It is back to school season and the topic of adoption often comes up. Here are some tips for integrating adoption education in your child’s classroom.
School is around the corner and your child may be entering a day care, pre school or elementary school. Below please find some simple and effective ways to bring adoption into the classroom.
Be sure to address adoption with your child’s teacher. It is important to provide the educator with appropriate and positive adoption language. If you are willing to read a story to the class about adoption or provide further literature or resources, please share that as well. Also discuss the types of assignments that your child may encounter that could cause conflicting emotions and issues, such as family tree projects, units about how families are created, genetics, etc.
Get involved in your child’s school by advocating for adoption. A great time to do that would be in November as that is National Adoption Awareness Month. You can raise funds for a local adoption agency, collect funds or clothing for an orphanage in another country, collect school supplies for children in foster care, bring more awareness to older child adoption, etc.
No matter how old your child is, equip them with the skill of advocacy and sharing factual and positive information about themselves and their story. Challenge them by thinking about some questions that students and teachers may ask because they are not educated about the adoption experience. Three simple concepts can grow with your child as s/he grows:
- Adoption is forever; it means a forever family.
- Even though I was adopted, I was born like everyone else.
- Adoption is normal. Many people famous and not famous were adopted.
Before you know it, your child may be educating the educators!
There are many resources available to assist you in dealing with your child’s teachers and school. Please contact our Post Adoption Specialist and Family STAR Coordinator Wendy Lane at [email protected] if you need any suggestions or assistance.
Below are just a few resources from Tapestry Books.
School:
How Can My Kid Succeed in School What Parents and Teachers Can Do to Conquer Learning Problems
Assignments:
Lucy’s Family Tree
Socialization:
Best Friends, Worst Enemies: Understanding the Social Lives of Children