Review

Family Goals: The curriculum includes some general guidance for home visitors to engage families in setting goals, primarily through resources in the "Family Development" category. A few "Purposes" are specifically designed to support the family in setting goals for themselves (e.g., "Help families identify their dreams and achieve their goals."). The "Detailed Information Pages" provide language home visitors can use to help families set their goals (e.g., reinforcing the value of breaking big goals into smaller, more manageable steps). The curriculum also provides a few corresponding handouts for families (e.g., "Making My Dreams Come True," "Making Changes for Positive Outcomes," "Making Your Dream Happen: Next Steps"). Additionally, it engages families in setting goals that address specific challenges they might have, such as career development, budget planning, or setting priorities. However, it lacks a clear, collaborative process and strategies for how home visitors engage families to establish goals based on the family's needs.

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: Partners for a Healthy Baby provides follow-up activities for home visitors and families to revisit family goals at specific points in time established by the curriculum. For example, when the baby is 7 months old, the curriculum invites home visitors to "discuss family's progress toward their goals and offer suggestions for overcoming challenges." Other handouts for families, such as "Facing Challenges" and "Action Plan for Success," offer general affirmations on tackling issues that may arise (e.g., "Everyone has some rocks on their path to success ... How can you overcome them?"). However, there is no clear, systematic process for engaging families in ongoing assessment of their progress toward reaching their goals.

Resources and Referrals: The curriculum briefly describes the importance of connecting families to resources they might need in order to make progress toward future goals (e.g., "provide support [for them] to gain access to services that allow them to put their plans into action"). It encourages home visitors to contact the appropriate agency or support person in their program or community in relation to the need (e.g., Part C Early Intervention; infant mental health specialist; Women, Infants and Children (WIC); lactation consultant; program supervisor). However, it includes limited guidance on how to brainstorm resources with or refer families to specific resources in the community, such as a list of common public resources (e.g., libraries, local adult learning institutions), depending on the family-level goals.

Family Goals: The Baby TALK curriculum provides a specific process for setting family-level goals in the following three categories: parent-child interaction; child development; and personal, work, academic, and family well-being. The curriculum includes procedures to assess the family's strengths, resources, and areas of need to guide the development of the Individual Family Service Plan form. For example, the form Baby TALK Family Resource Assessment & Monitoring guides the discussion and reflection with the parent on goals and concerns around education, career, and financial capabilities; physical, emotional, and spiritual health; relationships and role models; support systems; and child growth and development. Family Resource Assessment Instructions, an accompanying form, provides further details on goal-setting based on the assessment. Additionally, there are tips within the monthly resources for engaging parents in setting goals.

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: Baby TALK includes a specific process and tools for ongoing assessment of progress toward family goals. The Individual Family Service Plan—Goals form indicates goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely (SMART). The form is to be used for documenting the goal, action steps by the parent, action steps by the family support staff member, target completion date, and progress toward meeting the goal.

Resources and Referrals: Baby TALK consistently promotes discussing with parents the need to seek further resources and referrals. The Personal Encounter Documentation form asks the home visitor to note any resources needed and referrals made during the visit. Similarly, the Family Resource Assessment Instructions form provides questions the home visitor can ask the family about their specific needs for additional resources and referrals for supplementary services. While there are tools to facilitate the process, more explicit guidance is needed to support home visitors on how to refer families to additional resources in the community.

Family Goals: Parents as Teachers Foundational 2 Curriculum describes a comprehensive process for setting family-level goals. The "Goal Setting" resource provides strategies on setting specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely (SMART) goals. It includes a section on evaluating progress ("Evaluating Progress: The Change Process") and reflective questions to consider throughout the process. It also provides various strategies for parent educators to collaboratively brainstorm and work with families (e.g., parent educators can support families to re-frame concerns as goals).

