Constructing a chair while constructing our carpentry skills.

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $4,128.00
  • Number of Students Served: 100
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: 9-12

Project Summary

Students in our Fundamental Woodworking & Design classes will learn carpentry framing skills by crafting Adirondack chairs using typical framing lumber of 2×4’s and 2×6’s. Students will craft their chair using cutting & jointing techniques used when framing structures, learning some carpentry skills along the process.

Project Narrative

Narrative Outline
• 1 – Introduction
• 1.1 – Summarize grant project, goals and how you will use the funds.
The goal of the grant is to purchase materials for over 100 students to build Adirondack chairs out of 2×4’s and 2×6’s which is framing lumber. During the construction of the project students will learn cutting and jointing techniques that are used when framing structures. This project will allow students to learn carpentry skills and build something useful they can be proud of.

• 2 – Justification
• 2.1 – Project Need
• 2.1.1 – Describe the significant need and the target population.
The need of the project is to teach students carpentry skills. We hope students will consider careers in the trades or be able to build something when they have a need using carpentry skills for themselves. The target population is the over 100 students in our introductory woodworking classes.
• 2.2 – Purpose of Project
• 2.2.1 – What is the purpose and anticipated impact of your proposed project, and how will it improve student achievement?
The purpose of this project is for students to learn carpentry skills while building a useful project they can take pride in. It will improve student achievement by students seeing skills they are learning translate into a tangible, useful project.
• 2.2.2 – How do the goals link with the curriculum and to the goals and objectives of your school?
The goals link to the curriculum of preparing students to be college and/or career ready. The students will practice safe work habits, use trade specific math skills during construction and will use critical thinking skills to determine the best method of construction for their Adirondack chairs.
• 3 – Project Description (35 points)
• 3.1 – Design
• 3.1.1 – Describe project activities and how you will use the materials/supplies included in your budget to implement your project and address your stated need
This project will be part of a carpentry unit in our woodworking classes. So far this year we have done woodworking projects and are expanding out to how to build structures. Along with lecture, discussion and learning key terms of carpentry, students will build this project to use framing lumber to build a useful project. The budget will go entirely to the students for materials to build their chairs. Students will have to make various cuts of lumber similar to carpenters on jobsites do, joint lumber together using construction screws and finish the project with an exterior stain.
• 3.1.2 – Include a calendar of major activities, a description of each major activity and timelines for accomplishing it.
We will start this project in late March/early April. We will spend 2-3 days covering how to frame a wall for a structure as a class. We will spend 2 additional days going over the process of building a structure from foundation, framing, roofing etc. After we have covered the basics of framing we will start building the chairs. The students will make many different cuts and learn how to use construction screws to build a tangible object. As teachers we will guide the building process, demonstrating techniques as the process proceeds. We anticipate the building of the chairs will take roughly 3 weeks.
• 3.1.3 – Describe how the project will be integrated into curriculum
The projects will be integrated into our current carpentry unit we teach with our woodworking students. This will allow us to have students build a useful project to practice their skills.
• 3.1.4 – Describe briefly the types of personnel (NOT names), organizations or staff members who will work directly with the project. When applying for a team grant, include the strengths of each educator as well as why the team chose to work together.
We decided to work together on this grant to create opportunities for our students to build a rigorous project. We both have been teaching a long time and have worked as carpenters in the construction industry. We are constantly evaluating how we are teaching our classes to better our craft and provide better projects for students to learn with while they construct them.
• 3.2 – Budget
Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Qty Total Cost
1. 2x4x8’ Power Townsend 4 .59 440 2019.60
2. 2x6x8’ Power Townsend 7.49 175 1310.75
3. 3” screws-Power Pro Power Townsend 126.99 80 lbs 380.97
4. 2” screws-Power Pro Power Townsend 31.99 10 lbs 63.98
5. 1.5” screws-Big Timber Power Townsend 38.69 20 lbs 154.76
6. Water based exterior stain Power Townsend 32.99 6 gal. 197.94
Grand
Total 4128.00

• 3.3 – Availability of other funding
We have no other funding source for this project. If we don’t receive funding from the grant we won’t be able to have students complete this project this year.
4 – Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals (30 points)
• 4.1 – Creativity and innovation
• 4.1.1 – How is this project different from the usual classroom approach?
This project is larger scale project than we have done in the past in the introductory woodworking class. It is a project that a student can build, take home and they can enjoy it for a very long time.
• 4.2 – Extension of student learning
Students will learn skills they can use to build something for their own homes or become interested in career opportunities in the trades.
• 5 – Evaluation, Dissemination and Future Plans (5 points)
• 5.1 – Evaluation
• 5.1.1 – Indicate how the success of the project will be measured, including strategies and tools you will use to assess student progress.
The success of the project will be measured by the pride the students take in their work while building the chair. We hope and believe students will be excited to take home this project and put it to use all while learning carpentry skills.
• 5.2 – Dissemination
• 5.2.1 – How will you share the information from your project with your colleagues, other schools, or district-wide or the community?
Project information will be shared with other shop teachers in town and it will also be shared at summer trainings we attend with other shop teachers from around the state. We will also invite the sponsor of the grant to see the finished project and gift them a chair or two as well for their generosity.
• 5.3 – Future Plans
• 5.3.1 – What are your future plans for continuation, replication or expansion of this project, if any?
The future plan is if this proves to be a successful project we will plan it in to the scope and sequence of our year so we can fund it using our building budget or state Vo-Ed funding we receive. We will have to replace another project somewhere with it, but if it proves valuable and a good project for students it is a good thing.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
2x4x8′ Power Townsend $4.59 440 $0.00 $2,019.60
2x6x8′ Power Townsend $7.49 175 $0.00 $1,310.75
3″ Screws-Power Pro 25lb box Power Townsend $126.99 3 $0.00 $380.97
2″ Screws-Power Pro 5 lb box Power Townsend $31.99 2 $0.00 $63.98
1.5″ Screws-Big Timber 5 lb box Power Townsend $38.69 4 $154.76
Flood Brand Water Based Exterior Stain Power Townsend $32.99 6 $197.94

Total Budget: $4,128.00

Shielding the Future

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $2,480.00
  • Number of Students Served: 71
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: 9-12

Project Summary

We are seeking funding to purchase new welding helmets for our high school welding program. These helmets will replace outdated equipment, ensuring the safety and comfort of our students while enhancing their educational experience.

Project Narrative

Shielding the Future:
New Welding Helmets for Welding Classes
1 – Introduction
1.1 This grant project aims to secure funding for new welding helmets for the Welding 1 class. The primary goal is to enhance student safety, improve welding skills, and provide access to modern equipment that aligns with industry standards. Funds will be used to purchase high-quality auto-darkening welding helmets, ensuring that students can safely and effectively practice their craft in a hands-on learning environment.
2 – Justification
2.1 Project Need 2.1.1 Welding is a high-demand skill that requires specialized safety equipment. Currently, the Welding 1 class relies on outdated helmets, many of which have compromised visibility and safety features. This impacts over 70-80 students annually who are learning foundational welding techniques. Upgraded helmets are critical for protecting students from sparks, UV rays, and intense light while improving their ability to perform precise welds.
2.2 Purpose of Project 2.2.1 The purpose of this project is to improve student safety and achievement by providing access to reliable, state-of-the-art welding helmets. These helmets will allow students to focus on developing technical skills without safety concerns, fostering confidence and proficiency in their work.
2.2.2 The project aligns with the school’s technical education curriculum and objectives by ensuring students have access to equipment that mirrors industry standards. This prepares students for real-world employment opportunities and certifications in welding and related fields.
3 – Project Description
3.1 Design 3.1.1 Project activities will include:
• Acquisition of 20 auto-darkening welding helmets.
• Introduction of helmets during a safety orientation session.
• Integration of the helmets into daily classroom activities, allowing students to use them during all welding practices and projects.
3.1.2 Calendar of Major Activities:
• Month 1: Research and finalize the purchase of welding helmets.
• Month 2: Receive and inspect helmets; conduct a safety orientation.
• Months 3-6: Incorporate helmets into the curriculum and evaluate their impact on student performance and safety.
3.1.3 The helmets will be used in alignment with the school’s welding curriculum, enhancing safety and enabling students to perform hands-on projects such as lap joints, T-joints, and rocket stoves and certification practices.
3.1.4 The project will involve the welding instructor, a technical education coordinator, and maintenance staff to ensure proper implementation and use. The welding instructor will lead the integration of the helmets into lessons, leveraging their expertise to maximize student learning outcomes.
3.2 Budget 3.2.1 Itemized Budget:
• 20 auto-darkening welding helmets: $2480.00 ($124.00 each)
• Taxes and shipping: 0
• Total: $2480.00
3.2.2 No in-kind donations or contributions have been identified for this project.
3.3 Availability of Other Funding 3.3.1 The school’s technical education budget is limited and has been allocated to other essential needs. No other sources of funding have been identified for this project.
4 – Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals
4.1 Creativity and Innovation 4.1.1 This project enhances classroom learning by providing students with industry-standard equipment, allowing them to develop practical skills in a safe and professional environment. Unlike traditional methods relying on outdated helmets, the auto-darkening feature ensures precision and efficiency.
4.2 Extension of Student Learning The new helmets will enable students to focus on advanced welding techniques, improving their preparedness for certifications and careers in welding. The hands-on experience gained will be directly transferable to real-world applications.
5 – Evaluation, Dissemination and Future Plans
5.1 Evaluation 5.1.1 Success will be measured through:
• Student feedback on helmet usability and comfort.
• Assessment of student welding projects for improved accuracy and quality.
5.2 Dissemination 5.2.1 Project results will be shared during staff meetings and department meetings. Photos and success stories will also be featured in the school’s newsletter and social media channels.
5.3 Future Plans 5.3.1 The school plans to maintain the helmets as part of the Welding 1 class and expand the initiative to advanced welding classes. Future grants may be pursued to incorporate additional safety equipment.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Weldcote Welding helmets General Distributing of Helena $124.00 20 $0.00 $2,480.00
$0.00

Total Budget: $2,480.00

Living on the Land: The Blackfoot Challenge and Rural Cottage Industry

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $5,000.00
  • Number of Students Served: 20
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: 11-12

Project Summary

This grant will help students in AP Environmental Science and Biology II learn in the outdoor beauty of Montana by funding a trip to the Mannix Ranch near Helmville, the Blackfoot Challenge in Ovando, and the Rich Ranch in the Seeley-Swan area. Here they will learn about community and watershed-level conservation, public lands, natural re-source management, and explore how to make sustainable small businesses work in our rural economies. We will complete a citizen science project with USFS biologists, interview a taxidermist, and tour a wooden bowl-making shop at Swan Woods in Ovando. We’ll also learn about running and managing an outfitting business and dude ranch with Jack Rich and stock a private pond with native cutthroat trout while learning about the hatchery process with Rick Jore of Westslope Trout Co. Funds will cover bus travel, food, lodging and guest teachers—all guest speakers have donated their time.

