Grant Funds Available

Some years back, the Montana Historical Society worked with the Office of Public Instruction's Indian Education Program to offer Museum School Partnership Grants. This program paired teachers with local museums to do a large project relating to Indian Education for All. My favorite two projects were a driving tour of Apsáalooke historical sites in Stillwater County (created by Columbus High English teacher Casey Olsen's students, working in tandem with the Museum of the Beartooth) and a project designed to bring students from both Crow Agency and Livingston Elementary School together for a daylong learning experience at Fort Parker. I love the idea of bringing students from on- and off-reservation schools together to learn with and from one another, rather than competing against one another.   

Why am I writing about this? Because I thought it might inspire some of you to apply for a grant to do something similar in 2026!

The Montana 250th Commission has announced the launch of a grant program offering up to $400,000 of project funding available to Montana communities, groups, and organizations commemorating America's 250th anniversary on July 4, 2026. 

Applications for grants will be accepted until October 30, 2025, with complete information and application materials available at Montana 250.

Schools are eligible to apply, and no cost match is required for successful applicants, but all awarded projects must be completed by December 31, 2026.

Know a grade 8-12 student who's passionate about history?

 If you have a student who's passionate about history, encourage them to apply to the be a member of the Gilder Lehrman Student Advisory Council.

Created in 2014, the Gilder Lehrman Student Advisory Council (SAC) is a diverse group of high-achieving middle and high school students (grades 8–12) interested in history who apply to join this elite community of like-minded individuals. The SAC now has more than 200 members nationwide and internationally. Some students have served on the SAC for over four years and extended their relationship with the Institute beyond high school graduation.

Virtual meetings are held during the school year on the second Saturday of each month at 1 p.m. ET. During each meeting, students provide valuable feedback on the Institute’s programs and materials, helping the Institute refine its outreach with the needs of young people in mind. Students are also educated about a critical document in American History from a curator in our Collection and hear presentations from guest speakers or fellow members of the SAC. Past Student Advisory Council meetings included special presenters such as Eric Foner (DeWitt Clinton Professor Emeritus of History, Columbia University), Rhodes Scholar Jasmine Brown on her new text Twice as Hard: The Stories of Black Women Who Fought to Become Physicians, and General Michelle Johnson (US Air Force).

Student Advisory Council members also often serve as speakers at the Institute’s four book prizes, Board of Trustees meetings, and the annual Gala, among other special events. Students have attended book talks with notable historians such as Annette Gordon-Reed and participated in virtual Q&As with the Broadway cast of Hamilton.

Student Advisory Council membership is also a notable achievement to include on a college application. SAC alumni have gone on to attend such colleges and universities as Barnard College, Brown University, Columbia University, Georgetown University, Harvard University, Middlebury College, Princeton University, Smith College, the University of California, Berkeley, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Yale University.

Learn more about a few of our members here. If you have any questions about the SAC, please email studentadvisorycouncil@gilderlehrman.org. 

Apply Here

Workshop in Sidney, MT, during MFPE

Those of you who won't be able to make it to MFPE in Missoula this year--and especially if you live in Eastern Montana--consider attending this one-day workshop in Sidney for grades 6-12 social studies teachers: Teaching Historical Thinking through Indigenous Histories.

This is a FREE workshop and attending educators will receive a stipend to cover the cost of their travel (including a hotel room for those traveling over 90 miles).

At the workshop, educators will explore tribal histories of the upper Great Plains using primary sources and learn strategies for historical thinking, and student-led historical research.

The workshop is a collaboration between the Montana Historical Society, National History Day in Montana, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota. It is sponsored by the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Great Plains Region, coordinated by the National Council for History Education.

Where: Sidney High School, 1012 4th Ave SE, Sidney, MT 

When: Thursday, October 16 (teachers' convention break), 9 am - 4 pm

Who: 6-12 teachers (priority given to teachers in Eastern Montana)

Benefits: travel stipend, lunch, 5 renewal units

Apply for priority consideration by October 1.

Questions? Contact Melissa Hibbard. 

More on Freedom Week

My post Freedom Week and Other Commemorations generated a lot of responses, which I love! Please keep sharing your good ideas and/or resources you like. 

Freedom to Read

School librarian Andrea Feige said that during Freedom Week she was "going to do a 'Freedom to Read' lesson that covers censorship and book bans around the country and in Montana. It usually leads to some pretty fantastic discussions with my 8th graders."  

Everyday Native

In celebration of American Indian Heritage Day in September, Indigenous Peoples Day in October, and Native American Heritage month in November, Everyday Native offers a free online resource for grades 4-12 that brings modern Native perspectives to Native American history. Based on primary sources, the resource is designed to enhance existing curriculum across many subjects, emphasizing the everyday life of Native Americans as opposed to popular stereotypes created by movies, TV, books, and news media.

