As foster, adoptive, and kinship parents, we know that children who have experienced trauma have unique needs, and therefore we need unique training, education, and information regarding our children’s needs and how to best parent them. With the wealth of information on the internet, it can become a bit overwhelming discerning who we should listen to and where we can find valid information regarding attachment, connected parenting, and how we can better understand our children’s trauma histories in order to best help them as they grow into beautiful young adults.

We have developed a list of helpful (but not exhaustive) resources for foster, adoptive, and kinship parents to get you started! We hope that this list of resources is used to encourage you along your parenting journey, wherever you may be.

Books:

• The Connected Child by Karyn B. Purvis, David R. Cross, Wendy Lyons Sunshine
• The Connected Parent by Lisa Qualls and Karyn Purvis
• Wounded Children, Healing Homes by  Jayne Schooler, Betsy Keefer Smalley, and Timothy Callahan 
• The Whole Brain Child, The Power of Showing Up, and No-Drama Discipline by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson
• Reframing Foster Care by Jason Johnson

Podcasts:

• The Empowered Parent Podcast from One Big Happy Home (Ryan and Kayla North) 
• The Adoption Connection from Lisa Qualls and Melissa Corkum 
• The Forgotten Podcast from The Forgotten Initiative 
• Empowered to Connect Podcast 

Videos, Courses, Coaching, and Free Downloads:  

• Tapestry’s Training Portal
• One Big Happy Home Youtube Videos
• One Big Happy Home’s Parent Coaching Services 
• One Big Happy Home’s Parenting Courses
• Empowered to Connect Videos
• Empowered to Connect Resources

Social Media Accounts and Blogs: 

• Parenting Resources and Encouragement: 
  • Tapestry Blog , Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest
  • One Big Happy Home Blog, Instagram, Facebook 
  • We Foster Truth Blog, Instagram, Facebook 
  • The Adoption Connection Instagram, Facebook 
  • Jason Johnson Blog, Instagram, Facebook
• Former Foster Youth and Adult Adoptees 
  • Annie Marek-Barta on Instagram
  • Tori Hope Petersen on Instagram 
  • Tina Bauer on Instagram
  • Embo Tshimanga on Instagram 
  • Kiana Bosman on Instagram 

This is a list of resources is not complete by any means. There are many voices in the foster care and adoption world worth listening to, reading, and watching. However, it’s a starting point, no matter where you are on your parenting journey. We hope and pray that these resources are an encouragement and support to you.

Don’t forget that we have Back to Basics training available on the Tapestry Training Portal this month, all about healing relationships, connected parenting, and reframing parenting, with speakers like Dr. Karyn Purvis, Pam Parish, and Ryan and Kayla North! Don’t miss it!