• Gets parents involved in the teaching of character traits at home at the same time the character traits are being taught at school and in the community
• Has the one-and-only parent involvement measuring system that tracks and measures positive parent-child interactions at home
• Enables teachers, through its monthly parent feedback process, to link students’ life experiences to classroom lessons

All the “I Care” Curriculum Components were developed from the most recent research on parent involvement, character development, and community involvement. “I Care” focuses on the research confirming that parent involvement:

• At home in their children’s education improves student achievement.
• Benefits are not limited to early childhood or the elementary level; there are continuing positive effects through high school.
• Most effective when it is comprehensive, supportive, long-lasting, and well-planned.

“I Care” defines parent involvement as the number of positive interactions occurring between the parents, or a caring adult, and the child.

• A recent independents research study found that students participating in “I Care” for 2 years or more had higher test scores than the control group.
• Implementation school principals report increases in test scores and decreases in office referrals.
• Some of the most powerful “I Care” Success Stories and anecdotal observations have come from parents, teachers, & community stakeholders.
• Several “I Care” Schools have been recognized at the state level in Louisiana, Georgia, and California for higher student achievement after implementing “I Care.”

The current “I Care” Character-Building Parenting Activities and “I Care” Teacher Lesson Plans are aligned with subject area state standards. We are moving forward now with the alignment of the “I Care” Character-Building Parenting Activities and “I Care” Teacher Lesson Plans with the new Common Core State Standards. The updates will be made available to customers using the Online “I Care” Curricula as soon as they are made.

The “I Care” Parental Involvement Character Curriculum is suited for all demographical groups; however, it has been used mostly in Title I schools because they have funds allocated to purchase parent involvement character education materials.

And, according to the research, children from low-income and culturally and racially diverse families have the most to gain when schools involve parents.

“I Care” has been implemented in schools in 37 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico over the last 17 years. A list of specific schools and districts can be found here.

• Character-Building Parenting Activities
• Teacher Lesson Plans
• Mastery of Character Trait Activities
• Character Bulletin Board Messages
• Independent Student Study Activities (Middle & High School Students Only)
• Training Presentations for Parents, Teachers, Community Partners, & Students
• Implementation Helpers & Certificates

This monthly “I Care” Implementation Process should take a teacher, on average, less than one hour each month. This is not additional time and work. It is highly recommended that the teaching of character be scheduled and integrated into the core curriculum of the school and district.

Teachers share with parents how to access the character-building parenting activities online, teach the character trait of the month, and encourage parents to return the parent Feedback form online via the“I Care” Measuring System each month.

“I Care” Curricula are implemented successfully in grades Pre-K through 12th. There is also an “I Care” Toddler Curriculum for 2- to 4-year-olds.

Parent support resources provide leadership for the implementation of “I Care,” which includes training school administrators, teachers, staff, and parents; supporting teachers in the teaching of the monthly character traits; following up with parents who do not return Feedback Forms; mentoring students; posting monthly data; leading results celebrations; and making parent involvement and character education important and fun!

• Customized Onsite Training
• Frequent Email Implementation Updates
• Measuring System Technical Assistance
• Newsletters & parent Involvement Network
• Delightful Customer Service

The Online “I Care” Parental Involvement Character Curriculum is accessible online for grades Pre-K through 12th. The annual Site License Fee is priced per student each year, based on the total number of students. And for Year 1, the fee includes the online curriculum materials and the online “I Care” Parent Involvement Measuring System. For Year 2 and beyond, the annual fee is for continued access to the measuring system and curriculum files, including continuous updates.

The grade-level monthly curriculum components: Character-Building Parenting Activities Teacher Lesson Plans Mastery of Character Trait Activities Character Bulletin Board Messages Independent Student Study Activities (Middle & High School Students Only) Training Presentations for Parents, Teachers, Community Partner, & Students Implementation Helpers & Certificates		Site Licenses & Online CurriculumFees Level Number of Students/ Licenses Start-Up Fee (1st Year) per Student/ License Annual Fee (After 1st Year) Price per Student/ License 1 25-749 $5.95 $2.00 2 750-1499 $4.95 $1.75 3 1500-2499 $4.95 $1.50 4 2500-4999 $3.95 $1.25 5 5000 or more $3.95 $1.00
		On-Site Implementation Training “I Care” On-Site Implementation Training is customized to meet needs and time limitations of customers. $1,500/Day plus Travel & Lodging
School Character Poster Set—$59.95 Per Set (Elementary, Middle, or High) 13 laminated posters (18" x 24")

“I Care” can be implemented at any time. However, most schools implement at the beginning of the school term or at the beginning of the calendar year.

Online “I Care” Curricula are made available online. The curriculum components are printable. The advantages are:

• Implementation materials are more convenient & accessible.
• Allows for continuous improvement updates.
• Makes curricula more affordable & eliminates shipping & handling costs for curriculum materials.

“I Care” has the one-and-only parent involvement measuring system that tracks and measures the impact of the positive activities parents are doing with their children at home. You will be able to correlate the “I Care” Parent Involvement Measures to student achievement, both academically and behaviorally.

When parents submit the parent feedback form online, the data goes to the student record . However, in many schools, manual data is entered by parent support resources or some other designated resource.

The short answer is: Make it important to students and parents. Ensure that students and parents are trained on the curriculum and share the expectation that character education and parent involvrment are core to the curriculum of the school. An additional list of tactics to get Feedback Forms returned is available in the I Care” School Implementation Manual.

An opt-out process and form have been developed for parents who do not desire to participate. However, the process is designed to help parents clearly understand what “I Care” is all about and to insure they make an informed decision.

Parents are given the responsibility to get organizations that their children are associated with outside of school involved in the teaching of character traits at the same time they are being taught at school. Parent involvement resources are responsible for training and on-boarding community partners.