Children need to know their full stories before the teen years. Why, and how, to explain troubling information.
“Digesting Her Adoption Story, a Piece at a Time”
As my daughter grows, she slowly and sweetly puts together the facts of her birth and adoption.
Explaining Adoption in the Classroom
AF readers share their tips and tricks for bring adoption to their kids’ classrooms.
“Dr. Seuss’s Horton Hatches a Talk About Adoption”
A beloved children’s book sparked a discussion with my three-year-old daughter about adoption and her birth mother.
“Knowing Their Brother’s Birth Mother”
We knew that our youngest son’s birth mother would be a powerful force in his life. We didn’t anticipate the impact she’d have on his older brothers.
“When Will My Daughter Truly Know What Adoption Means?”
“It’s a hard truth, a harsh reality to take in, that love and pain can be so connected, so entwined. When will she truly know what adoption means? When will she finally learn the whole truth of what this word means?”
“Open Adoption Is…”
For our family, open adoption is peach roses, scrambling to buy bottles, and feeling out our relationship with the birth mom.
Creating a Personal Adoption Storybook for Your Preschooler
Telling your child’s story in book form can cement his sense of belonging in your family and boost his self-esteem.
Other Brothers (and Sisters!)
Six families share their amazing stories about the power of birth sibling connections.
“Talking About Adoption…at the Grocery Store”
Young children rarely make appointments to talk about adoption, as I’ve found while playing with dolls, caught in gridlock, at the museum…
Age-by-Age Ways to Celebrate Birth Culture
An age-by-age guide to cultural activities that help our children take pride in their identity.
“Babies and Birth Moms and Bellies, Oh My!”
When our two children began to ask questions — lots of questions — my partner and I found answers in homemade adoption storybooks.
“I Have a Birth Mom, Too” – How Children Can Explain Open Adoption to Friends
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Bringing Birth Fathers Into the Adoption Conversation
Answers to your parenting questions.
[Book Review] Born in Our Hearts
Together, two anthologies offer a complex, realistic account of adoption.
[Book Review] Adoption Lifebook: A Bridge To Your Child’s Beginnings
In this essential addition to the literature on adoption lifebooks, Cindy Probst provides a structured, child-centered approach to the task of writing down what happened in the earliest days of a child’s life.
“The Therapeutic Value of Playing Our Adoption Game”
My daughter was two when I first met her at the orphanage in Russia. I knew nothing about the first years of her life, and she has no conscious memories of that time—but an elaborate fantasy life that she cultivated gave me a glimpse into how she may have experienced her early years.
“Who’s His Real Mom?”
My little brother was stunned, and I was enraged, when a schoolmate asked an innocent question.
Imagining Another Life
As adolescents become capable of abstract thinking, they begin to wonder about the family and the country left behind — and the road not taken.
Private Isn’t Secret
Nosy comments from strangers are one thing. But what do you do when it’s a child who’s asking difficult questions?