Adopting Older Children: A Practical Guide to Adopting and Parenting Children Over Age Four

by Stephanie Bosco-Ruggiero, Gloria Russo Wassell, Victor Groza

Adopting Older Children addresses the most significant challenges surrounding older-child adoption (both domestically and internationally), including mental health, behavioral, and educational concerns. This thorough guide enumerates the issues an older adopted child faces and provides a comprehensive overview of problems and how adopting parents can successfully deal with them, including critical information about developmental issues; problems related to the adoptee's emerging sense of self, including sexual orientation and cultural identity; and other special needs that children may have. Adopting Older Children provides prospective parents the essential tools for coping with transition and family dynamics, educating others about adoption, and understanding the personality, background, and problems of an older adopted child. It also provides a comprehensive methodology for coping with a traumatized child who faces grief and loss, attachment issues, difficulty with development and learning, or physical or mental health concerns, as well as critical resource information for single, LGBT, or older adoptive parents. Adopting Older Children furnishes key parenting strategies, insights, and resources in a clear yet sensitive style, the definitive handbook for adoptive or foster parents and professionals.

Genres: Adoption, Parenting, Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

First published November 17, 2014

About the author

Stephanie has a BA in Political Science from Vassar College and an MA in Urban Affairs and Public Policy from the University of Delaware. For the past decade Stephanie has worked on federally funded child welfare and child trauma projects. She is the co-author of four peer reviewed journal articles and one book. Stephanie has first hand experience with adoption. Currently she is pursuing a doctoral degree in Social Work at Fordham and plans to continue her research in the field of child welfare. Stephanie lives in the Hudson Valley with her husband Joe and son Michael.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very informative, but could also be confusing. The authors spent a lot of time talking about general problems your kid could have (mental, physical) but no time on more specific problems (such as eating disorders). They would say "You need to...." and then not tell us actually how to do that. I thought Our Own - Adopting and Parenting the Older Child by Trish Maskew was more informative.

[Laura Kivi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

book has a lot of great and helpful information.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adopting Older Children: A Practical Guide to Adopting and Parenting Children Over Age Four is an amazingly well written and well researched book. It is very comprehensive regarding the process and the many issues that may present themselves during the process of adoption. I truly wish that everyone would read this book. While some people seem to glide through the whole process with ease, for many others it is a different experience. It is important that people understand the monumental task that adoptive and foster parents often take on. It may be very hard on them to not feel supported and understood by others at a time when they may genuinely need this understanding and assistance. It is also quite necessary for those considering fostering and/or adoption to be aware of the situations that may occur and to prepare ahead of time in as many ways as possible. This book will help people to do that. Raising children is not an easy task, but it can be especially difficult when a child has not previously received the love and care that he or she requires. The child may have experienced neglect, trauma and abuse and these early experiences can have a profound impact upon their development. Carers also may face additional struggles due to a lack of medical histories and genetic information.

I began independently researching the issues covered in this book many years ago when I was seriously considering adoption. I truly wish I had this wonderful book at the time as it is extremely thorough and accurate. Thankfully, I did obtain this book recently while my family had an older foster child in our care. It helped to reassure me that what we experienced was within the realm of normal and it reminded me that we were not alone as we went through the process. I truly believe that this is a fantastic book and that everyone involved with children and families should read it.

Christy Dodge, Ph.D.

[Kris Kittle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This could be a good introduction book to older child adoption for those completely new to it. As a mom who adopted a teen six years ago, the book was not helpful at all. There was nothing that I could apply to parenting my child. There was very little I didn't already know from other sources. Much of it focused on the pre-adoption aspect rather than post-adoption.

[Logan Alley]

Good, insightful book.

[Monika Schrock · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good basic summary of the process, resources and needs of all people involved. It could use a little bit more discussion on post adoption situations, but covers the majority of the process well. An excellent resource for anyone wanting to adopt, or wanting to support others.

[Katie (BooksRUs) · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting look into adoption in the US.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating book, brimming with resources and things to think about. Many of the adoption books I have read focus on infant adoption, which is not likely the path we will choose. In many ways, the hardest part of infant adoption is matching with a family, which can take years. In the case of older-child adoption, there are hundreds of thousands of children waiting for homes, but it is an entirely different set of challenges to help older children adapt.

This book did a nice job of laying out the ins and outs of the process, as well as issues that adoptive families, children, and parents might face. It seemed like a great reference guide, so if we continue down this path I see myself purchasing a copy to reference it as time goes by.f

[Sarah]

Will resume later.