Indian Education for All Teacher Professional Development at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Engage with Buffalo Bill Center of the West staff and Indigenous knowledge keepers to share Indian Education for All content resources and curricular materials.
Early Childhood, Lower Elementary (K-2), Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle School (6-8), High School (9-12), Post Secondary
Teacher, Administrator, Library Media, Special Education, Paraprofessional, Title 1
Location: In person at Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Registration: https://centerofthewest.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IEFA-Summer-2024-Training-1.pdf [centerofthewest.org]
Cost: $45
Teaching and Learning about Contemporary Issues in Indian Country
Contemporary issues are a good way to bring IEFA into your classroom while also addressing Social Studies content standards and the Essential Understandings regarding Montana Indians (EUs). This course will provide an awareness and understanding regarding contemporary American Indian issues as well as provide ideas for implementing grade level standards aligned instructional strategies that provide teachable moments in your classroom.
Bison Restoration and Tribal Sovereignty in Montana
This course presents the opportunity to engage in content related to bison restoration efforts in Montana and the significance of bison to Tribal sovereignty. Participants will explore a wide range of resources that present the complex history of the near extinction of bison and current restoration efforts and will be better prepared to develop classroom activities that incorporate the Indian Education for All Essential Understandings.
Contact the OPI Teacher Learning Hub for more information.
OPI Teacher Learning Hub 2022-2023 Course Catalog
View the full OPI Teacher Learning Hub 2022-2023 Catalog by clicking this link.
My Indian Boyhood
The text used in this self-paced online Moodle course targets grades 4-8; however, teachers of all grades and content areas will build background knowledge and learn instructional strategies that will facilitate the integration of Indian Education for All. Participants will read and review the Essential Understandings of Montana Indians and the book, My Indian Boyhood by Luther Standing Bear. The primary text, considered an antidote to stereotype-laden children’s books, is a first-person account of Luther Standing Bear’s traditional childhood. The Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians will serve as a guide for critical analysis of My Indian Boyhood. Through readings, examinations of high-quality and authentic literature and teaching materials, participants will explore a variety of literature and professional teaching materials and develop strategies, a lesson plan and a final project for the immediate integration of IEFA into their classrooms.
How to Register: Visit the Western Montana Professional Learning Collaborative registration website
The History of Indigenous Resistance Movements
This self-paced online Moodle course targets high school student and adult learners; however, teachers of all grades and content areas will build background knowledge and learn instructional strategies that will facilitate the integration of Indian Education for All. Participants will read and review the Essential Understandings of Montana Indians and access various resources related to the long history of indigenous resistance. All reading and viewing materials will be linked in the course. One exception is the documentary film, 100 Years: One Woman’s Fight for Justice. Every Montana school library should have a copy of the video.
Indigenous peoples around the world have been on the frontlines of conflicts like Standing Rock for centuries. This course brings together the work of Indigenous and allied activists and scholars: anthropologists, historians, environmental scientists, and legal scholars, all of whom contribute important insights into the conflicts between Indigenous sovereignty, civil rights, environmental justice and colonialism.
How to register: Visit the Western Montana Professional Learning Collaborative website
#NotYourPrincess
This self-paced online Moodle course targets grades 9 – 12; however, teachers of all grades and content areas will build background knowledge and learn instructional strategies that will facilitate the integration of Indian Education for All. Participants will read and review the Essential Understandings of Montana Indians and the book, #NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale (eds). The primary text is a unique cultural anthology of stories gathered from Indigenous women representing nations in the U.S. and Canada. The Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians will serve as a guide for critical analysis of #NotYourPrincess.
How to Register: Visit the WMPLC registration website
Seasonal Rounds of the Salish
This is a self-paced online course, worth 2 University semester credits or 30 OPI renewal units. Participants will explore resources developed by the Office of Public Instruction alongside primary source documents and carefully selected literature. Most required materials will be provided in the course Moodle, though participants may need to seek additional resources at school or public libraries, book sellers, or online as part of the course requirements. Previous knowledge of IEFA and the Essential Understandings is helpful but not necessary for participants to successfully complete the course; prerequisite content will be provided for participant’s perusal.
This course covers the traditional seasonal rounds of the Salish. In this two-credit course, you will:
1. Read or review the seven essential understandings regarding Montana Indians
2. Read a number of texts and view a film relating to the history of the Salish
3. Respond to multiple writing prompts which encourage deeper engagement with the texts a materials in this course
4. Complete instructional activities to go with each season
5. Develop a grade or grade band specific teaching unit on the Salish and their seasonal rounds, along with at least two fully developed lessons on two different seasons.
6. Those seeking graduate credit will also fully develop two additional complete lesson plans to go along with the grade specific unit.
This is a self-paced course, but do not expect to complete it in one sitting! Course participants must be comfortable working independently and be self-motivated to complete all work within the flexible time frame.
How to Register: Visit the Western Montana Professional Learning Collaborative website
In the Footprints of Crazy Horse
The text used in this online book study targets grades 5 – 8; however, teachers of all grades and content areas will build background knowledge and learn instructional strategies that will facilitate the integration of Indian Education for All. Participants will read and review the Essential Understandings of Montana Indians and the book, In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse by Joseph Marshall III. The primary text follows the heroic deeds of the Lakota leader who took up arms against the US federal government to fight against encroachments on the territories and way of life of the Lakota people, including leading a war party to victory at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians will serve as a guide for critical analysis of In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse.
Through readings, examinations of high-quality and authentic literature and teaching materials, participants will explore a variety of literature and professional teaching materials and develop strategies, a lesson plan and a final project for the immediate integration of IEFA into their classrooms.
How to Register: Visit the Western Montana Professional Learning website
IEFA and the Visual Arts
This self-paced online course serves as an opportunity for participants to explore Indian Education for All through the lens of the Visual Arts. Participants will review and apply The Art of Storytelling: Plains Indian Perspectives; A Beautiful Tradition: Ingenuity and Adaptation in a Century of Plateau Women’s Art; Crossing Boundaries Through Art; and Learning Through Art: Corwin (Corkey) Clairmont and Juane Quick-to-See Smith, all available on the Office of Public Instruction website.
Participants will use these materials in completion of a selection of instructional activities and design lessons appropriate for use in their own setting. Students will use additional source materials via weblinks, interlibrary loan and/or scanned documents of the Moodle classroom to realize their course objectives. Through comparison of the National Standards for the Arts and Indian Education for All’s Essential Understandings, participants will develop lesson planning respecting the mandate of IEFA while reflecting on artistic, cultural and artistic problems and designing artistic solutions. Most required materials will be provided in the course Moodle or through the OPI website, though participants may need to seek additional resources at their local museum or school district art department or library.
This course is the equivalent to 30 classroom hours (30 OPI renewal units), which is the equivalent of 2 university credits. This is a self-paced course, but do not expect to complete it in one sitting! Course participants must be comfortable working independently and be self-motivated to complete all work within the flexible time frame.
How to Register: Visit the Western Montana Professional Learning Collaborative website