Fostering a child can be incredibly rewarding, and both you and your foster child can create bonds that will last a lifetime. The first few days are always the most challenging, but with the right amount of preparation, they will be successful. Here are a few top tips to help.
Do Some Research
You are not the first person, or the last, to consider fostering a child or to enter the fostering process. There is a wealth of information out there that can help you get ready to accept a foster child into your home. This guide on how to become a foster parent will help you navigate the first steps to fostering a child, from making your initial enquiry to welcoming your first foster child into your home. Once you have begun the process, there are still some things you can do to prepare yourself, your family, and your home for a foster child.
Stock Up on Food
The road to anyone’s heart is through their stomach, and children are no different. Your foster child may be a little quiet and justifiably intimidated at first, but it is only a matter of time before they are hungry. Have options ready for them. Work with your fostering agency to find out the child’s likes and dislikes and make sure you are aware of any special dietary requirements they have. Feeding a child a good meal is a great way to get them to settle, relax a little, and open up to you.
Get a Bedroom Ready
Joining a new family is an understandably intimidating process for a foster child. It can be emotionally overwhelming. When they arrive at your home you should have a bed and preferably their bedroom ready for them. This establishes that they have their own space that they can retreat to if they need to. This gives them a feeling of safety and they know they have a place where they can assess their situation and work through their thoughts at their own pace.
Be Ready Before the Call
Fostering can happen quickly. It is not uncommon within fostering to get a call to be ready to accept a new child just hours or a day or two before their arrival. Be ready ahead of time. Get everything ready and waiting, including food, linen, toiletries, and so on, so that you can welcome a new foster child into your home at the drop of a hat. This will help things go more smoothly when the day comes.
Prepare a ‘Family Book’
Foster children often suffer from information overload when they first arrive in a home and join a family. There can be a lot for them to take in. Preparing a scrapbook of information about all their new family members, including extended family, gives them a resource they can turn to when they want to refresh their memory and find out more on their own time. Foster children often appreciate a family book and will study it to better understand their place in their new family and learn who is who.
Becoming a foster parent is one of the greatest gifts you can give to a child. Though it comes with challenges, the rewards make it worth it for both parents and the child.
