online educator materials on the theme of the history of pandemics in Maine. 3:00-4:30pm ET November 9th (Register for this session)
Due to popular demand, another session has been planned for December! This opportunity is two half-day interactive sessions that are relevant for staff working remotely or in-school.
You and your team can create a positive climate and culture during a pandemic! Participants will:
Everyone is welcome. We strongly encourage schools to register teams of 3 – 5 staff. During the training, you will work closely with your team-whether you are in-person or working remotely. All teams will leave the training with a plan that can be used immediately!
The cost is $85 for each member of the school team (minimum of 3 team members) and $115 for an individual registration. The same team should attend both sessions. The cost covers training and materials. Zoom link will be forwarded after registration. The sessions are limited to 50 participants.
To register and for more information: Click here or go to https://countmeinmaine.org/newsite/attend-upcoming-trainings/
If you have any questions, contact Susan Lieberman at slieberman@countmeinmaine.org
The application window for the 2022-2023 cohort of U.S. Department of Education’s School Ambassador Fellowship opens Friday, October 15, 2021. The application portal will be open for application submissions through Friday, January 14, 2022.
Founded on the principles of partnership, collaboration and cooperation between the Federal Government and school-based educators, the U.S. Department of Education designed the School Ambassador Fellowship program to enable outstanding teachers, administrators, and other school leaders, such as school counselors, psychologists, social workers, and librarians to bring their school and classroom expertise to the U.S. Department of Education and to expand their knowledge of the national dialogue about education.
The School Ambassador Fellowship offers two separate 9-month tracks: full-time and part-time. The full-time appointment is based at the Department of Education Headquarters in Washington, DC and requires Fellows to relocate to the Washington, DC area for their Fellowship experience. The part-time fellowship does not require relocation allows educators to maintain their regular school responsibilities in their home communities, while also participating in the School Ambassador Fellowship experience.
To be eligible for the School Ambassador Fellowship, participants must:
The School Ambassador Fellowship is a professional learning community designed to improve educational outcomes for students by leveraging the expertise of school-based practitioners in the creation, evaluation, and dissemination of information around national education initiatives.
Ideal candidates for this program are educators from public, charter, independent, magnet, parochial schools, etc. who have made significant contributions to student learning and culture, can effectively communicate to a variety of internal and external education stakeholders, and can promote excellence in education through their collaboration and leadership capabilities.
Applications for the 2022-2023 cohort of the School Ambassador Fellowship applications are open through 11:59pm EST on January 14, 2022. Please visit the Applicant Information page and sign-up for updates to stay in contact with the program.
For more information on how the Fellowship works, please see the Program Overview.
Engage with educators throughout the state to promote positive, predictable, equitable, and effective learning environments for all!
November 5th, 2021
VIRTUAL and FREE!
9am – 3pm
Please register for this event (Connection information will be sent to your email after you register)
AGENDA:
Please contact Courtney Angelosante (courtney.pacholski@maine.edu) with any questions!
NAMI Maine, a training contractor for the Maine Suicide Prevention Program, is offering a Training of the Trainer (TOT) in-person, half-day training on November 16 in Westbrook.
This training prepares participants to deliver a facilitated 60-90 minute suicide prevention awareness session for co-workers and/or community members. The awareness session is required by state law for all school personnel. By attending the Training of the Trainer (TOT) your school administrative unit will be equipped to provide these trainings as needed when new staff are brought in and when previously trained staff is in need of a refresher. Ready-to-use packaged materials will be provided.
Prerequisite: Completed Suicide Prevention Gatekeeper Training.
This workshop series is sponsored by MCD Public Health’s Healthy Kids Healthy Future Program in partnership with Maine CDC, Maine DOE, and Let’s Go!
Playworks is excited to offer a free virtual workshop series, Building an Active and Engaging Recess & School Culture, starting November 18th to Maine schools.
We all know it’s more essential than ever that students feel safe within their school community, are supported by adult role models, and have access to positive outlets for physical activity and social emotional development.
In each of these critical areas, Playworks brings validated best practices developed over 25 years to Maine educators.
Join with a team of educators from your community for interactive virtual workshops and access to 50+ online learning modules to help build an active and engaging recess all through PlayworksU!
The Playworks Workshop Series will be held virtually November 18th and December 2nd from 3:30 – 5:30pm.
Registration is limited! Sign your team up here.
For more information and resources, visit the eventbrite page or contact Dawn Lavallee, Playworks New England Partnership Director, at dawn.lavallee@playworks.org or contact jean.zimmerman@maine.gov for more information.
Recognizing October is Cybersecurity Awareness month and recognizing that a career in the high demand field of cybersecurity may be of interest to students in high school, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) would like to share information about a scholarship opportunity for high school teachers to be trained to teach cybersecurity.
Jointly sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency, the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity is funding the first credentialing program for high school cybersecurity education in the country through a collaborative of higher education institutions called the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy (NCTA). The inaugural program will prepare 90 high school teachers to teach an advanced cybersecurity course designed for high school teachers.
Three universities (DePaul, University of Louisville, and UA Little Rock) will be offering the virtual program, with a little bit of variation depending on the university’s program. Teachers who are accepted into the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy will receive funding covering tuition for the 12-credit hour virtual graduate certificate program that will include coursework on teaching cybersecurity, foundations of cybersecurity, network security, and advanced topics designed for high school teachers.
With 90 scholarships available, interested teachers should register for information before December 1, 2021 at this National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy link. The application for the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy will open in December and the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy program will begin in Summer 2022.
To view the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s press release about its National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy program click this UA Little Rock link.
For more information about the K-12 Maine Learning Results Life and Career Ready Standards and specific strategies for facilitating career awareness, exploration, planning, and development with students, contact Maine DOE Life and Career Ready Education Specialist, Diana Doiron at diana.doiron@maine.gov or 207-592-2128.
The NASA Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) team invites you to register for the upcoming webinar for educators, educator-led groups of students, or college level students. The targeted audience is students in grades 9 and above, but other grade levels are welcome to register.
Virtual Tour of NASA’s Antarctic Meteorite Lab + Astromaterials 3D
Join a FREE NASA Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) webinar! During this webinar, they will give participants a tour of their Antarctic Meteorite Laboratory at the NASA Johnson Space Center, where they curate meteorites collected during ANtarctic Search for METeorites (ANSMET) Expeditions. They will also introduce participants to their Astromaterials 3D Project, a STEAM effort that encourages investigators of all ages to virtually explore meteorites like never before! The presentation will last approximately 45 minutes followed by an optional ~15-30 minutes of questions and answers.
Register for the live event or to receive an archived recording of the presentation (pending a successful recording). To participate in the live event you will need an internet connected computer with speakers (no microphones or cameras are needed).
Other Webinar Details:
If you have questions, please feel free to email Paige V. Graff (paige.v.graff@nasa.gov) or put your questions in your registration form so she can contact you directly.
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 12th 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.
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.
Maine DOE Newsroom 