Gladney's Family Service Department's mission is to provide education, counseling, pre and post adoption education to Domestic and International Adoptive Parents.
The Gladney Center for Adoption is excited to present informative and educational training sessions on adoption. Each training will be facilitated by a highly trained professional. Some of the courses offered to families include:
Becoming a Love and Logic Parent, Ages 6 plus
This Love and Logic Series will be a six week series for parents of children of all ages. This training will give tools to parents on how to raise responsible children to be responsible adults. Would you like creative ways to handle these situations?
- Stop the arguments and back-talk from your child.
- Guide your child to own and solve his problems
- Learn “enforceable statements” to help with hectic mornings.
- Get chores completed without reminders or pay.
- Teach your child how to think and act responsibly.
- Train your child to listen to parents the first time.
- And much more for kids and teens of all ages.
Child Development Training, Ages 0-5
The Child Development Training will provide information on age appropriate developmental levels for ages 0-5. Along with information about normal child development, you will also learn what to watch for concerning developmental delays in children. Language, Cognitive, Social and Emotional, Motor, and Sensory Developmental Stages will be explored for each stage of development.
Collaborative Group for Families who Adopted Older Children
This group is for families who have already adopted. This group provides an opportunity for parents to gather and share ideas, support, and strength as they face the unique challenges and joys involved in parenting their adoptive children. Adoptive parents whose children were 4 or older at time of adoption are encouraged to attend. The group is held on Gladney's campus on a quarterly basis. Childcare is not provided.
Ethiopia Training
This training will help adoptive families prepare for the specifics of adopting a child from Ethiopia. Topics that will be discussed include cultural awareness and sensitivity, practicalities of travel and the adoption process, issues of identity as a transracial family, health concerns, and post-placement adjustment. Childcare is not provided.
Facilitating Behavioral Change
Every parent has days when they take the fact that children are a gift of God by faith! We don't know any parent who doesn't sometimes wonder how to navigate their child's behavior. During this seminar, we will talk about what causes many of the maladaptive behaviors in our children. In addition, we will discuss many specific skills and strategies for helping our children succeed.
Grief and Loss Training
For all people touched by adoption, adoption brings different meaning and experiences. For many people, it means joy and family. For everyone it means change, and with all changes in our lives come losses. This training will discuss aspects of loss unique to each member of the adoption triad - adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth parents. Models for understanding grief will be discussed, as will resources for understanding and dealing with grief in the adoptive family. A panel of adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth parents will discuss their own experiences with grief and loss in regards to their own adoption experience.
Institutionalized Child
Six Words for Adoptive Parents to Live By is a topic that has grown out of ten years of research with adoptive parents and their children. A goal of this presentation is to help parents find the balance of insightful compassion and gentle structure in establishing trusting and joyful family relationships with their adopted children. These six words provide a foundation from which parents and children can work together to overcome virtually any challenge in their path - and are the words that can guide loving parents in developing forever families.
Love and Logic’s “Early Childhood Parenting Made Fun! For Parents of Children – Birth to Six: Five Session Series
This training is a five week series for parents with children from birth to six years old. This training will provide information on specific tools parents can use right away. Parents will learn to teach responsibility while learning tools for the following:
- Handling Misbehavior Without Breaking A Sweat
- Teaching Your Child to Listen…..the First Time
- Avoiding Power Struggles
- Setting Limits
- What to do When Your Kids Leave You Speechless
- Learning “Enforceable Statements” to Help with Hectic Mornings
- And much more for children from birth to six
Maximum Strength Parenting
This workshop will focus on the art of using all of your gifts and knowledge in the most important and influential job you will ever have – parenting. Purchase the book Maximum Strength Parenting.
Medical Issues in International Adoption
Dr. Schwarzwald and Ms. Close LMSW will present information regarding the medical and psychological health of children adopted internationally. They will cover both short-term and long-term issues families adopting internationally face and will emphasis certain trends from specific countries. In addition, they will provide some practical tips on smoothing the child's transition from an orphanage or foster setting into your home as well as introduce some of the Texas resources available to families growing through adoption.
Parent Adoptive Training (PAT)
Everyone who desires to adopt a child through Gladney and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) must complete Gladney's PAT training or its equivalent. Gladney offers this class at least quarterly, and both adoptive parents must attend. This class must be complete prior to your home study.
The PAT training helps prepare adoptive parents for the challenges they will face when adopting a child from the State, as all of the children have been abused, abandoned, and/or neglected. The class covers developmental needs, abuse and neglect, separation/loss/grief, discipline, family relations, agency relations, toddler and baby care, and CPR/First Aid.
Parenting Plus
Led by Paula St. John (Director of Post-Placement Services at The Gladney Center for Adoption), this event will focus on some of the unique aspects that adoptive and foster parents face as they parent their children. This event is sure to be educational and encouraging not only for those who have adopted or are fostering, but also for those who are considering adopting or fostering.
Parenting Transracially and Transculturally
This two hour training is designed for families who have adopted or are considering adopting transracially or transculturally. This dynamic training will give families an opportunity to share their experiences, concerns, and joys of raising a child who comes from a different racial and ethnic background than their families. Topics will include the following: a) preparing for a transracial or transcultural adoption; b)"Feeling different" from a child's perspective; c) recognizing racism d) seeking role models and community connections and e) understanding adoptive identity and racial identity development.
Sensory Integration
In our estimation, sensory integration is one of the most important topics for parents, teachers, educators, and professionals. Sensory processing issues can be caused by difficult pregnancy, birth complications, lengthy hospitalizations, abuse, neglect or trauma. Because of the wide range of causes, there are many children whose lives are significantly altered by their inability to completely understand sensory input from their environment. During this seminar we will talk about its causes, symptoms, and most importantly, we talk about how to recognize and effectively deal with your child's need for sensory integration.
- View an interview between Paige McCoy Smith and Dr. Karyn Purvis on the topic of adopted kids with sensory integration issues.
- Purchase The Connected Child By Karyn B. Purvis, David R. Cross, Wendy Lyons Sunshine.
- Hear Dr. Purvis interviewed about her book.
|
