When a child joins a family
through adoption, much of
the focus is naturally on the
adopted child, and how he
or she copes with the experience of
moving to a new family. But adoption
also raises issues for any children already
in that family. What do they think about
their family adopting a child? How do
they feel about the assessment process
and the wait? How do they react to
meeting a new brother or sister?
This is the first film about adoption from a
child´s point of view. It features a number of
birth children who have had the experience of
adopting a child into their family. They talk
candidly and heart-warmingly about how they
were prepared and prepared themselves for a
child joining their family. This film is intended as
a starting point for exploration and discussion
with adoptive parents and their birth children.
Guidelines accompany the film which will
trigger a number of questions and will enable
prospective adopters as well as social workers
to listen to children and find out how they
feel. There are some suggested questions at
the end of each section and anyone using the
video/DVD will no doubt also come up with
questions of their own.
The film is divided into six sections:
Thinking about adoption
Being prepared
First meetings
Sharing
What´s good about adoption?
What would you say to other families?
Trainers who are running preparation groups
for prospective adoptive parents will also find
this film invaluable, and social workers can
show the film to prospective adoptive parents
and their children as part of their home study.