As a foster parent, there is nothing more important than showing your foster child how loved they are every single day. Love can be expressed in many ways, big and small. Listed below are a few suggestions of what you can do to show the foster child in your life how special they are to you with your time, words, and actions. These will go a long way in helping them heal and feel safe with you, valuable to you, and loved by you.
Kind Words
If they are a younger child, write them a thoughtful note and place it in their lunchbox or backpack for them to find at school. It will be a sweet reminder to them that you are thinking of them. If they are older, send them a nice text message letting them know you care about them and are there for them. Affirm them with your words by acknowledging something positive you witnessed them doing or sharing how much you enjoy and appreciate a talent they have. One kind word can make the biggest difference to your foster child in helping lift their spirits and make them feel special all day long.
Uninterrupted Quality Time
Do an activity your foster child enjoy with them. Play a game, bake some cookies, take them out for ice-cream, or simply just sit on the couch and talk to them. Ask them caring questions about things that matter to them or what they are going through and give them your undivided attention. In a busy world with hundreds of errands to run and to dos to check off nothing speaks louder of love than taking the time to simply be with your foster child.
Serve Them
Make your foster child feel special by doing little things that help them feel you truly care about their unique needs. Maybe they like a certain story read to them before bed, or maybe there’s certain snacks they love that you can make for them just how they like it, or maybe they appreciate it when you help them pick out their clothes for school the next day. By taking the time do these things, you help them see that you care about the little things that matter to them.
Affection
Validate your foster child through physical touch by giving them a high five or pat on the back when they do something you are proud of and giving them hugs if they are comfortable with it.
Give them Meaningful Gifts
What child doesn’t like a gift given out of the blue? Your gift doesn’t need to be extravagant, but something small to let them know you are thinking about them. Maybe it’s a trinket from their favorite TV show, maybe it’s their favorite stuffed animal, maybe it’s a new book from a book series they enjoy reading. Every gift you give them shows them that you are paying attention to what is important to them.
If you have a heart for foster children and are interesting in learning more about how you can serve foster children in our community, please email [email protected].
