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Page 3/5: Topic A: How to use the programme

Topic A: How to use the programme

This programme combines three basic elements: the Scorecard, the training sessions and most importantly; your reflections on what you learn during the training and how this learning affects your childcare and eventually the children in your care.

If you work with this programme without an instructor, you can make your own measuring tool containing relevant parameters on which you score the children in your care as well as your own experiences of being a foster family.

Start by reflecting on your goals: What would you like to obtain from this training? Take notes.

After this please consider each child at a time and write down your perception of their:

Emotional state (How does the child feel in general? Does it show its feelings often? Does it trust you?)
Social state (Does the child have many friends? Does it seek new friendships? Does it often play by itself or with peers?)
Behavioral state (Does the child seek help when it needs it? Does it show frequent dysfunctional behaviour? Does it spend time learning new things?)

Write down your thoughts. Finally, please reflect on the following questions:

Do you feel comfortable in your role as foster parents?
Are you often stressed and depressed?
Do you need more tools to handle your foster children?
Do you share your worries with others?

Save your notes and answer the same questions when you finish your study of the training programme in order to see your own and your foster children’s developments.

If you work with an instructor, he or she will make sure to conduct a scorecard interview with you and the rest of the foster parent group.

At the end of your training, you will use Scorecard 2 to answer the same questions again. Then you will be able to see the development of each child and your family: Are you less stressed? Are the children doing better? What will you keep working on to improve your care practices?

HOW TO USE THE 15 SESSIONS

Conducting the Scorecard has given you a general idea of your foster care and the child(ren) in your care. You have decided what you find important to work with and to know more about. To view a list of all the sessions, slide the mouse/pointer over the headline “Foster Care” in the top menu bar. From here, you can navigate between the sessions.

What does a session consist of?

Each session consists of a number of pages. You navigate between the session pages by using the “Previous” and “Next” arrows at the button of a page. Each session presents a topic through both text and video material. Some sessions contains more than one topic. Each topic contains discussions and reflection assignments to ensure your effective learning process.

In each session you will be asked to reflect upon and plan how to practice what you have learned. The idea is that before you begin on a new session, you take some time to implement the acquired theory in your daily practice. We recommend that you participate actively to ensure that the work plan activities fit your specific situation. You know best how to use the knowledge provided in the programme.

You will always find suggestions for work plan activities at the end of each session.

While you practice, you can take notes about how the children respond to your new care practices. We recommend that you keep a diary, because often, you can only see progress when you look back. Whatever observations you write down, they must not be used by or seen by anyone who is not participating in the training programme. They are confidential material for you and your instructor.