Professional Development

Throughout the year we offer in-person workshops in Helena and across the state including summer workshops and our annual fall history conference. OPI Renewal Units are always available.

Learn more about our annual history conference.

Integrated Literacy Strategies for Building Background Knowledge

June 30 (Helena) and July 18 (Missoula)

No time to teach social studies? No time to read during the school day?  Then this workshop is for YOU!  Throughout the day you will learn powerful strategies for using picture books to enhance reading practice and build background knowledge and vocabulary for elementary learners. Tammy will demonstrate powerful one minute extensions to your regular read aloud routines that will support your students in building conceptual understandings making new content, facts, and vocabulary "sticky."  Employing principles from cognitive science, you will explore ways to enhance students' long-term memory and retrieval and determine short fast lists of facts - or as Tammy calls them, "sets of knowns" that behave like magnets for acquisition of new knowledge. Travel scholarships are available and lunch will be provided. Participants will earn 6 Renewal Units. 

In Helena

• June 30, 9 am-4 pm, lunch provided
• Lincoln Center, 1335 Poplar St.
• Register for this workshop.
• Bring: One of your favorite picture books to share with others and analyze for new learning opportunities

In Missoula

• July 18, 9 am-4 pm, lunch provided
• University of Montana, Phyllis J. Washington College of Education, Room 123
• Register for this workshop.
• Cosponsored by Montana Council for Social Studies
• Bring: One of your favorite picture books to share with others and analyze for new learning opportunities

Historical Thinking through Student-Driven Research

August 5-6, Montana State University-Billings

Want to engage your class with student-driven research projects using primary sources? Want to promote more historical thinking and critical analysis? Join teachers from across the state as Jamie Holifield, an educator for National History Day and former Milwaukee public schools social studies teacher, teaches you how to facilitate student research, analyze sources, and think historically. Think of it as a two-day “doing history” bootcamp. Grades 4-12 teachers are invited to apply for this free workshop. Travel scholarships, free meals, and lodging are available. Attendees will earn 16 OPI Renewal Units. Apply now!

2023-24 Online Professional Development for Educators

Montana: A History of Our Home

Explore our fourth-sixth grade Montana history curriculum, Montana: A History of Our Home, with a one hour course on OPI’s Teacher Learning Hub.

Previously Recorded

Montana History in 9 Easy Lessons (One Renewal Unit per presentation, with a possible total of 9 if you take the whole course.)

Montana Historical Society staff members and other subject matter experts explored the last twelve thousand years of Montana history. Their presentations were recorded and are now available on YouTube Click here for a full schedule and links to the recordings.

Montana History in 9 MORE Easy Lessons (One Renewal Unit per presentation, with a possible total of 9 if you take the whole course.)

Montana Historical Society staff members and other subject matter experts explored the last twelve thousand years of Montana history in another series of nine lectures. Their presentations were recorded and are now available on YouTube Click here for a full schedule and links to the recordings.

The Constitution at 50 Speaker Series (One Renewal Unit per presentation, with a possible total of 4 if you take the whole course.)

The year 2022 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Montana State Constitution. In recognition of this anniversary, the Montana Historical Society hosted a speaker series, examining the history, legacy, and impact of the 1972 Montana State Constitution. All presentations are available on the MHS YouTube Channel. After watching the recording, educators are invited to take a quiz to earn a renewal unit. Find links to the presentations here.

Looking for Professional Development for your school or district?

We can help through our Teacher Leaders in Montana History program! MHS Teacher Leaders are available to present at in-school or in-district PIR trainings.