The resource contains award-winning short films featuring Native youth's stories, photographs by noted photographer Sue Reynolds, poems by acclaimed Native American poet Victor Charlo, discussion questions, ideas for classroom discussion and integration, and much more. Everyday Native's new Integration Ideas content, authored by Great Falls Public School District’s award-winning Indigenous teacher Jordann Lankford, makes it even easier for educators to incorporate these IEFA learning activities into their classrooms. To access Everyday Native's free resources for your classroom, create your free account here.

National Constitution Center Resources

The National Constitution Center has launched two new resources, the Interactive Declaration of Independence and the America at 250 Civic Toolkit. These free digital resources anchor the Center’s nationwide strategy to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026 and inspire renewed curiosity about the founding principles that continue to shape American democracy. 

Friends of the Montana Constitution

Committed to "promoting and enhancing the public’s understanding and appreciation of the 1972 Montana Constitution; advancing civics education at all levels about the 1972 Montana Constitution; and recognizing and celebrating the 1972 Constitutional Convention and its delegates," this organization has a rich website of resources, including a chart comparing the US and Montana Constitutions. This looks to me as if it could be the basis of a great government lesson (with kids completing the chart). If you create such a lesson, I'd love to see it! 

  

Freedom Week and Other Commemorations

HB 591 added some new requirements for Montana schools, including recognizing “Freedom Week” and requiring “commemorative exercises” to be conducted during Freedom Week and on other days designated by the legislature or governor as legal holidays.

The goal of this legislation is to

• Inform “students about … the values that underpin the nation,”
• Promote “an in-depth understanding of founding documents, including the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and the Montana Constitution and their historical context and significance,”
• Make sure students “have a clear understanding of the relationship between ideas in the Declaration of Independence and key events in American history, including immigration, the American Revolution, the formulation of the Constitution, the abolitionist movement, and the women's suffrage movement,
• “Educate students about the sacrifices made for freedom in the founding of the United States and the values on which the United States was founded,” and
• “Instill a sense of patriotism and civic responsibility among students.”

I’ve had some emails from teachers asking for suggestions of resources they can use. I’ll send out information down the road on holidays that fall in October and beyond, but for now, I thought I’d focus on Citizenship Day (September 17), Freedom Week (the last full week of September), and American Indian Heritage Day (fourth Friday in September).

Citizenship Day

If you haven’t already figured out something to do for Citizenship Day, consider having students see if they could pass the citizenship test.

• The National Museum of American History has an online citizenship test students can take.
• Gilder Lehrmann Institute has three versions of the test (one for elementary, one for middle school, and one for high school). The upside of using the Gilder Lehrmann tests are that students can print out their results. The downside is that when I took the test, it said that I had the wrong answer when I selected "Assiniboine" in answer to a multiple choice question asking us the name of one Indian tribe in the U.S. I've written them asking that they correct their test! 
• Here’s a good study guide and here’s the official study guide. 

Freedom Week

This seems to be a catch-all, which makes it exciting as there are lots of cool things you can do.

Recognizing Veterans

When I think about instilling a sense of patriotism and educating students about the sacrifices made for freedom, my mind turns first to veterans. (Of course, these lessons can be used for Veterans Day as well).

• Reader's Theater: Letters Home from Montanans at War (grades 7-12)
• American Indians in the Military - A Warrior Spirit (grades 7-12)
  • Warrior Spirit - article by Ellen Baumler
  • Resources for Teaching About American Indians in the Military
• Native Words, Native Warriors (about code talkers, grades 6-12)

Instilling a Sense of Civic Responsibility

• My colleague Melissa Hibbard put together this Padlet on resources to teach civics (grades 3-12)
• I believe one of the best ways to instill a sense of civic responsibility is to encourage students to take informed action (which is one of the skills listed in our social studies standards). Here’s a post I wrote back in 2021 with ideas.
• Ordinary People Do Extraordinary Things! Connecting Biography to Larger Social Themes is a high school lesson that looks at the ways people have chosen to improve their communities, which hopefully will inspire an increased sense of civic responsibility.

Learning More about the Montana Constitution

To better teach about the Montana State Constitution, explore these resources, which include lesson plans for grades 4-6, grades 7-8, and high school. 

Learning about the Declaration of Independence and Constitution

• The Library of Congress has this lesson called “Created Equal?” that focuses on a few key concepts of the Declaration of Independence, beginning with the phrase "All men are created equal."
• The Digital Inquiry Group’s lesson on the Declaration of Independence asks students to critically examine the text and question the motives of its authors to answer the question “Why did the founders write the Declaration of Independence? It's lesson on the Constitution is called Slavery in the Constitution. You have to register to use DIG lessons, but it's free.
• The National Archives has these resources for teaching about the Constitution. 
• Did you know that one of the grievances listed in the Declaration of Independence is that King George wasn’t doing enough to protect the colonists from “merciless Indian Savages”? OPI created this lesson to ask how and why this biased language became part of one of the US’s founding documents.  

