Introduction to Project Heart, Head, Hands (H3)

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Introduction to Project Heart, Head, Hands (H3)
Veray Wickham H3 Hub Coordinator San Joaquin
County Office of Education 209-468-9021 vwickham_at_s
jcoe.net
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Project Heart, Head, Hands
Shaping Capable, Caring, Socially Responsible
Youth through Character Education and
Service-Learning

• A federally funded character education project
  sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education,
  Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.
• Between 2003 and 2006 we have served 31 schools,
  over 1,000 teachers and 15,000 students in three
  districts in the East Bay.
• Between 2006-10, H3 will work with 24 new sites
  in the Bay Area and Central Valley.

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Program Impact

• H3 provides staff with common language for
  working with students to increase self-management
  skills.
• H3 teachers have more positive perceptions of
  school professional climate than teachers at
  control sites.
• H3 schools show decreased disciplinary action and
  increased attendance.
• Academic achievement (reading comprehension,
  fluency) of H3 students improves.

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More Program Impact

• H3 positively impacts students development of
  character assets.
• H3 students demonstrate positive social-emotional
  growth and improved behavior. Examples include
• Increased empathy, tolerance, understanding.
• Decreased playground fighting and increased
  respectful behavior.
• Improved active listening and ability to take the
  other persons point of view.
• Increased sharing and team work.
• Greater willingness to tell the truth and accept
  responsibility for their actions.

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Project Heart, Head, Hands Responding to the
Realities of Time and Testing

• H3 curriculum is integrated with Open Court and
  Houghton Mifflin language arts materials at each
  grade level.
• H3 reinforces reading comprehension and higher
  order analytic thinking skills.
• H3 allows teachers to address language arts
  content standards while developing character.

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H3 An Integrated Approach

• Fostering development of character traits (e.g.,
  honesty, respect, responsibility)
• Building social-emotional skills (e.g., effective
  communication, conflict resolution)
• Engaging students in service-learning (performing
  acts of service for their communities)

Social-Emotional Skills
Character Traits
Heart Who we are. What we value. Our code of
ethics.
Head What we know. Ideas, thoughts, concepts that
guide us.
Hands What we do. How we act.
Service-Learning
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Focus on Asset Building

• Project Heart, Head, Hands draws on the work of
  the Search Institute and its identification of
  developmental assets that have been shown to
  benefit youth.
• These assets represent a set of mediating factors
  that research has shown to support academic
  learning, as depicted in the model below

Positive Values Social Competencies Positive
Identity Commitment to Learning Support Empowermen
t Boundaries Expectations Constructive Use of
Time
Quality Character Education Service-Learning
Academic Outcomes
Mediating Factors
Adapted from Furco, Future Directions for
Service-Learning Research, 2006
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The Eight Great Traits
H3 is organized around a core set of positive
character traits. These are posted in classrooms,
used in program activities, and become a common
language for teachers and students.
Caring Honesty Responsibility Integrity Respect
for Others Citizenship Planning Decision
Making Problem Solving
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Language Arts Integration

• H3 materials are built into Open Court and
  Houghton Mifflin Reading units at each grade
  level.
• H3 materials incorporate content standards in
  reading, writing, listening, and speaking, as
  teachers use selections to highlight the Eight
  Great Traits.
• H3 homework activities provide opportunities for
  parents and students to communicate about
  positive character, social-emotional skills, and
  service-learning.

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Grade 4, Theme Heroes
Sample Language Arts Materials Houghton
Mifflin, G4, Th. 5

• Theme Overview

Quotations to Use with This Theme Integrity
Rather fail with honor than succeed by fraud.
Sophocles Responsibility You cant escape
the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it
today. Abraham Lincoln
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Selection 1 Happy Birthday, Dr. KingKey Trait
Integrity
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Social-Emotional Skill Lessons

• Five Getting Started Lessons
• Getting acquainted, put-ups, vision, class
  agreements
• 12 additional lessons
• Listening, Perspective-Taking
• Assertion, I-Statements
• Conflict, Win-Win Conflict Resolution
• Cooperation
• Diversity, Appreciation, Prejudice/Bias
• Peacemaking

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Service-Learning Component

• Schools/grade levels identify and complete at
  least one service-learning project.
• Many students and teachers consider this a
  highlight of their experience with the program.
• Our new Service-Learning/Language Arts materials
  identify service-learning activities that are
  aligned with Open Court and Houghton Mifflin
  units (Grades K-6), based on the reading
  selections in the unit and the overarching theme.

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Implementation Model

• Sites elect to participate in the program at the
  whole-school level (K-6).
• Teachers and principals attend a two-day Summer
  Institute to prepare them to use the program.
• H3 staff and consultants conduct monthly
  site-based meetings to support teachers during
  year 1 of implementation.
• H3 staff provide coaching to site support teams
  (3-6 teachers each) during years 2 3 of
  implementation to develop site capacity for
  continued effective program use.
• Sites submit data concerning program usage and
  administer teacher and student pre-post surveys.