Access the 2021 Montana content Standards for Social Studies (Satchel).
Access the 2021 Montana Content Standards for Social Studies (Official PDF).
Access the 2021 Montana Content Standards for Social Studies (Excel).
Webinar: New Standards for 2021: Overview and Planning for Implementation (February 8, 2021)
Model curriculum guides, professional development, and resources will be added as time allows.
Tech Directors: To access a machine readable version of the official Montana Content Standards for Social Studies, please visit the IMS Global CASE Network site. Create a free login, select Montana Office of Public Instruction, and view or download the standards. The CASE version of the standards can be uploaded to student information systems, curriculum mapping programs, and a variety of other uses. Learn more about the CASE Network CASE Network FAQ
Of special interest to: Teachers interested in IEFA
Re: Short Films by Indigenous Filmmakers (with teaching guides)
The Big Sky Film Institute is once again partnering with the Montana Office of Public Instructions Indian Education Unit to share films made by and about Native people. According to their Facebook post in the Teaching Montana History Facebook group:
The 2023 season of the NFI Film Club [Native Filmmaker Initiative] presents "Celebrating Cultures & Honoring Traditional Practices," a triptych of films curated to engage Montana youth with unique and uplifting stories of Native and Indigenous individuals ... who are building strength through their communities and upholding traditional practices in the modern day. Our films are selected and ready for teacher registration, each one accompanied with an accompanied discussion guide, streaming link to view the film and an invitation to join our live filmmaker Q&A with film teams and OPI’s Indian Education Specialist, Mike Jetty.
Here's more from their website:
The Native Filmmaker Initiative Film Club is a virtual youth education outreach program that screens a curated selection of Indigenous-made documentary films in classrooms across Montana. Following the screenings, filmmakers visit classrooms virtually for a live Q&A and discussion activities rooted in Montana's Indian Education for All Essential Understandings. Film Club discussions are led by the Big Sky Film Institute in collaboration with Montana Office of Public Instruction’s Indian Education Specialists as well as participating filmmakers to talk in-depth about the process of filmmaking....
Running October through December, each Film Club event will focus on diverse Indigenous subjects and topics. Consult the discussion guides to help adapt the Film Club activities into social studies, science, history or other areas of study. Films are available to view in advance of Film Club discussions and each classroom will receive access to discussion guides and instructions on how to join the live Q&A.
Visit the Native Filmmaker Initiative website to register your classroom to view one or more of this year's films. Registration includes a screening link to the film with details to join a live filmmaker Q&A and accompanied discussion guides. Email Director of Education, Julia Sherman, at julia@bigskyfilmfest.org for more information, or to be added to their Youth Programs email list.
Looking for Guidance?
Need advice on how to incorporate Montana History or IEFA into your classroom or how to meet the new social studies standards? The Montana Historical Society’s Teacher Leaders in Montana History are here to help. These Montana educators have a passion for history, collaboration, and education, and they are eager to help you find resources. Each teacher leader is ready to work with individual teachers, schools, and districts and are available to consult, mentor, and present at PIR days. Learn more.
Critical Race Theory
Someone asked me recently if our new fourth-grade textbook teaches Critical Race Theory (CRT). The answer is no--none of MTHS or OPI's Indian Education lessons teach Critical Race Theory. Some of them do teach about the history of discrimination. Confused about what you can and cannot teach? Here's an FAQ sheet.
Have you had parents ask if you are teaching CRT? Consider using the question as an opportunity to open a dialog. Since CRT means different things to different people, consider kindly saying, "explain to me what you are worried about, and I'll tell you if I teach it" and then address their specific concerns. (H/T to Teacher Leader in Montana History Dylan Huisken for this excellent advice.)
Teaching Montana History Is on Facebook!
If you spend time on Facebook, I hope you'll join--and actively participate--in our closed Teaching Montana History Facebook group. It's a great way to connect to other teachers.
