Foster and Adoptive Parenting

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Session 3

Unit Five: Impact of New Child on Family

Impact of a New Child on Extended Family and Friends

Adoption and foster care are not isolated family experiences. Friends, neighbors and extended family all need preparation for the new child in the family. They need to understand the professional responsibilities that foster or adoptive parents will have. The opinions, and feelings, whether positive or negative, of frequent visitors in the home can have an impact on the new family.

Writing Activity:
	How might friends and relatives think/feel about someone’s desire to be a foster or adoptive parent?

	How might the foster or adoptive experience make a difference in relationships with friends and relatives?

	How would you handle a neighbor who wants to know the “real story” behind why the foster or adopted child is in your home?

	Can you describe ways a parent might feel and act if a relative gives a birth child, but not an foster or adopted child, a present for Christmas or Hanukkah?

Print out your responses to share with the trainers.