“Kids are important… They need safe places to live, and safe places to play.” For some kids, this means living with foster parents. In simple words and full-color illustrations, this book explains why some kids move to foster homes, what foster parents do, and ways kids might feel during foster care. Children often believe that they are in foster care because they are “bad.” This book makes it clear that the troubles in their lives are not their fault; the message throughout is one of hope and support. Includes resources and information for parents, foster parents, social workers, counselors, and teachers.

A thoughtful picture book illustrating the power of small acts of kindness, from the award-winning author of Sophie's Squash.

Will I live with my parents again? Will I stay with my foster parents forever? For children in foster care, the answer to many questions is often "maybe." Maybe Days addresses the questions, feelings, and concerns these children most often face. Honest and reassuring, it also provides basic information that children want and need to know, including the roles of various people in the foster care system and whom to ask for help. An extensive afterword for adults caring for foster children describes the child's experience, underscores the importance of open communication, and outlines a variety of ways to help children adjust to the "maybe days"—and to thrive. From the Note to Foster Parents and Other Adults: The enormity of adjustment that children in foster care are asked to make is hard to over-state. Children in foster care may experience and express a range of feelings, many of which may emerge during the reading of this book. Multiple feelings may occur at the same time and may include: Relief and a sense of safety Happiness and a sense of enjoyment Sadness Anger Fear or worry Confusion Guilt Shame Loneliness Sense of loss ​Some children respond well to verbal discussion about their feelings....Keep in mind that asking questions and encouraging activities can be useful for some children, but it is not always necessary and is never a substitute for simply listening.

How do we encourage kids to talk with us about even the trickiest issues? Talking about the stuff that matters with your kids is not easy, but communication is the best tool we have for life and love. This book will guide you through 40 practical conversations using the structure of a family trip. It'll be meaningful fun. When you start having the conversations in this book, your kids will start changing their world!Inside, you'll discover: ?Stories, tips and research to inform the conversations?Relationship skills to build (like listening and conflict resolution)?How to combat the influences of our culture (like consumerism and tech devices)?How to build resilience, values, character and purpose?How our kids can play a part in solving problems, rather than being brought down by them?Advice from caring young adults about what worked for them!As parents, we want our kids to have happy, loving lives. As a society, we need kids who are capable of thinking and acting beyond themselves to help others have happy, loving lives too."There is a huge secret to life which most families - and most parenting books - completely miss. That we humans are happiest when we are living for each other, and discovering the fun that brings. In a society that is all about 'me' we have never been more stressed or miserable. Caring is a word that holds the key to life going well, and is the real heart of being human. This book shows you how to foster it. "Susy Lee's book is one of those rare ones you want to have at hand long term, as even dipping in seems to spark you with ideas and clues for really engaging with your children. What to ask, what to challenge them with, what to provoke them with. "Brightly and clearly written, with real personality, this book turns on its head our focus on making kids happy, and instead shows how to make them generators of happiness." - Steve Biddulph AM

In today's society, perhaps more than ever, young children need to develop empathy. In this simple book, the author begins by helping children see that when they are sick, hurt, or unhappy, others care about them. Children can then begin to see that others need to be cared about as well. Common situations will further a child’s appreciation for and understanding of what others feel and need.

Each year, as many as 25,000 teenagers "age out" of foster care, usually when they turn eighteen. For years, a government agency had made every important decision for them. Suddenly, they are on their own, with no one to count on. What does it mean to be eighteen and on your own, without the family support and personal connections that most young people rely on? For many youth raised in foster care, it means largely unhappy endings, including sudden homelessness, unemployment, dead-end jobs, loneliness, and despair. On Their Own tells the compelling stories of ten young people whose lives are full of promise, but who face economic and social barriers stemming from the disruptions of foster care. This book calls for action to provide youth in foster care the same opportunities on the road to adulthood that most of our youth take for granted-access to higher education, vocational training, medical care, housing, and relationships within their communities. On Their Own is meant to serve as a clarion call not only to policymakers, but to all Americans who care about the futures of our young people.