Upcoming Opportunities for Educators:
Online Book Club
Thur., August 14 ~ 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Online via Zoom
Join Molly Stockdale, MT 250th Commission member and executive director of Travelers' Rest, in discussing Rush: Revolution, Madness & the Visionary Doctor Who Became a Founding Father, by Stephen Fried. For this session, we will be discussing Part II: American Hippocrates, pages 251 - 510.
By the time he was thirty, Dr. Benjamin Rush had signed the Declaration of Independence, edited Common Sense, toured Europe as Benjamin Franklin’s protégé, become John Adams’s confidant, and was soon to be appointed Washington’s surgeon general. He was only just beginning his role in 1776 in the American experiment. Discover Rush's singular life and towering legacy in this illuminating book by Stephen Fried.
Please register for the session via the following link in order to receive the Zoom link (we will send it out the week of the event). Montana Reads: The Treasure State's Book Club - online discussion - LibCal - Montana Historical Society
Participants are encouraged to read the book before the meeting.
To see the list of books for future months, visit the MT 250 website at Events Calendar — Montana 250
Montana History Conference 2025: A Place in Time
September 25-27 at the Best Western Great Northern Hotel in Helena, Registration is open
AI Development for Your District
All4Ed's Future Ready Schools is offering a full scholarship for your district team to participate in the AI Leadership Bootcamp —a twelve-week virtual cohort designed to help you lead with clarity and turn AI potential into classroom impact.
There is no cost to your district.
Facilitated by Dr. Adam Phyall and Carl Hooker, this unique opportunity is open to a limited number of district teams—apply now to be considered.
Grounded in the AI by Design Guide, this action-oriented experience will equip your team to move from ideas to implementation with confidence and purpose.
Your Team Will:
- Draft or finalized AI policy
- Develop procedures to support ongoing innovation
Create a district-aligned roadmap for responsible AI integration
Who Should Attend:
Superintendents, CTOs, CAOs, Curriculum Leaders, Instructional Coaches, and other members of district leadership teams (6–8 people recommended per team).
Program Details:
- Start Date: Late-July
- Format: Fully Virtual (2 hours/week for 6 weeks)
Cost: Free for select districts (Apply now!)
Apply Now for the Full Scholarship
Support Student Civic Engagement in Montana
America250 is asking for support for programs that boost student engagement with Montana history and civics! Check out the flyer below, and Learn more and check out their social studies resources at https://www.america250mt.org/resources.

MTHS Traveling Trunks
The HUB course also provides a brief overview of our traveling trunk program. These hands-on history footlockers use replica and real artifacts, photographs, and documents to bring history alive for students. Teachers get the trunks for two weeks; the rental fee is $25. Each footlocker comes with a user guide that has lesson plans and readings. These are all posted online and can be downloaded and used without ordering the trunk.
The footlockers are really popular, and teachers often reserve them months in advance, so I was surprised to see that some my favorites are still available this spring, including Coming to Montana, Montana State Symbols, and Through the Eyes of a Child.
New HUB Course
Looking for a quick tour of the lessons and strategies we've integrated into the Montana: A History of Our Home curriculum?
We now have a one-hour class on OPI's Teacher Learning HUB to introduce educators to the key historical themes and topics integrated into the curriculum. (Participants receive one renewal unit.)
Social Studies Second Tuesday: Teaching Thematically
Textbooks are generally organized chronologically, but is that the best way to organize your class? Join MTHS Teacher Leaders in History Cynthia Wilondek (9th-12th grade, Big Fork) for our last Tuesday Professional Development session, April 8 from 4:30-5:30 p.m., during which Cynthia will lead a discussion on the benefits and share tips on strategies for teaching social studies with themes rather than following a timeline. Register here.
Winter in Montana is challenging for travel. During these months, Humanities Montana speakers can still visit your community — virtually — to present their humanities programs! Whether you are booking programs for the classroom, at a museum, or with a community center, speakers are available for virtual and in-person visits to provide free public humanities programming.
You can learn more about Montana Conversations or book Speakers in the Schools presenter on our website, you can learn about grant opportunities.
Subscribe to Humanities Montana.
Check the OPI Professional Learning Opportunities Portal for courses and workshops.