What’s New at CharacterStrong for 2026–2027 School Year

Over the past year, we sat down with educators and asked one simple question:
“If you could wave a magic wand, what would you change about our lessons and platform?”

You were honest:

• “The slides feel too text-heavy—my students check out.”
• “I don’t have enough time.”
• “We need clearer data so we know if this is working.”
• "Can we replace some of the videos with more engaging content?"

We listened.

For the 2026–27 school year, CharacterStrong is rolling out a major redesign of our PreK–12 core curricula and platform experience. These changes are not about adding more to your plate. They are about removing friction so you can focus on what you do best: knowing students by name, face, and story. In support of more inclusive and accessible implementation, all Tier 1 and Tier 2 slide deck lessons are now available in 50+ languages, helping schools better support multilingual learners and engage every student and family more effectively.

Redesigned Core Curriculum, Grades PreK–12

Fully redesigned for 2026–27, the updated CharacterStrong (6th-12th grade) and Purposeful People (PreK–5th grade) curricula are built around a simple goal: make it easier for you to build strong relationships and skill sets with your students, within the time and capacity you actually have.

New “Pick up where you left off” capability!

We heard that finding your place and tracking your progress had been cumbersome. We have been working on big improvements to meet this need!

• In our new Tier 1 experience, simply set up your class, and it tracks your progress!
• Jump right back in where you left off last time, saving you time and frustration.

Boosted Engagement through improved lesson content, new designs, and interactive slides

You told us your students—and your teachers—were overwhelmed by dense text and small fonts. So we reimagined our lesson visuals.

• Overhauled slides with larger imagery and clear visual cues to support multi-language learners, boost engagement, and reduce “wall-of-text” fatigue.
• Key concepts stand out at a glance, so you can spend less time deciphering the slide and more time connecting with students.

Before and after - from the 3rd-grade lesson 

(8th grade before and after)

Deeper Skill Development

• Lessons dive deeper into strengthening core life skills and include a Check for Understanding formative assessment opportunity at the end of each lesson.

Purposeful People (PreK–5) Improvements

Elementary educators asked for lessons that feel more age-appropriate, more engaging, and more focused on concrete skills. We responded:

Grow Lesson Redesign:

• Simplified lessons so they are easier to facilitate and more clearly tied to specific life skills.
• Deeper skill instruction with more authentic, developmentally appropriate practice opportunities.

Respond Section Redesign:

You’ll now find weekly check-in tools with specific emotion regulation strategies to help instill habits that support self-regulation.

• Start with a class check-in: How are we doing today?
• Explore emotion vocabulary to boost understanding
• Choose a corresponding regulation strategy:
• Brain Booster
• Mindful Moment
• Connection
• Reflection

All 5 weekly activities in one easy glance!

Educators shared that long scrolling to find weekly activities and lessons made it hard to stay present with students and find what they need.

• Find Resources, Start, Connect, Grow, Respond, and Exit content all in one glance - no more scrolling. Each activity is a simple click away!
• All activity content is now viewable and projectable in a simple slide deck, making content delivery more seamless than ever.
• New Resource section for each week makes materials easier than ever to find! 

Future Ready Expansion

Districts are under pressure to connect life skills to college, career, and life readiness, without turning every lesson into another compliance task.

While Future Ready was previously exclusive to High School Tier 1, we have recently expanded its alignment to include

• K-5 Future Ready alignment, with specific Future Ready content featured in grades 4 and 5.
• New Future Ready unit in Middle School: 11 lessons focused on real-world skills like communication, collaboration, career exploration, and more.

Policy Programming Expansion K-12:

Expanded Policy Programming Curriculum to support school safety and mental health

• New Safe & Supported prevention lessons (mental health, healthy choices, child safety (Erin’s Law), and Digital Citizenship)
• 3 New Digital Citizenship lessons per grade level (PreK - 12).
• Healthy Habits
• Online Safety
• AI + Media Literacy

New: Behavior Support Solutions

Empathetic Responses for Growth & Accountability

You told us that traditional behavior responses weren’t working for your students—or your staff. Suspension alone doesn’t teach new skills.

Our new Behavior Supports include facilitator guides, examples, and video instructions, student-facing lessons for grades 4–12, and reflection worksheets to plan for repair and classroom re-entry. This content is designed for reflection rooms, ISS environments, and re-entry meetings.

A 3-Step Process for Growth

Each step follows a clear, student-centered flow:

1. Connect: Establish a student-facilitator connection, followed by student reflection on what happened and how it impacted others.
2. Learn: Student-facing lessons include scenarios and skill-building activities designed to equip students with skills to improve behavior. This step also includes a worksheet for reflection and creating a plan for repair and re-entry. Lesson topics include attendance, classroom disruption, substance misuse, physical harm, and many more.
3. Review and Re-Engage: Facilitators and students review the student’s plan together and leave with a concrete plan to repair harm and transition back to class.

Streamlined Tier 2 & Small Group Interventions

Low Burden, High Impact Systems

Districts know Tier 2 is where many systems break down: staffing is limited, schedules are packed, and complex manuals sit untouched.

For 2026–27, we redesigned our small group interventions to fit into the reality of your day.

• One-Page Facilitator Guides: Long scripts have been replaced with clear, 1–2 page guides for both elementary and secondary groups. Leaders can train staff quickly, and facilitators can see the whole session at a glance.

• Manageable Timing: Sessions now run 15–25 minutes, so you can deliver meaningful support within advisory, homeroom, or targeted intervention blocks.

The result: More consistent implementation, less prep time, and better insight into which supports are working.

Intellispark: The Data to Action Collaboration Engine for MTSS

Actionable Insights to Measure Impact

Leaders told us they were drowning in disconnected data and still couldn’t answer key questions:

• Which students need more support right now?
• Are our Tier 1 and Tier 2 efforts making a difference?
• Where should we focus our limited staff time?

Through Intellispark, CharacterStrong now acts as the “brain” of your MTSS system—tying together student support efforts across behavior, attendance, and life skills.

With Intellispark, you can:

• Use Pulse Assessments to quickly identify students who need targeted support.
• Set early-warning flags for attendance and behavior concerns before they become crises.
• Progress monitor the fidelity and impact of CharacterStrong lessons in real time, so you can adjust supports instead of guessing.

Simplified Navigation & Enhanced Platform Experience

Finally, you told us the platform needed to feel as modern and intuitive as the mission behind it. We agreed.

Our updated platform includes:

• Refreshed Visual Design: A cleaner, student-centered interface that keeps attention where it belongs—on the young people in front of you.
• Fewer Clicks: A streamlined navigation bar makes it easy to move between Start, Connect, Grow, Respond, and Exit, so you can access lessons and activities faster.
• Global Accessibility: All Tier 1 and Tier 2 core content is now available in 50+ languages, helping every student and family feel welcomed and included.

About CharacterStrong

CharacterStrong partners with schools and districts nationwide to build effective student support systems that improve behavior, engagement, and attendance. Our programs are validated at ESSA Level 2 and Level 4, have supported more than 9 million students across all 50 states and 47 countries, and have trained over 400,000 educators.

For us, this refresh is not just a product update. It is a renewed commitment to you—the district leaders, building administrators, and educators who show up for students every day, even when the system feels overwhelming.

When you request a quote, our team will help you explore the right solution for your schools, understand program options, and identify the supports that align with your goals, timeline, and student needs. Whether you are strengthening Tier 1 culture and climate, expanding behavior supports, improving attendance, or building a more connected MTSS framework, we are here to help you take the next step with clarity.

Request a quote today to learn how CharacterStrong can support your students, staff, and district goals for the 2026–27 school year.