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: The curriculum describes a specific process for ongoing assessment of progress towards family goals. The "Evaluating Progress: The Change Process" section of the "Goal Setting" resource describes how parent educators can support families to check in on their goals. For example, it suggests "checking in on the progress of action steps based on the timeline established and offering support lets parents know that the process is valued and that they are not alone. When parents are supported with patience and a non-judgmental attitude and encouragement, they are more likely to follow through." In addition, various tools (e.g., "Goal Setting: Begin with the End in Mind") provide specific prompts for families to reflect on goals, a proposed timeline, action steps needed to achieve goals, information about resources that may be required to achieve the goals, and space to update progress.

Resources and Referrals: The curriculum offers specific guidance for referring families to resources in the community. Various materials provide information on referring families to community agencies, libraries, food assistance programs, and other resources and services. The "Circles of Support" resource also encourages home visitors to discuss the relationships and resources families have already and who they can turn to for support.

Family Goals: Parents as Teachers includes a comprehensive process for setting family-level goals. The "Goal Setting" section provides information on creating SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, timely) goals; a process for evaluating progress; and reflection questions to support the process. Additionally, this section offers strategies for home visitors on how to intentionally engage families in this process (e.g., "Through your relationship, you are in a position to partner and collaborate with parents by responding to their identified needs, reframing those needs as goals, and facilitating conversations around how they can achieve their goals and what might be getting in the way.").

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: The curriculum describes a specific process for checking in on family goals, along with various tools to support families and home visitors in the process. The parent worksheet "Goal Setting: Begin with the End in Mind" provides specific prompts for families to reflect on, a proposed timeline for goals, action steps needed to achieve goals, information about the resources required, and space for check-ins and progress made. The "Goal Tracking Sheet" is a separate tool for home visitors and includes prompts to record family goals, along with check-in timelines and notes.

Resources and Referrals: Parents as Teachers provides specific guidance for referring families to resources in the community, particularly in the "Strengthening Families Approach" section of the introductory materials. "Protective Factor 4: Concrete support in times of need" describes the importance of connecting families with resources in the community they might need. It offers specific examples and prompts home visitors can use in conversations with families. The goal-setting process also includes prompts for home visitors to ensure families are connected to resources.

Family Goals: The curriculum describes a specific process for how to engage parents in setting goals at the family level. Growing Great Families provides a unit on developing an Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP), which includes creating a set of family goals. The unit describes a specific process for home visitors and families on how to select goals, plan action steps toward meeting them, and support reaching those goals.

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: Growing Great Families includes a specific process for ongoing assessment of progress toward family goals. The "Supporting Goal Success with Families Blueprint" aids home visitors in engaging with families to check in on goal progress and revisit them when needed. The blueprint includes conversation starters and suggestions for specific steps to take daily, weekly, or monthly.

Resources and Referrals: The curriculum briefly describes the importance of connecting families to resources they might need in Growing Great Families (e.g., referring parents to a family counselor to address traumatic experiences). However, the curriculum lacks comprehensive guidance for referring families to resources in the community to make progress toward reaching their goals.

Family Goals: The curriculum describes a specific process for how to engage parents in setting goals at the family level. Growing Great Families provides a unit on developing an Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP), which includes creating a set of family goals. It outlines a specific process for home visitors and families on how to select goals, plan action steps toward goals, and support goal success.

Ongoing Assessment of Progress Toward Family Goals: Growing Great Families includes a specific process for ongoing assessment of progress toward family goals. The "Supporting Goal Success with Families Blueprint" aids home visitors in engaging with families to check in on goal progress and revisit them when needed. The blueprint includes conversation starters and suggestions for specific steps to take daily, weekly, or monthly.

Resources and Referrals: The Growing Great Kids™ curriculum briefly describes the importance of connecting families to resources they might need in Growing Great Families (e.g., referring parents to a family counselor to address traumatic experiences). However, the curriculum lacks comprehensive guidance for referring families to resources in the community to make progress toward reaching their goals.