Project Narrative

1. Introduction

1.1 Summary
The Blackfoot watershed, located in Western Montana, is known for its beauty, ecological diversity, recreational opportunities, and rural way of life. Unlike other watersheds across Montana, the Blackfoot is, for the most part, undeveloped. A short 90-minute drive from Helena, the Blackfoot water shed area has remained rural with approximately 9,000 residents dotting its landscape. Twenty high-school students enrolled in AP Environmental Science and Biology II will be given the opportunity to experience the hands-on adventures found within a landscape that still has every species that was known to exist when Meriwether Lewis made his return trip east along the Black-foot River in 1806. This landscape is home to working ranch families, farms, outfitting and tourism businesses, and the Blackfoot Challenge. As a class, we will be learning about Montana’s environment and how humans still make a living off the land while respecting the natural resources and planning for future generations.

2. Justification

2.1 Project Need
“Living on the Land” will be accomplished only by the effective collaboration of teachers, community professionals, students, parents, and regional experts. It’s the perfect opportunity to have students immersed in science and learn that it involves all of us seated at the table to make informed decisions that will help shape the future of how we care for Montana. We can read about these kinds of town hall interactions, and we do model them in class, but experiencing the land and the people for ourselves will leave students with a much better understanding of how we can balance the needs and values of humans while also supporting healthy ecosystems. The values of the Blackfoot Challenge, listed below, are just a few of the core values necessary for work in environ-mental science fields:
• Be inclusive; invite everyone to the table.
• Identify community leaders who are respected and respectful, collaborative, and open-minded, and can represent diverse values.
• Practice the 80/20 rule.
• Be open, transparent, and honest.
• Stay in communication with your partners and don’t make decisions without them in the room.
• Make decisions by consensus.
• Be willing to take it slow. The collaborative process takes time.
• Get stuff done, share your successes, and celebrate.
We especially love discussing the “80/20” rule with students—the concept that although we disagree on about 20% of what should be done with the land, water, and air in our present and future, we can all actually agree on the most important 80%. Most Montanans want to live in a clean and healthful environment that supports not only our social and cultural values and needs, but also supports our families economically while preserving the environmental value of the land.

2.1.1 Extra enrichment activities are always hard to fund, but especially when travel and lodging is involved. This grant will allow our students to experience education outside of the classroom while accentuating the viability of the curriculum and giving students the opportunity to share and present the information and knowledge they will gain with others upon our return.

2.2 Purpose of the Project

2.2.1 At the Mannix Ranch, we will meet with Erica Mannix to learn about her family’s cattle business and how they’ve changed and diversified to meet the financial needs of their family while keeping the resources of the grassland habitat intact. At Blackfoot Challenge, we will meet with education director Elaine Caton and interview field biologists and technicians to learn about human, livestock and wildlife interactions in the Blackfoot valley. Students will have the opportunity to analyze and interpret data from wolf and grizzly population surveys and visit ranches to see efforts they’ve taken to reduce livestock loss in the wildland interface. We will learn how to be Bear Aware and how to properly use bear spray to thwart an attack.

As we live and work on the Rich Ranch over the three days, students will engage in a conservation project and use math and computational thinking to solve a real-world problem. We’ll attend presentations on outfitting in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, hospitality and tourism in Montana, and taxidermy. Students will have an opportunity to design solutions to landscape-scale problems and engage in argumentation. We’ll experience first-hand how Montanans use technology to acquire process and report information, how building skills and strategies in the writing process can help anyone learn to write for a variety of purposes and audiences, and how ranchers use data and critical thinking to synthesize and communicate information effectively from season to season.

2.2.2 “Living on the Land” will incorporate lessons from our Knowledge in Action (KIA) Project-Based Learning curriculum for AP Environmental Science and the crosscutting concepts and practices of the Biology II Next Generation Science Standards. We will meet with local ranchers, workers and business owners to practice asking questions and defining problems.

3. Project Description

3.1 Design
Students will be engaged in an intensive and broad investigation of the Blackfoot watershed. The overarching objective is for students to develop a personal relationship with the land and become thoughtful, informed citizens actively invested in the future of Montana and the impact of their footprint. Our emphasis will be on the application of higher-order thinking skills.

3.1.1 Funds will be used for transportation, lodging, food and guest teachers for chaperones.
Students will:
1. Effectively record and analyze data.
2. Identify and interpret conclusions from the data obtained.
3. Identify and describe the success of the Blackfoot Challenge.
4. Maintain a daily journal documenting the professionals met and unique experiences.
5. Actively discuss economic, social/cultural, and environmental issues facing our state.
6. Consider ethical dilemmas of the area.
7. Prepare a final presentation on the proposed development of a Helena landscape.

3.1.2 Calendar of Activities
September-April: Students will engage in project-based learning about Montana topics, including completing an ecological footprint analysis, planning and designing a sustainable farm, staging town hall stakeholder meetings and holding a mock global climate summit.
Late April: Travel to the Blackfoot watershed and Seeley Swan range
• Day one: Travel from Helena up the Blackfoot valley and start our community/watershed level conversation. Stops include the Mannix Ranch and Blackfoot Challenge near Ovando, Rolling Stone Ranch, and Westslope Trout Company.
• Day two: Seeley Lake–Public land and natural resource management with officials from US Forest Service and MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks. We’ll also visit Upsata Lake and the Blackfoot-Clearwater Game Range for a conservation project (ex. wildlife fencing or weed mitigation) and do a nature immersion reflection while visiting one of the last remaining old-growth Douglas fir/larch forests in Montana.
• Day three: On our return to Helena, we will stop to visit sustainable small business and learn about the challenges of living off the land in a rural economy.

3.1.3 May-June: Students will take the AP Environmental Science exam on Tuesday, May 2nd. We will use the remaining month to complete our final project on community ecology, where we will visit a site near our school slated for development and collect data on the environmental health. Students will present a final community proposal regarding the best use of the land for our ecosystem and our community.

3.1.4 Staff
We will rely on 2-3 staff members to chaperone students on this trip. We will keep the kids organized and on-schedule for the various events and meetings. We’ll prepare students to have open minds while hearing from people with different backgrounds and different perspectives and practice asking questions of our guest speakers and hosts. At the beginning and end of each day, we’ll hold a ‘debrief” session to go over what we know already about the topics, what we want to learn during the activities, and what we have learned that was new during our investigations. Staff members involved in this trip have led students in a similar field experience in the past and have a combined 50 years teaching experience. Both are highly qualified in biological sciences and general science content.

3.2 Budget:
Lodging/Facility package: $160/person x 20 = $3800
Bus and travel expenses: $3000
Substitute Teachers: 6 days at $140/day = $840

3.3 Availability of Other Funding:
In-Kind Contributions
Presentations for each part of trip: $25/hour x 20 = $500
Fundraising: $1000

4. Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals

4.1 Creativity and Innovation
The specific goals of HEF are to:
• Engage in new elements of creativity
• Engage students outside of the traditional classroom and textbooks
• Work with other classrooms, teachers, parents, students, and the greater community
• Provide funds for projects that would not be funded by the district
Our project covers all these goals. We are giving students the opportunity to think freely and creatively and practice utilizing lifelong learning and communication skills.

4.1.1 We feel the best part of this project is when the students return, they will be giving presentations that relate specifically to an area of land in Helena and its proposed development.

4.2 Extension of Student Learning
Students learn best when they can touch, feel, see, hear, smell and taste the land they are working to protect. A trip to experience Montana’s Blackfoot Watershed through the lenses of economic, social/cultural, and ecological values will provide a “portal to the wider world.” Our students will have the opportunity to see how environmental work can include everyone through the community stakeholder process, and to learn what their neighbors do to live off the land now and save it for future generations.

5. Evaluation, Dissemination and Future Plans

5.1 Evaluation
The assessment of student knowledge will be through tests, presentations, writing journals and dis-plays. Students will share their final project proposals for their semester test in June.

5.2 Dissemination
The sharing of information will occur with the community ecology projects presented by the high school students. We will collaborate with other teachers and share the projects with any interested parties.

5.3 Future Plans
This is a project that could sustain for years to come. We’d like to continue bringing students to this area as long as we can with additional funding. Exploring the importance of a limited foot-print, stewardship and collaboration are skills that will never go out of style here.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Rich Ranch Lodging Jack Rich $160.00 20 $3,200.00
Guest Teachers HSD1 $140.00 6 $840.00
Bus/Gas/Driver First Student $3,000.00 1 $3,000.00

Total Budget: $7,040.00

Window into the World

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $4,903.00
  • Number of Students Served: 324
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: K-5

Project Summary

This grant will fund the purchase of multilingual learner (MLL) materials to create individualized lesson plans for MLL students in our school to ensure they achieve the WIDA academic standards adopted by the Montana Office of Public Instruction.

Project Narrative

1-Introduction

1.1-Our school has seen an increase in MLL students. Seven new students that speak English as a second language have come to Helena from Afghanistan, Mexico, and Pakistan. Our school needs resources to provide additional curriculum to MLLs. Additionally, our school will use this opportunity to teach our student population about heritage. Heritage engages the entire student body. Using heritage as a lens helps students imagine where people originated, bridges gaps, and invites connection among students.

MLL refers to children and youth who are consistently exposed to multiple languages. It includes English language learners (ELLs) or dual language learners, heritage language learners, and indigenous languages.

Montana’s Office of Public Instruction (OPI) adopted WIDA’s (World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment) ELD (English Language Development) Standards for all MLLs statewide. OPI states that, “culturally and linguistically diverse students bring unique assets to the educational setting and enrich the experience for all learners.”

Given MLLs diversity, an integrated approach fostering proficiency in social and academic language is foundational to academic success. The following goals will support MLLs’ social/academic success:

1) Language Acquisition
Increase English vocabulary across academic subjects.
Improve comprehension of spoken/written English.

