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MARCH 2026 | Education eNewsletter, Idaho Public Television

READY, SET, READ!

Idaho Public Television's Education Specialists are getting ready to deliver 2,000 Kindergarten Readiness Backpacks throughout the state for summer use, as families register their children for the 2026-2027 Kindergarten year.

Title I schools that signed up were put into a lottery wheel. Those schools that were chosen will be notified after March 3rd.

We hope to fund more kits next year!

(See below if you'd like to donate.)

Every Kindergarten Readiness kit include:

• Natasha Wing's popular The Night Before Kindergarten book
• a backpack
• children’s blunt-end scissors for safely practicing cutting paper
• write-and-wipe sheets and markers for practicing numbers, letters, and shapes
• crayons
• alphabet coloring book
• pencil
• Play-Doh for practicing dexterity
• Let's Get Ready for School activity cards
• numbers flashcards
• letters flashcards
• grocery-store math bingo
• Idaho State Board of Education School Readiness Guidelines to help parents ensure children learn the important skills needed to start kindergarten.

FOR EDUCATORS

Grades K-12

Idaho kids in grades K-12 are HIGHLY encouraged to submit 30-90 second pitches to the national MOTT Million Dollar Challenge.

Students can submit individually or in teams. NEW: Educators may submit individually for a team or in bulk for an entire classroom!

Winners will be picked from Idaho and will receive cash prizes. From there, winners can compete nationally and have an opportunity to travel to Flint, Michigan in June 2026.

We’re sharing this opportunity with you (Idaho afterschool programs and educators) to help get your students and classrooms to submit. It is VERY simple, and Idaho students will have a high shot!

We encourage programs to incorporate the pitch into an after-school activity and share it with students and parents. The deadline has been extended to March 8th.

Click on the image below.

Pre-K to Grade 2

Count on June Bug! is a new math comedy adventure for children ages 3-5. In each 3-minute episode, take a peek down in the grass and meet June, a spunky little June beetle who is curious about everything in her gigantic world. Every day June and her friends explore different areas of the great outdoors (wow!), encounter sticky situations (yikes!), and make new mathematical discoveries that help save the day (aha!). Come along with June Bug as she measures with CeCe Centipede, counts with Antwon the Ant, and learns patterns with the bee twins, Zig & Zag! Check out the fun activities.

Grades 3-12

You can celebrate Women's History Month by exploring the inspiring journey of women's suffrage with PBS LearningMedia. This collection contains video clips, lesson plans, and primary sources that highlight key figures, events, and regional movements of the decades-long fight to win the right to vote for women in the United States.

NEW: Second Nature Student Reporting

Check out the new student-produced series Second Nature and learn how your students can get involved with student reporting here in Idaho.

Check out our Event Schedule for info on free events around Idaho where you'll find the experienced educators on our IdahoPTV Education team.

Thank you to our local PBS KIDS funders!

Hansberger 
Foundation