Tackling Tricky School Assignments For Adoptive Children: Life Timeline

Adopted children can face some truly awkward and uncomfortable
feelings with homework and classroom projects that teachers don't
think twice about.

As an adopted parent, it is best to be prepared for these
assignments and ways to work with the teacher and your adopted
child so that they feel included and accepted.

I ran into this one myself and, having adopted my son from
Ukraine at 3 years of age, hated that we had no photos or
memories for those early years.

This article is adapted from

www.adoptivefamilies.com.

Life Timeline Project

Assignment:Create a historical timeline using a child's own life
events from birth to present.

Grade level:Elementary through junior high school.

Learning goal:To learn how to chart historical events on a
timeline.

Why it's challenging:A child may be unsure of the time, the
location, or even the date of his birth; he may wonder if he
needs to include the dates he was relinquished by his birth
family and placed with his adoptive family, or other private
information.

Alternatives for teachers:Do not specify that the timeline must
begin at birth. Define it generally as "past, present, and
future." Allow children to create a timeline for a historical
event or fictional character.

Approaches for parents:Help your child decide how to define
"significant events," and to choose what she wants to keep
private. Encourage her to use general labels, such as "When I Was
One," rather than specific dates.

How one family handled it:"Our daughter, adopted at age 12, was
assigned a timeline of 'milestone events' on her first day of
middle school, and she worried that this list would be too
revealing. I explained that the goal was to learn to use
timelines, and that she was under no obligation to reveal private
details. So she listed events-learning to ride a bike, moving to
a new town, winning an award-that she was happy to share with
classmates."-Kathryn Reiss

Have you and your adopted child come up with ideas for how to
deal with this project? Please share!

If you or someone you love would like to expand your family,
provide a permanent home for a needy orphaned child, welcome a
sibling for an existing child or discover an alternative for
infertility treatments - contact us to learn more about Ukrainian
adoption, Adoption Services International can help.

Adoption Services International unites loving US families with
Ukrainian children. We provide a unique combination of western
quality service (including a maximum guaranteed adoption fee),
personal adoption experience, affordable local cost and 20 years
Ukrainian experience.

www.adoptionservicesinternational.com

info@asi-adoption.com

908-444-0999

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Adoption-in-Ukraine/168084499905366

Upcoming Events:

Ukrainian Adoption 101:

Conversation On International Adoption: Opportunity, Process,
Concerns and Questions

Monday, November 12, 2012 6:00-7:00PM

Location: Califon Book Store: 72 Main Street, Califon, New Jersey
07830

Ukrainian Adoption Information Meeting

Wednesday, November 28, 2012 7:00-8:00PM

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