2) Academic Achievement
Utilize various strategies to bridge language gaps in different subjects.
Participate actively in classroom discussions and activities.

3) Cultural Awareness
Navigate cultural differences at school/community.
Share aspects of heritage and culture with peers.

4) Social and Emotional Development
Build confidence using English in social situations.
Foster a sense of belonging in the school and beyond.

To achieve these goals, the grant will buy various learning materials that increase the comprehension of English. The materials provide MLLs the opportunity to participate in games and activities with peers to build confidence and sense of belonging in the school.

2-Justification/2.1-Project Need

2.1.1-The main target population are MLL students. The second target population is the student body. Our MLLs need individualized instruction and lesson plans to achieve WIDA standards. Instruction that includes games, pictures, phonics, stories and more. Individualized instruction helps MLLs develop literacy and communication skills in English. Games played with the general student population help MLLs to understand social cues, build social language, and connections with classmates.

Our secondary target population, the student body, benefits greatly having MLLs in classrooms. MLLs enrich cultural perspectives bringing other experiences, languages, points of view, and ways of looking at the world.

The primary need is to provide MLLs with academic language development. The secondary need is to build MLLs sense of belonging. A final need is to increase student body awareness of different cultures and world views, building an inclusive school community.

2.2-Purpose of Project

2.2.1-The purpose of our project is to ensure MLLs achieve benchmarks in adherence with WIDA standards. New MLL students are given the WIDA screening tool, giving us a better understanding of individual needs. The ACCESS assessment is done throughout the year. Understanding student proficiency in English is vital to help teachers create supportive lessons to increase student achievement in English. Materials requested in the application will help develop individualized lesson plans for MLL students to reach learning benchmarks.

2.2.2-Goals for this project include increasing academic achievement, improving language acquisition, navigating cultural differences, and building social/emotional development for MLL students. These goals are inline with WIDA standards, shown below:

1) ELLs communicate for social and instructional purposes within the school setting. The materials requested will provide a balance between learning social language and interacting with peers, to assist with instructional development.
2) ELLs will communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of language. Materials requested will help MLL students increase communication, form ideas and concepts in English.
3) ELLs will communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of math. Materials are focused on learning the name of numbers in English so students can build bridges between math learned in their language and math in the English language.
4) ELLs will communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of science. The materials include BrainBot cards designed to use with an audio device, teaching kids about different topics through adventures with BrainBots (e.g inventors, the human body, our planet, science, etc.).
5) ELLs will communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of social studies. The BrainBot cards provide information on geography and history. The games requested develop students’ understanding of societal interaction, and social relations.

The mission of our school is to provide high quality education in a safe, respectful learning environment that supports the lifelong learning process of becoming a productive and caring citizen. The materials selected will allow our school to meet WIDA standards and engage MLL students with individualized lesson plans to support an inclusive learning environment.

3-Project Description/3.1-Design

3.1.1-To achieve WIDA EDL standards, we worked with Therese Tucker, ELL District Coordinator, to select materials to purchase. Our project materials include games, pictures, phonics, stories and more to develop individualized instruction, build social language, understand social cues, and connections with classmates, helping MLLs develop literacy and communication skills.

3.1.2-Activity 1–March 2025–Purchase materials listed in the grant budget. Purchases will be online or through Montana Book Co. and Lasso the Moon.

Activity 2–April 2025–A committee of teachers, administrators, and our title 1 specialist will be formed to begin the development of MLL lesson plans.

Activity 3–May 2025-Integration of our MLL student country flags and world maps will be distributed to all classrooms. Teachers will discuss the flags and begin introducing heritage.

Activity 4–week of May–Window into the World heritage map will be hung in our common area where classes will visit the map and put stickers on countries of their heritage.

Activity 5–summer 2025–Build lesson plans with the materials that integrate into the WIDA ELL standards for our MLL students for fall of 2026.

Activity 6-fall 2026–integrate the lessons plans and materials into each MLL student’s day.

Activity 7-School year 25/26–ensure that all MLL students take the ACCESS Assessment in English language proficiency to learn student achievement toward WIDA standards.

Activity 8–spring 2026–evaluate MLL students’ achievements, evaluate and modify lesson plans as needed, and plan for the next school year.

3.1.3-The project materials will be used to develop lesson plans for each of our school’s MLL students. Flags and maps will be integrated into the classrooms to build communication and connectivity on heritage.

3.1.4-The project will be led by the principal and Title 1 Specialist. A committee of teachers will be formed to integrate the project into lesson plans and heritage celebrations across the school. The leaders will review ACCESS scores, and the committee will evaluate how the lesson plans supported MLL students, modify lesson plans and create new ones.

3.2-Budget/3.2.1

Games for Language Skills
Grade K-2, Bilingual Bingo, $11.39, Quantity 2

Grade 3-5, Bilingual Geography, $19.99, Quantity 2

Grade K-2, Guess in Ten, $14.97, Quantity 2

Grade 3-5, A GO Card Game, $29.95, Quantity 2

Grade K-5, Guess Who, $16.99, Quantity 2

Grade K-5 , Letter Bingo, $12.99, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Phonics Bingo, $19.99, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Number Bingo, $12.99, Quantity 5

Grade K-5, Conversation Cards-Feelings, $16.00, Quantity 4, Lasso-the-Moon

Grade K-5, Conversation Cards-Good Citizenship, $16.00, Quantity 4, Lasso-the-Moon

Grade K-5, Conversation Cards-What do I do?, $16.00, Quantity 4, Lasso-the-Moon

Grade K-5, Story Cards, $13.99, Quantity 4, Lasso-the-Moon

Grade K-5, Pretend Play, $16.99, Quantity 3, Lasso-the-Moon

Bilingual/English Support Books/Materials
Grade K-5, Picture Dictionary, $21.50, Quantity 10

Grade K-5, Scaffolded lessons, $150/school, Quantity 1, BrainPop ELL Subscription

Grade 3-5, Vocabulary-Tricky Words/Phrases, $69.99, Quantity 1

Grade K-5, Positional Word Kit, $29.99, Quantity 2

Grade K-5, ELL Games, $179.99, Quantity 2

Grade K-5, Building Vocabulary, $39.99, Quantity 3

Grade K-3, Bilingual Magazine, $48/year subscription, Quantity 2

Grade K-5, Communication Cards, $18.75, Quantity 5

Grade K-5, Sequence Cards, $12.99, Quantity 5

Grade K-5, Yoto Player, $69.99, Quantity 10

Grade K-5, Headphones for Yoto Players, $13.99, Quantity 10

Grade K-5, Yoto Stories, $24.99, Quantity 5

Grade K-5, Yoto Cards, $24.99, Quantity 18

Grade 3-5, Yoto Cards, $29.99, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Yoto Cards, $29.99, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Country Flags, $16.95, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Country Flags, $16.88, Quantity 5

Grade K-5, Country Flags, $8.95, Quantity 3

Grade K-5, Large world map, $38.90, Quantity 1

3.2.2-N/A

3.3-Availability funding

3.3.1-Other sources of funding were not investigated. Our school does not have the funding in place to purchase MLL materials to meet WIDA standards.

4-Relevance/4.1-Creativity/innovation

4.1.1-This project will allow our school to develop individualized lesson plans for MLL students. The variety of materials are unique to how MLL students learn and achieve English language proficiency.

4.2-Extension student learning
The materials provided will be in addition to the classroom lessons provided. The materials will allow teachers to create individualized lesson plans for MLL students helping them succeed academically.

5-Evaluation, Dissemination/Future Plans/5.1-Evaluation

5.1.1-MLL student achievement will be measured with the WIDA ACCESS for ELL English proficiency assessment tool. The WIDA screener tool will screen MLL students and build individualized lesson plans to support their learning.

5.2-Dissemination

5.2.1-We will share information from our project during staff meetings to ensure colleagues are informed and engaged. We will create a detailed listing of materials and resources, to make available through our staff and community newsletters. These efforts will help disseminate the project’s outcomes and benefits district-wide and foster collaboration.

