What could warm the heart more than pictures of your little angel in the family scrapbook or on the home computer?

How about an animated version of your child on a TV show?

That 15 minutes of fame will provide a lifetime of memories for the family of 3-year-old Abi Rose Friend of Raleigh. Her darling face was placed on a little cartoon body for a segment in PBS Kids Sprout's new "PICME," which premiered Monday in "The Sprout Sharing Show," a three-hour block that begins at 3 p.m. Abi's segment airs for the first time today.

Abi was thrilled when she saw her face being used in the Sprout preview spots.

"She loves it," says her mom Andrea Friend.

The interactive "PICME" is part of an afternoon package that includes old favorites such as "Jay Jay the Jet Plane" and "Dragon Tales," framed by "Sprout Sharing Show" segments, in which home videos feature preschoolers showing off their talents and accomplishments. The afternoon block also features animated shorts developed from children's artwork.

The 2-D flash animation used in "PICME" segments enables parents to superimpose a digital image of their child onto an animated body, for a "starring" role in the show alongside animal friends Juno, Gerty, Clarence, Banjo, Umi and Neville.

"It just looks really great," says Andrea Friend. "If they're smiling, or they have a silly face, it's just really cute."

Sprout programming is available on DirecTV and Time Warner Cable's Kids/Preschool On Demand. Segments can also be viewed on the Web at SproutOnline.com, where parents can also go to get their kids involved.

To find out more about Sprout programming, call (866) 977-7688.

A look at school reform

UNC-TV offers a noteworthy look at the Guilford County school system this week. "Taking Initiative: A Look Inside Guilford County Schools" premieres at 9:30 p.m. Thursday on UNC-TV and UNC-HD.

The half-hour program, hosted by Shannon Vickery, highlights some of Guilford County's reform efforts -- including school choice and teacher incentives.

Strategies are described in stories from parents, teachers and community leaders.

Last year, Guilford County's lower-income students in elementary and middle schools had a 47.8 percent passing rate in state end-of-grade tests. Guilford scored higher than schools in Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Charlotte-Mecklenburg and Durham.