The Women’s Suffrage Movement

For a Montana connection to the women's suffrage movement, check out Hazel Hunkins, Billings Suffragist: A Primary Source Investigation. (grades 9-12) 

Montana passed women's suffrage for non-Indigenous women in 1914 (6 years before the national amendment)! You can read a short piece on Montana women's suffrage and see a map that show how your county voted here.  

The Revolutionary War and the Abolitionist Movements

I’m less up on national resources and national history, but:

• The Digital Inquiry Group has several lessons relating to the Revolutionary War (grades 8-12)
• PBS has this lesson about the Abolitionist Movement (grades 6-12)
• Melissa’s Padlet also has links to lessons on the Revolutionary War.(grades 3-12)

American Indian Heritage Day

• In celebration of American Indian Heritage Day 2025 the Montana Office is Public Instruction is putting out a call for Montana students to share their perspective regarding Indian Education for All. Students will answer the question: What does Indian Education for All mean to you? Student responses can be in the form of an art project, poster presentation, poetry, music and
  video. Be creative and have fun – this is a celebration! Projects must be submitted by September 26 along with parental permission forms to share them. Find more information here.
• OPI is also featuring a special event September 25th from 4:00 p.m.– 5:00 p.m., an American Indian Heritage Day Webinar featuring Kasey Nicholson.  Kasey is a member of the A’aa’niii’nin (White Clay Nation – Fort Belknap) He is a Wellness Educator, Motivational Speaker, Powwow Emcee and Comedian.  This webinar is open to all so bring your sense of humor and see Essential Understanding 3 in action. Zoom link 
• Of course, OPI also has great lessons for all grades and subject matters.
• I also really like the lessons in our footlocker Montana’s First Peoples: Essential Understandings, most of which can be taught without ordering the trunk.

Other Ideas?

I'm interested to hear what resources, projects, programs, or lessons you and your school are using. Email me and I'll collate your responses and send them out. 

Bring Your Students to the Montana Heritage Center

 As I'm guessing you know, we've been involved in a massive construction project, which includes additional exhibit spaces, two classrooms, and all new exhibits. It's been exhilarating and exhausting, nerve-wracking and exciting, and we're almost across the finish line! The soft opening for the Montana Heritage Center is December 2 and we'll begin offering school tours of our new exhibits on January 2. 

Because we want all students to benefit from the new museum, and to be able to tour our state capitol, we have been raising money to support the cost of travel to and from Helena (stopping at points in between if you are very far away.) We are pleased to launch that program this year. 

Through a generous grant from Montana Blue Cross Blue Shield, the Montana Historical Society will be offering financial support to offset travel costs to Helena for public, private, and homeschool collective schools from across the state. Funding is awarded to schools who will travel more than fifty miles (one way) to Helena and is based on a formula that includes:

• distance to Helena
• number of students
• type of transportation

While MTHS History and Civics Grant may not cover the entire cost of your Field trip, this funding is designed to make this experience accessible to ALL schools. Applications are due by October 13. 

Apply here: MTHS School Tour Request and Grant Form

Questions? Email Darby.Bramble2@mt.gov

IEFA Training in Helena

As a kick-off for our annual history conference, we are hosting an educator workshop on September 25 from 9:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. Cost is $35, including lunch, and attendees will earn 7 renewal units. Your school may have money for IEFA training. Registration closes Thursday, September 18, so this is short notice, but I hope to see you there!

September 25, 2025, 9:00 A.M.–5:00 P.M. Educators Workshop: Indian Education for All

To help educators fulfill Montana’s constitutional mandate to recognize “the distinct and unique cultural heritage of the American Indians” and endeavor to preserve that heritage through its educational institutions, this year’s educator session will provide attendees with new tools to teach about Indigenous history. OPI Indian Education Specialist Mike Jetty (Spirit Lake Dakota) will start the day with an examination of the Declaration of Independence and its reference to “merciless Indian savages.” Then, Language and Cultural Preservation Department original territories researchers Nolan Brown and Bailey Dann (Newe) will share the curriculum they’ve developed for teaching about the Shoshone-Bannock tribes, whose traditional homeland includes parts of Montana. After lunch, Dylan Huisken (2020 Montana Teacher of the Year) will provide strategies for teaching about treaties. Finally, Kathy Martin and Mary Ellen Little Mustache (Piikuni) will present the Blackfeet Medicine Show, featuring artifacts, art, stories, and games. (Lunch included)

Register now.