5.3-Future Plans

5.3.1-Our project will continue annually by adjusting and creating new lesson plans for MLL students. The materials will be continually used to support the academic achievement of MLL students. Our school will work with our parent council to request new materials as needed and to cover annual subscriptions in the project. We will provide lessons and materials to other district schools experiencing a rise in MLLs.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Bilingual Bingo https://www.amazon.com/Bilingual-Bingo-Easy-Make-Reproducible/dp/0439700671/ref%3Dsr_1_5?crid=1SDJGE8FK487Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ovmqtBzf4r17A3y0LcUyvWvIPbK4sn2EwGyPUgfDpbnahxoj-njH0_aqDaoFWXZsIeiNt5-3GOAW6MRCBcbb6MPqFbbNx4hjDUE8VcTujUEWT9Sh-mgnVV1sfY8zxdqOOw_AeEXBz1WWOKdHPBua7XZkP-HoRVkS3UhybCWouHIp_2QSTgzqPzpO4M2kqozjPx6LPQIGaSi1W55K6aVLdj3vMvDGjRKrpBQoU5RnPZKOLtnxPigBIY7z1rg19zynK2pgnxqnjdRhMtqZJLLaqZtyjufIPTuTv6q-6SwXoNSZhm1vz2rkIBUpYqxwE-S5u7shUe60B_T4TeR_TgXXVJWdWZ5vn8oA8fs_RKeZwXLvVqp-rMPhDuJ0YSlh5D0Ju_U6io424WbiCF1neesDRuffs5TRtX0aC2q8e7UI_m3BPWvbq7AZkXfnlvYEbzjn.QWnpsspNDjxzNAqGwlSyyTvDV02rfwbWwlQ2UxrDJBE&dib_tag=se&keywords=bilingual%2Bbingo&qid=1736091040&sprefix=bilingual%2Bbingo%2Caps%2C203&sr=8-5 $11.39 2 $3.45 $26.23
Bilingual Geography Game https://www.amazon.com/Monuments-World-Bilingual-Educational-Geography/dp/B0D4QBS2GK/ref%3Dsr_1_4_sspa?crid=3A19OCOPMTK7G&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.3dj-pRb77N-zhN7YJVSt09QECanoEbwTpNaw0812AlFizLpvH4uYq75rcxE8tH3uOQNFBJbdaBLV_K0q50rgG6q5-EqZD-oJ2TnvZmpuJ8DpiasXLHvGf9H_RL-WeR6p3aAL-jhTM3JMlOmiSiQl3Oc-UIoWtV6VxKNYOfL_ihlXELNVRQuQ1NooHXlZEDnYNu6z_pPqlwFaVXMpGWksGJ3FBz-WyTb8e6cmORtyerIw8KPNxAkv1r06YQnrJumGNWwaaEXJZcNTT6MUGsl2D_4z3mESKEmA8nvjZZ7xUok.lqEyf3bKCEpH5qErnS47XBIg_-QwGoXJGVZY9HjYZnM&dib_tag=se&keywords=bilingual%2Bdari%2Bbingo&qid=1736091243&sprefix=bilingual%2Bdari%2Bbingo%2Caps%2C215&sr=8-4-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $19.99 2 $3.45 $43.43
Guess in Ten https://www.amazon.com/AGO-Q-A-Box-Set/dp/0994124104/ref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa?crid=1EGO6QQGMXAJ0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.z22P101j7N9cXzFUs26D72Z8UzK1pv4kuMlOy9cHhJjCB0yqY2U0axny629f1i5OEwxWDT6Elv2_gCxTyE-qf-JOKhSfsD_194d4yCB9zBgKxK2BS3ev9moKRhJPMxd5y3vA15ZJ-3eRWC4x4iVnLk92Bh3H4FqLtc0B3wKsdhd-ileeAKPrw33jjeucKozUOcZyXtizTfgrPwp6bhCUWyLYsHQ6ob88maLz4azo2YGapaSdY0MdVxQ0aOvNOvSXgMCPRlDHJrPOtNf7NH_enME7oUaihpAkYYVco9aQu_A.lXkO0M05_w4q5AemVsxZkjgubYAXOESA43RyiJ7efdw&dib_tag=se&keywords=games%2Bfor%2Bkids%2Blearning%2Benglish&qid=1736091605&sprefix=games%2Bfor%2Bkids%2Blearning%2Benglish%2Caps%2C175&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $14.97 2 $3.45 $33.39
A Go Card Game https://www.amazon.com/AGO-Q-A-Box-Set/dp/0994124104/ref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa?crid=1EGO6QQGMXAJ0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.z22P101j7N9cXzFUs26D72Z8UzK1pv4kuMlOy9cHhJjCB0yqY2U0axny629f1i5OEwxWDT6Elv2_gCxTyE-qf-JOKhSfsD_194d4yCB9zBgKxK2BS3ev9moKRhJPMxd5y3vA15ZJ-3eRWC4x4iVnLk92Bh3H4FqLtc0B3wKsdhd-ileeAKPrw33jjeucKozUOcZyXtizTfgrPwp6bhCUWyLYsHQ6ob88maLz4azo2YGapaSdY0MdVxQ0aOvNOvSXgMCPRlDHJrPOtNf7NH_enME7oUaihpAkYYVco9aQu_A.lXkO0M05_w4q5AemVsxZkjgubYAXOESA43RyiJ7efdw&dib_tag=se&keywords=games%2Bfor%2Bkids%2Blearning%2Benglish&qid=1736091605&sprefix=games%2Bfor%2Bkids%2Blearning%2Benglish%2Caps%2C175&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $29.95 2 $3.45 $63.35
Guess Who https://www.amazon.com/Hasbro-Gaming-People-Original-Guessing/dp/B08MVWB4SC/ref%3Dsr_1_6?crid=1TUMKOSIMXA7W&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JhGyy0_HZZn_izdCv6Yrp5mLw4BkDFG2aP6KVgv6gkHklTEVABbvtmWAtZa4RwFk_wScw4zxiB5wy12NWVILSIHPxfw1gHbjXBrxSePtblRSFLYFOuQTMMgDRv2C_5CH-AtM2wLC0Jiidg2nNl_L-w1B3jzETY4MAOL5Y0fgJCVk_EyWHMz4rr8Xez9nOvDsL1IKH3m1iMbT8jwkOSz9ReYSiIXdsTtevG0UsJU9VutxY2tS47l3QQU8tTp1W1TuM9AG9eKvTrGZ8NFjhLWUcSisC3D0Rdt3iGIgUIrOrJdfIqIRGYjMlSFZ8Ws_zsK4VnG1OOSalMpKmWJu0ktC7nCIXr6BiDuN4bMRtPSIeQZswZ-EGyIEYQvhWk7YKXJxN4FGOoYCKR45mRaapEEQ4lzXPov6CfmeMLjFoQbOukWGATUwuaehXG5Imlo2V6nK.rgo1C0VrC8ypnYW6Kun35Moq-s0i83n-UgNF_-Fsbfw&dib_tag=se&keywords=guess%2Bwho&qid=1736091803&sprefix=guess%2Bwho%2Caps%2C221&sr=8-6&th=1 $16.99 2 $3.45 $37.43
Letter Bingo https://www.amazon.com/Trend-Enterprises-Inc-TEPT6062-Alphabet/dp/B00006ICAY/ref%3Dsr_1_3?crid=J9K4HKCQJVBK&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.IeviOczxEK2LqYroVpU9ZeMHkRmqq3-FMFjOzi9zhlqr1N9TLQYo9Vh_lmYIF3oTgEku6XFktJ-CF_hNZJpfLIsGLppqiBr_sa9Zm3m3xj6Cxx5i2BNGkUdCTtce1dawm0_-VU8QZOH5DULxlW-SaslbBOaU4x3Cdgm_c-uvGb2It1zoNu7d_alCATE-k4XrmkfEJxk_Xk1OOZIh2PHFZ1eKikL7yll_26TefLRrRQpwyBicbtkL4FGh_pYGyZAcFFcw6W9Q9BL_lnovsjvANzwB8lmvb1_7_rn56LqC1Hl98lmdrPAaeIvPOGs8tdnw7uSJne_QkT04lTmjTsFEO477QOGIp4IAlnguxQ0N2UAizUX6N7fD1_JY7x01xzn1Da9XWaEi_3aIOfyrKQkXcUXbOYH0MS_KLhaBE–ml3e2ifaVzxcJOGyojclMRByR.bsl0k2VOnHW20nYCHqDvn7HCmJkbizyaUZthHYRU98s&dib_tag=se&keywords=letter%2Bbingo%2Bwith%2Bsounds&qid=1736288233&sprefix=letter%2Bbingo%2Bwith%2Bsound%2Caps%2C175&sr=8-3 $12.99 3 $3.45 $42.42
Phonics https://www.amazon.com/Alphabet-Bingo-CVC-Words-Phonics/dp/B09Z89V1TW/ref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa?crid=J9K4HKCQJVBK&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.IeviOczxEK2LqYroVpU9ZeMHkRmqq3-FMFjOzi9zhlqr1N9TLQYo9Vh_lmYIF3oTgEku6XFktJ-CF_hNZJpfLIsGLppqiBr_sa9Zm3m3xj7sJQq8qkNx102VD2eNz2cTKQOCkf6qId8kylie3TkNGMlbBOaU4x3Cdgm_c-uvGb2It1zoNu7d_alCATE-k4XrmkfEJxk_Xk1OOZIh2PHFZ1eKikL7yll_26TefLRrRQpwyBicbtkL4FGh_pYGyZAcFFcw6W9Q9BL_lnovsjvAN5Sr5BLosTwxbQskbgS3sVc.UYMR6zbAwIzkFn3PI7xAVobIg31ni5aFQDxzysxgsvA&dib_tag=se&keywords=letter%2Bbingo%2Bwith%2Bsounds&qid=1736288316&sprefix=letter%2Bbingo%2Bwith%2Bsound%2Caps%2C175&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $19.99 3 $3.45 $63.42
Number Bingo https://www.amazon.com/TREND-ENTERPRISES-INC-TEPT6068-Numbers/dp/B0006HUHB4/ref%3Dsr_1_4?crid=2UBSEK9OAARUN&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.zzgCjPS8XwwIxk__g9V17FLRO0bXzW6HsRrVjrWXi8E5OzsKcND_sMwwJN1veWP5gz1bNqTvbBR1eey9XXPhLkMResg3jGLyeijwxWxn4kI8IX8A5qZi-p9LZXeyAKjuOSHfXCx2qsTUlca2DguoHoNEhV6pj4TUIN1CsvcGpHwEaLtrxdufkIJH6Rc7bKfeI5u579lz2PzVTcZ5Kw2x2f40OTx105rSKbhmf8OPU0be9qGgS6coAvuvkVM2C7IdMTShRlBHqE9rOjRcSsp1tWJHzkcVnFfVSEMqdKPajkIVofDIIISptikNj8LaYmKTIc9uTUiJEJf-heX_oyiF9aLwiYsscMdRdx0YS_plzBk.FGVN4fjxCLfJe-TZd5sJ-WoaXFZVmcX6QCgiq8sJ2RQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=number%2Bbingo&qid=1736294371&s=toys-and-games&sprefix=number%2Bbingo%2Ctoys-and-games%2C187&sr=1-4 $12.99 5 $3.45 $68.40
Conversation Cards – How Am I Feeling Lasso the Moon $16.00 4 $0.00 $64.00
Conversation Cards – Good Citizenship Lasso the Moon $16.00 4 $0.00 $64.00
Conversation Cards – What do I do? Lasso the Moon $16.00 4 $0.00 $64.00
Story Cards Lasso the Moon $13.99 4 $0.00 $55.96
Pretend Play Lasso the Moon $16.99 3 $0.00 $50.97
Picture Dictionary https://www.amazon.com/Oxford-Picture-Dictionary-Content-English/dp/0194017753/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid=3H6WBV6U4S7AI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.pp-vZ4QgQg79hp8N7YAlss2Ay6v9VsuyLIzV5hJqRlH-ii9NVH0pVxbJUjlqu6FZzFK2yJAKiIJ703e1cAnSJw97kRXRwEMmqK7xZ4JcGZXYGv6mgNg5IUo2supAcsuotqf-iWVmcNzPNi07pkFec6r5XIA7V-wF3FCPObXwFJlNiJHaHK10Meu7rct89GFzI18J7OfzbO0FZg7kQw4SFS02pdlblmsGISU_axl-1aM.fCLzD9yfLmjiBfih3ABI6EvYEhmBRdvrS-crq6BuGkg&dib_tag=se&keywords=content%2Bareas%2Bfor%2Bkids&qid=1736289431&sprefix=content%2Bareas%2Bfor%2Bki%2Caps%2C195&sr=8-1 $21.50 10 $3.45 $218.45
