Tuesday Evening, 6:00-8:00pm

No Small Matter: Launch of an Early Childhood Campaign in Montana

Join community members and experts in the field of early childhood for the launch of a community wide campaign promoting Early Childhood.

This event will feature a viewing of No Small Matter, the first feature documentary built from stories of real children, families, and teachers, illustrating the impact of high-quality early childhood experiences.

We meet parents who are struggling to do their best for their kids, incredible teachers who model what early childhood classrooms should and could be like, and children learning and developing in real time. The film is also firmly grounded in science, opening up the “black box” of what’s happening inside children’s brains with exciting, stimulating animation and the voices of compelling scientists, physicians, and ECE experts. Drawing on the work of economists such as James Heckman, and the latest research in brain imaging and child development, it breaks down complicated scientific details into layman’s terms, demystifying prevailing ideas that hinder our thinking about children’s behavior, and paving the way for us all to see what children truly need to thrive. The viewing will be followed with a panel conversation with experts in the field of early childhood to discuss next steps to support young children.

Wednesday Evening, 5:30-7:30pm

Building Hope and Resilience in Violence Prevention: Partnering with the Arts

Join Alyssa Roggow and members of the acclaimed Cascade Quartet and Chinook Winds for an evening of music, socializing and engagement in a Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) experience. Violist Alyssa Roggow uses visual art, music, literature, conversation and reflection to explore how we see, hear and understand our own experiences and feelings. This will be a beautiful experience for providers, parents, adolescents and community members. 

Alyssa Roggow is a classical musician, writer, and multifaceted educator. As a certified Master Naturalist and a trained VTS facilitator, she can often be found incorporating her passions for the arts and the outdoors into interdisciplinary workshops for learners of all ages in venues such as Glacier National Park, Sculpture in the Wild, and the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art. Her writing has been published in the Montana Naturalist magazine, on Montana Public Radio, and as the text of a song cycle by composer Grant Harville. Alyssa is a violist and avid chamber musician, and performs throughout the U.S. Prior to setting out on her own career path, she earned a Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music and was principal violist of the Cascade String Quartet and Great Falls Symphony for five years.  

This event will host a social time with hors d’oeuvres from 5:30-6:00 and music performed by members of the Cascade Quartet and Chinook Winds, followed by the VTS experience from 6:00-7:00pm.