Adopt A …

Description: To adopt a whale, endangered animal, redwood tree or highway, teaching the children about the need for everyone to take responsibility for saving endangered plants and animals, as well as improving our environment.

Challenges:

• May lead younger adopted children to conclude that all adoption requires is money
• Children may wonder if their adoption fee is renewed yearly too, and worry what would happen if their adoptive parents stopped paying

Alternatives:

• Have teachers explain the difference between the adoption of people and the adoption of causes prior to the assignment
• Use the word ‘sponsor’ in lieu of the word ‘adopt’

Tips: Use this assignment as an opportunity to explain and promote the importance of positive adoption language in your child’s school.

Autobiography:

Description: The story of the child's life up until the present, written by the child

Challenges:

• The child may not wish to share details of their childhood
• The child may not remember their past
• Memories may trigger unresolved emotions

Alternatives:

• Flexible timeline; a few years described in great detail, instead of their entire childhood
• Allow the child to write a biography for a historically significant person
• Allow the child to interview and write the biography of a family member
• Allow the child to write about one specific event
• Allow the child to write their fantasy childhood

Tips: Have children write about:

• Memories of themselves
• What their parents have told them about themselves,
• Favorite toys and games
• Rituals
• Favorite activities
• Future plans and desires
• Memorable events

the autobiography then reveals different facets of the child's individual character and personality, rather than a chronological account of their life thus far. 

Baby Pictures

Description: Bring a baby picture to class. The photos are?then; posted anonymously and classmates are asked to guess who’s who, or used in yearbooks and graduation presentations.

Challenges:

• Older adopted children may not have baby pictures
• Internationally adopted children may not have baby pictures
• Children who stand out because of race or physical differences are easy to guess
• Child may show clear signs of abuse or neglect in baby pictures

Alternatives:

• Have children bring in pictures from when they were younger
• Have children draw pictures of themselves as babies. 
• Bring in a baby photo of a younger biological sibling

Tips:

• Share your sadness over the lack of baby photos with your child
• Encourage your child to draw a self portrait

Family Tree

Description: Map out the family's genetic tree, either as a literal tree with branches, or in diagram form, showing the relationships between family members.

Challenges:

• The project format may not accommodate for both the birth, as well as adoptive relatives, or for other 'nontraditional' family types, such as step-relatives
• The child may not have enough information on his or her birth family

Alternatives:

• Offer formats that show roots as well as branches;
• Instead of one tree, allow students to create a family forest or a neighborhood of family houses
• Allow the child to create a family tree for a historically important family

Tips:

• Allow your child to choose which family, or families, to portray (birth, foster, adoptive)
• Allow your child to design his own family tree format

Student of the Week

Description: Create and present a poster with the child’s history, as well as family photos.

Challenges: The child may not feel comfortable with, or know how to handle intrusive questions from classmates about their adoption.

Alternatives: Instead of focusing solely on the child’s personal history, he or she can share pictures and facts about:

• Pets
• Current hobbies
• Favorite vacations
• Favorite toys
• Favorite foods
• Favorite color
• Favorite TV shows
• Hero or idols
• Trophies and/or awards
• Different places he or she has lived
• Future interests and anticipated events 

Tips:

• Role-play possible questions and answers with your child in advance
• Accompany your child to school and give an adoption presentation. This can sometimes be worked into social studies units, particularly in schools with an already existing multicultural population
• Pick photos that are centered on the child and his or her accomplishments, not on the entire family

Heritage Exploration

Description: Write a report, make a flag, or participate in a cultural celebration based on the student’s country or culture of origin.

Challenges:

• The child’s ethnic or cultural heritage may differ from that of the adoptive family’s.
• A teacher may direct a student to write about their birth heritage, when the student would feel more comfortable writing about their adoptive heritage, or vice versa.
• Child adopted with little to no identifying information may not really know what their cultural backgrounds truly are

Alternatives:

• Let students pick a country or culture of interest rather than only one related to their family
• Assign different countries or cultures to children
• Have the class study different cultures together as a group, instead of individually

Tips:

• Provide any available resources relating to both adoptive and birth family cultures
• Accompany your child to class, to help conduct a presentation
• Ask the Adoption Agency that was used to help out with a cultural demonstration from the child’s country of origin
• Allow your child to pick what culture they are most comfortable with, do not try to force your choice onto them

Mapping Genetic Traits

Description: Diagram or write about the presence of a particular trait in the child’s family, such as eye or hair color.

Challenges:

• Charting traits in the adoptive? family can raise unwanted questions
• The child may not have enough information about birth relatives
• Can cause the child to feel different, isolated, and removed from their adoptive family

Alternatives:

• Study the genetic traits of insects or plants
• Use historical examples, such as the prevalence of inherited diseases in Europe's royal families
• Investigate the positives of genetic diversity
• Assign generic genetic information and parameters, instead of using actual people related to the child

Tips:

• Help your child identify friends or a related family group, like grandparents or cousins, to base a genetic chart on.
• Let your child know how glad you are to be different
• Share the traits that you are glad will not be passed on to your child
• Share the traits of your child that you are envious of

Timeline

Description: Create a historical timeline of the child's life using significant life events from birth to present.

Challenges:

• The child may be unsure of the time, location, or actual date of his or her birth
• The child may be wary of sharing dates of relinquishment by their birth family, and placement with their adoptive family, or other private, yet significant events 
• Traumatized children often have large gaps in memory, the child may not remember enough about his or her life prior to adoption, to create a timeline
• Photographs of the child may not be available to represent the child through the different stages of development
• Trying to recall past events could stir up unresolved feelings and trauma

Alternatives:

• Do not specify that the timeline begin at birth. 
• Allow children to create a timeline for a historical person/event, family member or fictional character
• Draw pictures of events and people instead of using photographs

Tips:

• Help your child determine which significant life events to use, and what information will be kept private.
• Use general descriptions, such as “When I Was One/little/younger/ a toddler,”in labeling, rather than using specific ages and dates.