Scaffolded, leveled online lessons Brain Pop ELL – https://ell.brainpop.com/ $1,275.00 1 $0.00 $1,275.00
Vocabulary Set – Tricky Words and Phrases https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/language/vocabulary/tricky-words-phrases-teaching-cards/p/LL405X/ $69.99 1 $3.45 $73.44
Positional Word https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/language/vocabulary/positional-words-resource-box/p/PP949/ $29.99 2 $3.45 $63.43
English Learner Games https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/language/spanish-ell-materials/english-language-learner-games-library/p/LL584/ $179.99 2 $3.45 $363.43
Building Vocabulary https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/language/spanish-ell-materials/english-language-development-vocabulary-center/p/LC136/ $39.99 3 $3.45 $123.42
Bilingual Magazine Subscription https://shop.highlights.com/bilingue-magazine-subscription?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAvvO7BhC-ARIsAGFyToWznlNCRc05gOTplSpqgb_coaOV070x2aJ580dofEU2y05YhNcQer8aAl0BEALw_wcB $48.00 2 $0.00 $96.00
Communication Cards https://www.amazon.com/Communication-Cards-Phrases-Pictures-Preschool/dp/B07N8J9KQV/ref%3Dasc_df_B07N8J9KQV?mcid=e6a23e829cf63b68b9c1d71326a46f39&hvocijid=17910753277377683511-B07N8J9KQV-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=721245378154&hvpos&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17910753277377683511&hvpone&hvptwo&hvqmt&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl&hvlocint&hvlocphy=9189688&hvtargid=pla-2281435179538&th=1 $18.75 5 $3.45 $97.20
Sequence Cards https://www.amazon.com/Kasfalci-Sequencing-Storytelling-Activities-Homeschool/dp/B0D2RL3J48/ref%3Dsr_1_3_sspa?crid=3252I4H7OLD0N&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.mfbRJOWI5JhgZY1EtovXspEOoUHUHpEV0Q53HLjbv2YhkzW-70w2o6wPZWwsiY2W9frpxnc2Tw4hb9HbQaA-MGaG4lu9-4_JiJ1yRET6XZyXfTTd4yTQKjMUC2NKtSEk4daYyV2D1RQQNZpaRxu8a3z_CWn1wju4TUTPMPekm4qUHLU1qoUZCzQyUcPN0ovZ2nS4KH62_DRp_2G5tkfIVVgJomSJv-11aI5Qdgh01Z0c2xJ7EgW01A9B603E9JlPBOrmooHbhlh2fs977GqrMeg3gu5mJzc_amNos80xdAM.P2ig13pLdgMGiq_DuftngVi3TWzagNWYercGmo3jPbU&dib_tag=se&keywords=sequence%2Bcards%2Bfor%2Bcomprehension&qid=1736294507&s=toys-and-games&sprefix=sequence%2Bcards%2Bfor%2Bcomprehension%2Ctoys-and-games%2C158&sr=1-3-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $12.99 5 $3.45 $68.40
Yoto Player https://us.yotoplay.com/yoto-mini $69.99 10 $10.00 $709.90
Headphones for Yoto Player https://www.amazon.com/Kids-Headphones-products-Tangle-Free-Ear/dp/B0746RBK2M/ref%3Dasc_df_B0746RBK2M?mcid=6af14b757334319789997900f49cc9ec&hvocijid=13687080509792414269-B0746RBK2M-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=692875362841&hvpos&hvnetw=g&hvrand=13687080509792414269&hvpone&hvptwo&hvqmt&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl&hvlocint&hvlocphy=9021299&hvtargid=pla-2281435182618&th=1 $13.99 10 $3.45 $143.35
Yoto Stories https://us.yotoplay.com/products/the-magic-tree-house-collection-2 $24.99 5 $3.45 $128.40
Yoto Cards – Phonics Phase 2 https://us.yotoplay.com/products/phonics-letters-and-sounds-phase-2 $24.99 5 $3.45 $128.40
Yoto Cards – Phonics Phase 1 https://us.yotoplay.com/products/phonics-part-1 $24.99 5 $3.45 $128.40
Yoto Cards – Phonics Phase 3 https://us.yotoplay.com/products/phonics-letters-and-sounds-phase-3 $24.99 5 $3.45 $128.40
Yoto Cards – BrainBots builds background knowledge https://us.yotoplay.com/products/brainbots-our-planet $29.99 3 $3.45 $93.42
Yoto Cards – Ada Twist Scientist https://us.yotoplay.com/products/ada-twist-scientist-the-questioneers $24.99 3 $3.45 $78.42
Yoto Cards – Sports https://us.yotoplay.com/products/ada-twist-scientist-the-questioneers $29.99 3 $3.45 $93.42
Authentic Mexico Flag https://www.amazon.com/G128-ToughWeave-Embroidered-Polyester-Grommets/dp/B0B5FLGT87/ref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa?crid=1W0MWFIM6W6D9&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.lftXOrSfb1H9ZUSQO5Fnbp-uCLn4z4h0T-0xxBDe49SZyrTQICga_g5Te82U1tnZvKI3ULfVNbCrxxvQMtcb8zLRZY1Nx7cFn6aNx300Z0piiw_npXhDAnAcqW65MNNxdoHbRJNLMXh3Em4mKN-IDFWoWOWH7xYtJ68HPm9MOUcMMU7LT6CovOpq75D22UoiMOwvTsaDgt1pUpfOis3qW8VOsBDCYeHsXJ5P6joUGRelV-swUQxRiQjx21OIkSFUTfyL6bInxoDTvofUGHQQZIr2SHCXA7GSNeG2IRsudWU.Ju68Q6-6NRLQlUrMxtHi7CT_sPpl4UqhbEfuIJiKCl4&dib_tag=se&keywords=authentic%2Bmexico%2Bflags%2B2x3&qid=1736868462&sprefix=authentic%2Bmexico%2Bflags%2B2x%2Caps%2C220&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1 $16.95 3 $3.45 $54.30
Authentic Afghanistan Flag https://www.amazon.com/Afghanistan-Double-Sided-Banner-Grommets/dp/B01MS4H8OA/ref%3Dsr_1_4?crid=1B3I7POEVI5GL&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8LPKB984DDl3Lis3JRTdRLnBdAfHoh8NAeG2nqdqLdnNrW0UC0obGFokjHo0oYIfVUUMWgkpL0AHlL1LjIAvcLRR8hN_b8jxJYPbnpV_bDD0vYAESlPrEZ8P6MiR0BMheBwZyDrRBfJvo2SU1CjJyzNM3C8J4XPdZhhtJQgqlwYrJBpsYYcI_vAIkY-l0jPtJ4Rtlvv1pf0ACGRpDurRJ744dyD1fpGHN-F86gcVmly5MiWSIdy7LD90Zf0Bzb_6Lpr0vXK_EcoTDKiYxGv7OdbkC9tFwjmBqLMuwo1fmz7z1L__WCji3E2TOTKh6oBal4vQhHEjwXX5eu5zbpDLBHgX0khPYeHtMUIHkS0IMqPkMNzhsUCuDdBmJIEQradRIcIu3zYWs4yHEV4ZDDBqb4D7xWyd2fbQ-ET5eva9iz1jGqMBFKLEj3dUVggj25Ua.FZ5_tuth_Ul9e9VqW2Ssnj2IqHMSgDgrlqNeGaZvtdw&dib_tag=se&keywords=authentic%2Bafghanistan%2B2x3&qid=1736868560&sprefix=authentic%2Bafganistan%2B2x3%2Caps%2C227&sr=8-4 $16.88 5 $3.45 $87.85
Authentic Pakistan Flag https://www.amazon.com/1-800FLAGS-COM-Pakistan-2x3ft-Polyester-Flag/dp/B0DB2X7DN7/ref%3Dsr_1_8?crid=33KB9NPXZ26T8&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZzVWHOKnMVOEF0qfzAFOV16yBGm1HL-EpuQtqilm4w3GxrRI1W3TxPSM7vjsdc46UxL__6w4uyIRHy0BEbFy-StzzdMtGHr6c2Q8G9mxr32rQCOcCqNiqp5-3L8RQ6vdMDSKGE6iWMKxsv02ozv26MCnH0XsYBFU3QmdXJQ85Kciv7Jdx4SBL4uT77uhJmRTHL1uy4NX3E7TC1KZHS5TUD06ltk-RA30HnwujaxS5iCn-LLzbmSGhO58cUbcIme-6Q2Xc3YxlcMIv9LHonoJKMvMdMhTigVYEjg4IllBRqXQSJLv-FOy1375mMyW5b3ddTZQmg42br5q-nXoXEReTVLiHVqs6TVHz4PZJqVFcSKHF5x3xyt3n4e_vmkMmYtI8a4m2X5bYWVKsu7YL3-VGBKeAi0FICxkBIs2Gh0uc3Av3e4ieHalBsgFEniFErwd.m_4EXcoTuempVvkNe1OCXE1Gd5JHtUCw40fKwN-URWQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=authentic%2Bpakistan%2B2x3&qid=1736868668&sprefix=authentic%2Bpakistan%2B2x3%2Caps%2C226&sr=8-8 $8.95 3 $3.45 $30.30
Large World Map for School https://www.amazon.com/48×78-Classic-Premier-Poster-Laminated/dp/B00M8IUZJ8/ref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa?crid=3DXIUKPU1DYL9&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.eK6bldBcbeYeyFHt6ACSwYzr6tar9nbssc7IU4jZ9PQcWV510H5APutJXYLtZ4sj33JDHVSsFJREq8QzDvF_exDkc9geTOsgKb5mtnOXPT2kRxutxTMtmMYd4m14_C6Ppl0wHdOac4CmnVeIK6ejyFrfs7e5LGOey5d2I18OyhlwRzzQ_PqcNsuuMv9ZegQyj2-ZKy1418EAZimvHdbxIsOtY0_6c516TsDrVmclOp9u586yB6jEb-SiaXs1jP1qtt8o3l1inc9xhQXnLzr5qZ8i0CYFwqotZmu0SSR2fr4.mGbQB18p341zPZPkGaLqhXR6QrYQE6lkQ3emAWyv2v0&dib_tag=se&keywords=large%2Blaminated%2Bworld%2Bmap&qid=1737074644&sprefix=large%2Blaminated%2Bworld%2Bmap%2Caps%2C187&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 $38.90 1 $3.45 $42.35

