Superintendent Arntzen Launches Early Literacy Professional Learning Series

• Brian O'Leary
• August 13 2024

HELENA – Superintendent Arntzen and the Office of Public Instruction’s (OPI) Early Literacy Team will launch a four-month Virtual Learning Series in support of Early Literacy Targeted Intervention [vmm0dj30.r.us-west-2.awstrack.me] programs on August 14, 2024. This series will highlight essential knowledge around Early Literacy and give instructional insight for those implementing Early Literacy Targeted Intervention programs in alignment with HB 352 [vmm0dj30.r.us-west-2.awstrack.me], Provide targeted interventions to support 3rd grade reading proficiency. OPI experts and several expert guest speakers will provide support to Montana Educators throughout this series. Professional Development Units are available for those who participate in the live event with recordings available upon completion.

“Montana’s 2022-23 reading scores for our 3-8 grade students showed 45% proficiency—we must do better,” said Superintendent Elsie Arntzen. “These virtual learning sessions focus on building science of reading confidence for our Montana teachers. A strong reading foundation leads to higher academic achievement for all our Montana students.”

The Virtual Learning Series events are:

• August 14, 2024, 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Kick-off Event with Allison Wilson, PhD to walk through Chapter 63 Early Learning Developmental Domains and Content Standards, and Kim Johnson on High-Yield Strategies for the Early Literacy Classroom
• September 11, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Oral Language with Danielle Thompson, PhD CCC-SLP CHPC
• September 25, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Print Awareness with Jackie Ronning, MEd, and Lindsay Mahoney, MEd 
• October 9, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Alphabet Knowledge with Jackie Ronning, MEd, and Lindsay Mahoney, MEd
• October 23, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Phonological Awareness with Genevieve Thomas, M.A.
• November 6, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Phonemic Awareness with Genevieve Thomas,​A.
• November 20, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Phonics and Decoding with Rachel Gott, PhD
• December 4, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Vocabulary with Craig Bucsher, Ed.D
• December 18, 2024, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Decodable Text with Danielle Thompson, PhD CCC-SLP CHPC

To register for the series click here [vmm0dj30.r.us-west-2.awstrack.me].