Most people don’t understand what it is like to grow up in foster care. They may know the basics, like how foster kids tend to jump from family to family or how they meet lots of different siblings. That is only scratching the surface, though.
If you are considering becoming a foster parent, you should try to understand a foster child’s experiences, thoughts, and feelings, so read on to learn what it’s like growing up in foster care.
A Lack of Stability
Many kids say one of the most challenging parts of growing up in foster care is the lack of stability. Of course, this depends on each child’s experiences. One foster child may stay in a family for a long time, while another may hop from family to family without getting the chance to settle in one place. This lack of stability can be very unsettling for children, as they need to make long-lasting connections.
If you’re looking into fostering a kid and providing a more stable home, then visit thefca.co.uk for more information.
Lots of Different Faces
Children who grow up in foster care tend to see lots of different faces. They meet different foster parents and siblings all of the time, after all – not to mention the social workers, they work with. While this opens the door to friendship, it can also be confusing for kids who need to remember multiple names.
Learning Various Rules
Another challenging part of growing up in foster care is learning different rules. One household’s rules may differ from the next households, which can confuse and even upset a child. They might have been allowed to eat chocolate before dinner in one but get punished for it in another. For this reason, a good foster parent understands the kid won’t always understand how to behave, at least at first.
Growing Up Faster than Other Kids
Most children don’t have to go through the trials that foster kids do. While it is difficult for foster children, it also means they tend to grow up much faster than other children around them. They often understand more about relationships, hardships, and the world in general. It isn’t just down to the reason they are in foster care (which varies from an abusive parent to parent death), but also their experience in foster care itself.
Changing Schools
School is one of the most crucial parts of a child’s life. For many foster children, their school experience is unstable, as they find themselves being the new student multiple times. It’s important to understand how this can impact the child – emotionally as well as academically.
Deep Connections
While instability is a common theme in a foster child’s life, many also make deep connections during their time with different families and schools. These deep connections may or may not last forever, but they all play a part in forming who the child will become. That is just one of the reasons fostering is so important.