Total Budget: $4,902.68

Design, Coding, and Engineering with 3D-Printed Robot Parts

  • Type of Grant: Individual (Funded up to $1,250)
  • Funds Requested: $1,250.00
  • Number of Students Served: 35
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: 9-12

Project Summary

This grant will fund the purchase of a high-quality 3D printer and accompanying materials to enhance hands-on learning in the computer science classroom. The printer will primarily be used to fabricate custom parts for robotics projects, allowing students to design, prototype, and build functional components, fostering creativity and practical problem-solving skills. Additionally, the printer will support interdisciplinary projects, such as creating teaching aids, engineering prototypes, and artistic designs, broadening the scope of STEM education. By integrating 3D printing into the curriculum, this initiative aims to empower students with cutting-edge technology, preparing them for future academic and career opportunities in innovative fields.

Project Narrative

1 – Introduction
1.1 This project seeks to acquire a high-quality 3D printer and related supplies for use in the computer science classroom, with the goal of enhancing student learning through hands-on projects and real-world applications. The funds will be used to purchase a 3D printer, materials, and maintenance supplies. Initially, the printer will support robotics and coding projects, enabling students to design and produce custom parts for their creations. Over time, it will also be used for interdisciplinary projects and in a future robotics club, promoting sustained student engagement with STEM concepts.

2 – Justification (30 points)

2.1 Project Need
2.1.1 The need for this project arises from the increasing importance of integrating technology into education and preparing students for careers in STEM fields. Our school serves a diverse population, including many students who lack access to advanced technology tools outside of the classroom. By introducing 3D printing, we will provide students with opportunities to engage in design thinking, engineering, and creative problem-solving, addressing both academic and technological skill gaps.

2.2 Purpose of Project
2.2.1 The purpose of this project is to empower students with hands-on experience in cutting-edge technology, thereby improving their engagement and achievement in STEM disciplines. The anticipated impact includes increased creativity, practical problem-solving skills, and a deeper understanding of design and manufacturing processes.
2.2.2 This project aligns with the computer science curriculum and the broader goals of our school by fostering 21st-century skills such as critical thinking, collaboration, and innovation. The integration of 3D printing into our curriculum will complement existing programs in robotics, computer-aided design (CAD), and engineering principles.

3 – Project Description (35 points)

3.1 Design
3.1.1 Project activities include introducing students to 3D modeling software, designing and printing custom parts for robots, and engaging in interdisciplinary projects such as creating prototypes or artistic designs. Funds will be used to purchase a 3D printer, filament, and maintenance supplies to implement these activities effectively.
3.1.2 The calendar of major activities includes:

Month 1: Teacher training on 3D printer operation and maintenance; setup of the 3D printer in the classroom.

Month 2: Student workshops on 3D modeling and design using CAD software.

Month 3 and beyond: Integration of 3D printing into robotics projects and other classroom activities, with regular use in the curriculum.
3.1.3 The project will be integrated into the computer science curriculum through activities that require students to apply programming, engineering, and design skills. Interdisciplinary applications will involve collaborations with art and science teachers.
3.1.4 Classroom implementation will be led by the computer science teacher, with occasional support from staff in related disciplines such as science and art. The computer science teacher’s knowledge of coding and electronics, along with in-school staff’s experience with 3D printers will ensure the project’s success.

3.2 Budget
3.2.1 Itemized project budget:

Bambu Lab X1 Carbon Combo: $1449

Filament (variety of colors/materials): $250

Maintenance Supplies (nozzles, cleaning tools): $100

Total: $1800
3.2.2 There is enough department money to cover this, and there is also have Advanced Opportunity grant money that is available.

3.3 Availability of other funding
3.3.1 As mentioned, there is Advanced Opportunity grant money available.

4 – Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals (30 points)

4.1 Creativity and innovation
4.1.1 This project introduces 3D printing to the classroom, enabling students to bring their digital designs to life and solve practical challenges. This hands-on, innovative approach goes beyond traditional learning methods by integrating technology into creative and critical thinking processes.

4.2 Extension of student learning
4.2.1 The project extends learning by offering students opportunities to design, prototype, and iterate on physical models, deepening their understanding of concepts in physics, engineering, and design.

5 – Evaluation, Dissemination, and Future Plans (5 points)

5.1 Evaluation
5.1.1 Success will be measured through student surveys, project completion rates, and participation in in-school robotics competitions. Rubrics will assess students’ design skills and understanding of 3D printing principles.

5.2 Dissemination
5.2.1 The project’s outcomes will be shared during school-wide events, and through presentations of student work.

5.3 Future Plans
5.3.1 Future plans include establishing a robotics club, where the 3D printer will play a central role in student projects. Additional uses may include creating teaching aids, student artwork, and engineering prototypes. The longevity of the printer ensures sustained impact across multiple school years.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Bambu Lab X1 Carbon Combo Bambu Lab $1,449.00 1 $1,449.00
Filament Amazon $250.00 1 $250.00
Nozzle cleaners Amazon $100.00 1 $100.00

Total Budget: $1,799.00

Dance the Night Away

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $2,000.00
  • Number of Students Served: 275
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: K-5

Project Summary

It’s time to dance the night (or day) away with Cohesion Dance Studio! This grant will provide the funds for a 4-month Cohesion Dance residency at a Helena elementary school. All students in grades K-5 will get to participate in various workshops that introduce them to the incredibly versatile art of dance.

Project Narrative

Narrative, Outline, Introduction: Breathing. Collaboration. Math. Focus. These things all have a common factor: they can be taught through dance! An elementary school in Helena is seeking to enhance student learning experiences through dance and physical movement. Cohesion Dance has a menu of various workshops that work not just on physical movement, but breathing techniques, curriculum integration, collaboration, and emotional regulation. The staff at the elementary school are seeking enrichment opportunities for their students in these areas.
Most people might not associate dance with curriculum integration, but it can be a great way to reach the kinesthetic learners (students who learn better through physical movement). Maybe they don’t need to sit for the whole math lesson; instead, maybe they could learn about fractions by collaborating with their peers and creating a physical representation of the fraction. Maybe they could learn how to regulate their own emotions through various breathing techniques. Maybe they can learn how to express big emotions through dance. The possibilities are endless!
This grant will serve one Title 1 elementary school in Helena, reaching approximately 275 students in grades kindergarten through fifth. Students in this school generally lack opportunities to do extracurricular activities, such as dance or music, because of socioeconomic barriers at home. With this grant, the staff is seeking to bring some of these opportunities to the students during the school day. Not only will students get a chance to experience dance, but it will give them opportunities to learn valuable skills in a completely new way (through dance). The classes with Cohesion will also help students learn how to express themselves through movement, work on fine and gross motor skills, and introduce them to the vocabulary set that is unique to dance.

Justification, Project Need: Our students have more weight on them at school, and at home, than in past generations. This strain manifests in how anxious and emotional our students have become. They have so many feelings roiling around in them, and most of the time, they don’t have a means to express themselves effectively. The staff is seeking to help bridge this gap by partnering with Cohesion Dance, who will provide monthly workshops that focus on things like emotional regulation, collaboration, movement with school subjects, and body calming activities.
In addition to the social-emotional aspect, students will also get a chance to experience the world of dance in a controlled, safe environment. Exposure to dance is something very few of the students are able to experience. By participating in the residency, students will have an opportunity to learn how to express their emotions through an art form, which can not only help them learn to regulate their emotions, but it could lead to better mental health. Physical coordination is also an important piece of dance, and it will be beneficial for students to get up and be active in different ways than they are at recess or in P.E. For a look into the brain/body connection, here is a link to a Ted Talk on the subject: https://youtu.be/41gtxgDfY4s?si=SZMUoy5EJ-vUMVPl

Purpose of Project: The purpose of this project is not only to expose students to the art of dance, but to show them how dance can be used in their everyday lives. We hope to show students that they can use movement to regulate their emotions and help themselves work through big feelings. The monthly workshops will also be beneficial for students to learn how to express themselves creatively as well as guiding them on how to work well with others. We are seeing more and more students who are completely dysregulated and have no tools to help re-regulate their emotions. We also see a need to engage students in creative ways while delivering the various subjects. Another facet of this project is to give students (and teachers) new ways to learn curricular material: through movement. This will benefit all students, but especially those kinesthetic learners who need to move for information to stick in their brains. Dance is also unique in that it can be a group activity, where students learn to work collaboratively, or it can be a solo endeavor, where a student can just be creative and expressive in his or her own way.

Project Description, Design: The school and parent council will contract with Cohesion Dance to provide monthly workshops with the instructors from Cohesion. Students in grades kindergarten through fifth will participate in the Mindful Movement option (which encompasses breathing exercises, body calming activities, and support for social-emotional health) or the Curriculum Integration workshop (which melds movement with subject matter). Some classes may get a mix of both workshops, depending on the needs of the students.

Calendar: Spring 2025 (February-May)

Parties involved: Elementary school students; Cohesion Dance

Budget: Please see table below

Availability of Funding: The school’s parent teacher council (PTC) is generously sponsoring a residency with the Holter this spring and would be unable to fund this residency in addition to the Holter one. The PTC agreed that both residencies would be beneficial to students, so we decided to pursue a grant to help fund the second residency.

Relevance, Creativity and Innovation: There is a big district push on improving the mental health of our students and this grant addresses that need (breathing techniques, calming techniques, etc.). We are also seeing that kids need new creative outlets to express themselves. Kids are also needing different ways to learn the basics of the everyday curriculum in class; what better way to learn something than to get up and physically do it! An added bonus of learning curriculum through dance is that most of our students do not have the opportunity to experience a dance class. Now they will get a two-for-one experience! Students will have a chance to experience some creative freedom within a safe structure while working on their collaboration skills.

Extension of student learning: The basics of the Curriculum Integration workshop could be used as a strategy to help kids in various subject areas in the general education setting. The techniques learned in the Mindful Movement workshop will help students learn how to regulate their emotions, which is a skill they can use their entire lives.
Evaluation, Dissemination and Future plans: The success of the project will be determined by a couple of factors: if students come away with new techniques to express themselves and regulate emotions; if they can express themselves in a creative way; and if they had fun. Because we all know, if kids have fun, they’re going to remember it for a very, very long time.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Cohesion Dance Residency Cohesion Dance $2,000.00 1 $0.00 $2,000.00

Total Budget: $2,000.00

Helena School District Indian Education Central Library Resource Center

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $5,000.00
  • Number of Students Served: 8000
  • Number of Schools Served: 16
  • Grade Levels to be Served: K-12

Project Summary

The Helena School District Indian Education Program seeks funding to establish a Central Library dedicated to Indian Education resources. This project aims to support educators in integrating Indian Education for All into their classrooms, fostering creative teaching strategies, and extending student learning beyond traditional textbooks. By creating a centralized location for educational materials, this library will strengthen connections between teachers, students, parents, and the broader community, providing resources that would otherwise be unavailable due to budget constraints.
Indian Education for All is a critical initiative in our district, aimed at enriching students’ understanding of Native American cultures, histories, and contributions. However, the effective implementation of this curriculum often faces challenges due to limited resources and a lack of centralized access to quality materials. The proposed Central Library will address these needs by providing a curated collection of Indian Education materials for use in classrooms.

