Additional Program Information

Developer and contact

Heartwood Institute, 425 North Craig Street, Suite 302, Pittsburgh, PA 15213. Web: www.heartwoodethics.org. Email: hrtwood@heartwoodethics.org. Telephone: 800-432-7810.

Scope of use

An Ethics Curriculum for Children, created in the early 1990s, has been used in more than 1,500 schools in 40 states. Information is not available about the characteristics of students, schools, or districts using the curriculum. An Ethics Curriculum for Children may have changed since the study was conducted. The WWC recommends asking the developer for information about the most current version of this curriculum and taking into account that student demographics and school context may affect outcomes.

Teaching

Each of the six elementary curriculum kits includes 14 lessons, with two lessons for each of the seven core attributes. Each lesson includes reading an illustrative story aloud, class discussion, reflective journaling, and small-group or individual activities. The developers suggest creating a comfortable story corner for children in the classroom. They estimate that two to four weeks are needed for children to assimilate each attribute. Teachers are encouraged to extend the lessons from the stories to other subject matter. The curriculum manual offers ideas for planning lessons and integrating character education-based activities across academic areas. Teachers can engage parents and families through family orientation meetings or by sending a letter home that explains the program.

Curriculum kits provide the materials to implement the curriculum. A Spanish kit with Spanish language materials is available for use in kindergarten through grade three. Supplemental materials—such as posters, maps, buttons, and music CDs—can be obtained through the Heartwood Institute's website at www.heartwoodethics.org. The Institute offers teaching manuals, teaching videos, a do-it-yourself training module that includes videos, and both a half-day and a full-day on-site professional development workshop led by a Heartwood staff trainer. A help desk, staffed by teachers with experience implementing the curriculum in the classroom, is available three days a week.

Cost

Curriculum kits are sold in sets that cover two grades per set (PreK/K, K/1, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, 4/5, and 5/6) and cost $438 plus a 9% shipping and handling charge. Kits for grades 4–6 cost $448 plus shipping and handling. The Spanish kit (grades K–3) costs $495. Various training workshops are available, including half-day and full-day workshops ranging from $750 to $2,000. Do-It-Yourself Training for Teachers ($29.95) provides a scripted training program with instructions. The book A Lesson in Character, designed as a primer for teaching An Ethics Curriculum for Children, is available for $9.95 per grade.

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