Project Narrative

• 1 – Introduction
• 1.1 – Summary: The Helena School District Indian Education Program seeks funding to establish a Central Library dedicated to Indian Education resources. This project aims to support educators in integrating Indian Education for All into their classrooms, fostering creative teaching strategies, and extending student learning beyond traditional textbooks. By creating a centralized location for educational materials, this library will strengthen connections between teachers, students, parents, and the broader community, providing resources that would otherwise be unavailable due to budget constraints.
________________________________________
• 2 – Justification (30 points)
• 2.1 – Project Need: Indian Education for All is a critical initiative in our district, aimed at enriching students’ understanding of Native American cultures, histories, and contributions. However, the effective implementation of this curriculum often faces challenges due to limited resources and a lack of centralized access to quality materials.
• 2.1.1 – Teachers are in need of comprehensive, accessible resources to enhance their teaching strategies and engage students in meaningful projects. The proposed Central Library will address these needs by providing a curated collection of Indian Education materials for use in classrooms.
________________________________________
• 3 – Project Description – Support and Encourage Creative Teaching
• 3.1.1: Provide a diverse collection of Indian Education resources, including books, multimedia, and lesson plans, to inspire innovative teaching strategies.
• 3.1.2 – timeline:
Phase 1: Planning and Development (Months 1-3)
• Form a project team consisting of educators, community representatives, and library specialists.
• Identify and catalog essential resources needed for the library.
• Develop a detailed plan for the library’s physical space and digital infrastructure.
Phase 2: Resource Acquisition and Library Setup (Months 4-6)
• Procure books, multimedia materials, and educational tools from reputable sources.
• Design and furnish the library space, ensuring it is accessible and inviting for educators.
• Implement a digital catalog system for easy resource checkout and tracking.
Phase 3: Training and Community Engagement (Months 7-9)
• Conduct training sessions for district employees on how to utilize the library resources effectively starting summer of 2025.
• Organize community events to introduce the library and its resources to parents and local organizations.
Phase 4: Evaluation and Sustainability (Months 10-12)
• Monitor the usage of library resources and gather feedback from users to assess the impact on teaching and learning.
• Develop a sustainability plan, including potential funding sources and ongoing community partnerships.
• 3.1.3 – Integration into curriculum:
• Ensure the library offers a range of materials that support hands-on projects, interactive learning, and real-world applications related to Indian Education.
• Create partnerships with local Native American communities and experts to develop supplemental materials and enrichment activities.
• Facilitate collaborative projects between teachers by providing shared resources and encouraging cross-departmental initiatives.
• Engage parents and community members through events and exhibitions showcasing student projects and the resources available in the library.
• 3.1.4 – Personnel roles in grant:
• We are lucky in the Helena School District to have such a hard working and enthusiastic Indian Education Program staff. Our IEFA director and tutor coordinator is a strong advocate for Indian Education for All, and currently does a great job working with all buildings and levels throughout the district in supporting teachers integrating Native American culture and heritage into their lessons. The Central Library will give that staff member more tools to work with staff and serve all students throughout the district. Our Indian Ed. tutors’ roles have also been changing over the last few years especially: these staff members are not only working with our identified Native students, they are also working with non-native students and supporting all students and staff having the resources and support to integrate Native culture and heritage into their curriculum. Our administrative supports are always trying to find ways to support teacher access to quality materials and working with district-level directors to facilitate the true implementation of Indian Ed. for All throughout the district at all levels. We have the staff members to support the development and implementation of the proposed Helena School District Indian Education Central Resource Library.

________________________________________
• 3.2 – Budget (items will be purchased from a variety of sources once funding is approved)
Item Cost
Library Materials (Books, Multimedia, Educational Tools) $5,000
Library Furniture and Setup $2,000
Digital Catalog System $3,000
Professional Development Workshops $1,000
Community Engagement Events $1,000
Contingency and Miscellaneous $1,000
Total $13,000
________________________________________
• 3.3 – Availability of other funding
• 3.3.1 – Other funding resources include collaborating with the Helena Indian Alliance, continuing to monitor future grants (federal, state, and local), and working with central office and buildings throughout the school district to support the creation and growth of a central library)

• 5.1 – Evaluation
• 5.1.1 – The success of the Central Library will be evaluated through:
• Usage Metrics: Tracking the number of materials checked out and the frequency of library use by district employees.
• Feedback Surveys: Collecting input from educators and community members to gauge the effectiveness and impact of the resources.
• Student Outcomes: Assessing improvements in student engagement and learning related to Indian Education topics through classroom observations and academic performance.
________________________________________
• 5.2 – Dissemination
• 5.2.1 – Indian Education Central Resource Library will be shared through a variety of strategies: informational release on the project scope and sequence to all Helena School District students, staff, and community; Indian Ed. Staff visiting buildings and attending staff meetings; professional development opportunities facilitated by Amanda Walking Child; information included in Indian Ed. program, district-wide, and building-level newsletters; grand opening with staff and admin. from all buildings invited.
• 5.3 – Future Plans / sustainability:
• 5.3.1 – To ensure the library’s long-term success, we will:
• Develop a volunteer program involving local community members to assist with library operations.
• Explore additional funding opportunities through grants, donations, and partnerships with local organizations.
• Foster ongoing relationships with Native American communities to continually update and enrich the library’s resources.

Conclusion:
The Helena School District Indian Education Program’s Central Library Project represents a pivotal step towards enriching our educational environment and supporting educators in delivering innovative, culturally relevant instruction while bolstering our commitment to Indian Education for All legislation. By creating a centralized repository of Indian Education resources, we will empower teachers to inspire and engage students, strengthen community connections, and enhance learning opportunities. We currently have a space at Helena High School where the Central Resource Library can and will be housed initially. We respectfully request funding to make this vision a reality and contribute to a more inclusive and dynamic educational experience for our students.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
$0.00

Total Budget: $0.00

The Great Outdoors Classroom Edition

  • Type of Grant: Group (Funded up to $5,000)
  • Funds Requested: $2,500.00
  • Number of Students Served: 275
  • Number of Schools Served: 2
  • Grade Levels to be Served: k-5

Project Summary

Grant funding is needed to purchase Trex materials and building supplies for high school industrial arts students to construct convertible bench to picnic tables. These convertible units will be able to seat over 30 elementary students. The tables will provide years of safe, reliable learning space to be used in an outdoor learning habitat.

Project Narrative

1 – Introduction Our school has a beautiful outdoor space that is fenced in, has walk way paths, garden beds, trees, and water features. This space is used daily by a few of our classrooms that take care of maintaining the habitat space. It is a favored meeting location as well as a great place to read a book. Currently the space has a few broken down benches that may actually harm someone with splinters. We have developed an opportunity with our partnering neighborhood high school to supply this space with safe, low maintenance, multi-functional seating. It feels extra special to invite alumni, both staff and students, to participate in a multi-school collaboration effort to transform an outdoor space into an ideal learning area, improving upon a space many of them once attended.
1.1 – Funding is needed for multi-school collaboration, utilizing industrial arts students to build convertible picnic tables to be placed in an outdoor learning space at an elementary school. Currently, the outdoor learning environment is utilized by only a few classrooms for hands on outdoor activities. With safe and reliable equipment for students to learn on, all classes can be scheduled to have regular learning take place in the outdoor habitat. By using durable, minimal maintenance building materials, the equipment will be able to be utilized for many years.

2.1 – Project Need

2.1.1 – The elementary school has access to a fenced outdoor space that is suitable for an alternative learning space. The need is for students to have safe equipment to sit on with their learning tools.

2.2 – Purpose of Project

2.2.1 – With the ability to seat an entire class at one time, regular schedules can be made to incorporate outdoor learning space for the entire student body. Research has shown that outdoor learning can have measurable benefits on mental health and academic performance. Students are calmer and better able to focus when learning in outdoor spaces all while educators report better behavior and social interactions with fewer disciplinary issues.
2.2.2 – Our school’s mission is to provide a safe, positive, and engaging learning environment so that ALL students can become responsible and productive members of their community. We have a goal of being able to bring all our students to have regular learning activities outside of a traditional classroom. By achieving this, we continue to connect them to the natural world which is one of our most valuable communities. If we can accomplish this, while increasing focus and reducing undesirable behaviors, the school is improving student outcomes.

3 – Project Description (35 points)

3.1 – Design

3.1.1 – Industrial arts students will use the spring semester to access the design plans, purchase materials and complete the construction of 4 convertible tables. At the completion of the construction, the tables will be moved to the outdoor learning space onto the elementary campus.

3.1.2 – If funding is awarded, industrial tech class has scheduled to begin construction on this project in early March with construction concluding by the end of March. Tables will be moved to the elementary school upon construction completion.

3.1.3 -Upon placement of the new outdoor furniture, a school wide schedule will be instituted to include all classrooms the opportunity to have regular scheduled class outdoors.

3.1.4 -School administration has seen the direct calming effect of using the outdoor space to redirect unwanted behaviors and re-engage students. To be able to create a learning environment where all students can benefit is a dream that is close to being realized. Leadership within the school is looking for ways to include all staff and classrooms to participate in this alternative educational space.

3.2 Budget

$2472.76
Attached file

List itemized project budget, sources of supplies and cost, including taxes and shipping.

3.2.2 – In-kind donations are not applicable for this project. I

3.3 – Availability of other funding

3.3.1 – Regular school funding would not have budget for outdoor furniture. The itemized budget for this request was compiled in the fall of 2024. If there is a current cost difference in materials, it is possible the parent teacher council would award a small amount, pending budget availability.
4 – Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals (30 points)

4.1 – Creativity and innovation

4.1.1 – The usual classroom approach at our school takes place indoors. We do have a quiet neighborhood and students engage in community improvement by doing trash clean up, but at this time, our student body does not have a productive outdoor learning space. The school is very fortunate to have a fenced in area that would allow for this to be a part of regularly scheduled class sessions, provided we have safe furniture for students to engage in learning on.

4.2 – School administration is eagerly anticipating being able to get our student body engaged in the natural environment while improving focus and desirable behaviors. By bringing more classes into the outdoor learning space habitat, more students will feel connected to our gardens, and have access to real world, hands on learning.

5 – Evaluation, Dissemination and Future Plans (5 points)

5.1 – Evaluation

5.1.1 – Indicate how the success of the project will be measured, including strategies and tools you will use to assess student progress.

We will monitor how often students and classrooms use the habitat and participate in activities in the area. Classroom usage can be monitored through a sign-up sheet.

Additionally, we can gather student and staff feedback on how the outdoor space is supporting or enhancing teaching and learning.

5.2 – Dissemination

5.2.1 – How will you share the information from your project with your colleagues, other schools, or district-wide or the community?

Sharing the information about the success of this project can be accomplished through our social media account and the principal’s weekly newsletters. We can also utilize the district social media account.

5.3 – Future Plans

5.3.1 – What are your future plans for continuation, replication or expansion of this project, if any?

At this time, there are no plans for replication or expansion of this project.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
1X6 COMPOSITE DECKING Home Depot $45.99 35 $80.00 $1,689.65
2X6X8 PRESSURE TREATED LUMBER Power Townsend $11.19 12 $0.00 $134.28
2X4X8 PRESSURE TREATED LUMBER Power Townsend $7.59 22 $0.00 $166.98
2.5 EXT. POCKET SCREWS Power Townsend $34.99 3 $0.00 $104.97
2.5″ EXTERIOR SCREWS Power Townsend $137.59 1 $0.00 $137.59
DECK SCREWS Power Townsend $43.99 2 $0.00 $87.98
3″ DOOR HINGES Power Townsend $10.59 5 $0.00 $52.95
JOIST TAPE Power Townsend $25.99 2 $0.00 $51.98
Sealer Power Townsend $22.99 2 $0.00 $45.98

Total Budget: $2,472.36

Anyone Can Cook

  • Type of Grant: Individual (Funded up to $1,250)
  • Funds Requested: $1,250.00
  • Number of Students Served: 8
  • Number of Schools Served: 1
  • Grade Levels to be Served: 10-12

Project Summary

A journey to Montana’s Culinary Institutes opens many doors for our students. Through higher education in culinary, students perfect their craft, and grow their knowledge. To inspire our Helena students, we will travel to The Flathead Valley Community College’s Culinary Institute of Montana, and The Big Sky Culinary Institute on an overnight, two-day trip.

Project Narrative

1 – Introduction
1.1
The stress of your school career ending is looming near. Your fears of what comes next start to set in. No one in your family had ever pursued higher education. Now it’s your turn to follow the same path or form your own. As humans, we tend to stick to what we know. Something new and unknown can be scary and make us feel anxious. Through the Great Ideas Grant, we will provide advanced opportunities available to students in their own state. Opportunities that can provide the backbone to a great start in a career. Especially a career they can take to any town, city, country. With the funds awarded, we will take a field trip to explore The Flathead Valley Community College’s Culinary Institute of Montana in Kalispell, and to The Big Sky Culinary Institute in Missoula. The funds will be used to support our travel and lodging costs.

2 – Justification (30 points)
• 2.1 – Project Need
2.1.1
Working in a Title I School, I work with many students who are less fortunate than others. Many of the students in my class work to support their families and supplement their income. As students receive that first taste of money, they can lose sight of their education. They begin to focus on the money they can make now, instead of what they can do to be financially stable/responsible later.
• 2.2 – Purpose of Project
2.2.1
As an educator, I work to bridge the academic gap and show my students the countless opportunities available to them. By visiting culinary institutes available in Montana, I am opening a window and helping students set goals to work towards. Goals that would keep them in school, into a dual credit culinary course, and on to a two-year program in higher education.
2.2.2
This project is part our curriculum by meeting three areas of study in our National Standards for Family and Consumer Sciences Education:
o Food Production and Services
8.1 Analyze career paths within the food production and food services industries
– 8.1.3 Summarize education and training requirements and opportunities for career paths in food production and services
o Food Sciences, Dietetics and Nutrition
9.1 Analyze career paths within food science, food technology, dietetics, and nutrition industries
– 9.1.3 Summarize education and training requirements and opportunities for career paths in food science, food technology, dietetics, and nutrition.
o Hospitality, Tourism, and Recreation
10.1 Analyze career paths within the hospitality, tourism and recreation industries
– 10.1.3 Summarize education and training requirements and opportunities for career paths in hospitality, tourism, and recreation careers.
The project far exceeds our curriculum with all three standards requiring students to summarize education and training requirements and opportunities for career paths in food production and hospitality services. We will research our education and training requirements by going to the institute and seeing how they operate. We will visit with the student chefs and the head chefs to discuss the courses offered and how they meet the needs of the industry.
A major goal of this project is to keep students engaged, and motivated to come and complete school. The same goals as my school: Be Responsible and Be a Graduate. These goals can be achieved by sparking an interest in what could be the next step in our student’s future. Through this project, students will be setting personal goals to achieve their next step after high school. By setting goals, students will have something to motivate them, and spark a drive within them to achieve those goals. In other words, they will have ambition. Visiting the Big Sky Culinary Institute in Missoula is also significant to our visit, as it is the school students receive dual credit through in Culinary III. Having college credit seems unattainable for many of my students. Through this college and our program, students can leave high school with a college credit and a SERV Safe Managers Certificate. It’s just a matter of taking that next step in their academics. In the end it all comes back to conquering those fears of the great unknown; hopefully, we can jumpstart our students on the right track by doing just that.
3 – Project Description (35 points)
• 3.1 – Design
3.1.1 – 3.1.2
This Spring, eight Culinary II students will embark on a journey to Montana’s culinary institutes. Students will ride a bus from Helena to Kalispell, where they will meet with Head Chef Manda Hudak at the Flathead Valley Community College’s Culinary Institute of Montana. We will tour their facilities and learn about the courses offered, application process, and overall benefits of going to their institute. We will meet with other chef students as they provide a hands-on experience in the training kitchen. That evening, we will go to the Indian restaurant, Himalayan Kitchen. There, we will meet with the owners about their culinary journey, and enjoy an Indian inspired meal family style. After dinner, we will stay the night to catch some much-needed beauty rest before our next college visit. The next morning, we will travel to Missoula, where we will Meet with Chef Bert at the Big Sky Culinary Institute. There, we will observe and enjoy lunch at the Blackfoot Café served by University of Montana culinary students. At the Café, one college student is the head chef. They design the menu and implement their vision by having the other student chefs manage a specific component/station. It’s a fun environment, with an open kitchen where our students will get to observe the student chefs at work. After the meal, we will meet with Chef Bert to tour their facilities and learn about the courses offered, application process, and overall benefits of going to their institute. We will then leave for Helena, taking with us opportunities many never thought were possible.
3.1.3
This project integrates well into our curriculum. From our tours at each of the institutes, each student is to observe at least one thing they want to bring back and implement in our classroom. After we have observed these two institutes, student will research the application process, tuition costs, and scholarships available for both an out-of-state program and one of the in-state institutes of their choice. Students will then write a goal/plan for what the next few years should look like to pursue a culinary career.
3.1.4
This journey to Montana’s Culinary Institutes will be organized by the culinary teacher. With her guidance, and the fundraising efforts by our Culinary Catering Club, we hope to make this vision a reality.
• 3.2 – Budget
3.2.1 – 3.2.2
Our budget for this project is weighed heavily on transportation and lodging. The First Student Transportation service charges $51 per hour. Traveling to Kalispell, Missoula and back, plus stops at the colleges, and for meals; it could be close to 10 hours. Staying the night in Kalispell, allows us to visit both schools during their lunch hours, but costs around $120 per room. We need a total of 5 rooms: two rooms for the boys, one for the girls, one for the teacher, and one for the bus driver. To experience and observe the Big Sky Culinary Institute students at work, we are requesting help with one lunch at the Blackfoot Café. A lunch that could average $15 per student.
• 3.3 – Availability of other funding
3.3.1
School budget is so tight, and I already use every bit of my funds to provide hands-on learning experiences with all my culinary classes. This is especially difficult with the ever-rising cost of groceries. To help supplement any added costs, my students have been fundraising this past semester. We’ve catered multiple events, even one at the Capitol Rotunda.
4 – Relevance to Great Ideas Grants Program Goals (30 points)
• 4.1 – Creativity and innovation
4.1.1
This project takes students out of the classroom and shows them what they can do with two more years of education. This project opens their eyes to an option that’s available and achievable. It helps to breakdown those fears of the unknown, and open a path towards their future. It is a project beyond anything the classroom can provide. Why sit behind a computer and research a college, when you can go out an experience it first-hand? With touring the cooking facilities, to visiting with the student and head chef, this opportunity in unparallel to anything I can provide in my classroom. Giving our youth a peek into what could be their future is priceless.
• 4.2 – Extension of student learning
We wont stop with these two colleges. Within the next year, we will take a day trip to visit and tour The Culinary Institute at Gallatin College in Bozeman. This will give our students the opportunity to have seen all three culinary institutes in Montana. A chance for our students to see what Montana has to offer beyond the desk.
5 – Evaluation, Dissemination and Future Plans (5 points)
• 5.1 – Evaluation
5.1.1
Success of this project will be measured, based on the number of students who sign up for the Dual Credit Culinary III course, and on the number who go on to a culinary institute after high school. This will be evaluated in a two-year span, as three students are currently sophomores.
• 5.2 – Dissemination
5.2.1
We will document our journey through our Instagram page. We will also share our journey with our principal, so he may place it in the weekly newsletter emailed home.
• 5.3 – Future Plans
5.3.1
I plan to take this trip every two to three years with my advanced culinary classes. I also plan to fundraise and take a trip out of state to other culinary institutes. We would especially love to travel to a place where we can explore the foods and cultures of others. I see this current college tour as the start to something amazing.

Budget Item Vendor Unit Cost Quantity Shipping Cost Total
Bus Transportation First Student $51.00 10 $510.00
Lodging Best Western $120.00 5 $600.00
Lunch Blackfoot Café (UM) $15.00 10 $150.00

Total Budget: $1,260.00