The FCC/NE Lifebook Project was formed two years ago in response to a need from our members. At that time, parents were becoming interested in having more information on how to talk to their young children about their early lives and how their families were formed. As of this writing in early 2001, over 150 of our members have participated in Lifebook Sessions, small group meetings led by a facilitator and social worker who introduce and encourage thoughtful discussion on how we tell our children about their early lives.
Lifebooks had been around for many years (they had initially been used in the social work profession to assist children who were in state care keep track of the facts and situations of their lives). More recently, adoption books had begun to be used in the field of international adoption as a way of explaining to a child his or her adoption or early life. Some of these books appeared to be basically scrapbooks, with some starting at the time of adoption, and some telling the story from the parents' point of view. There were some "fill-in-the-blank" scrapbooks available, some mail-order custom made books offered through catalogs or web sites.
Rika Smith McNally and Nancy Nies, FCC/NE Board members, undertook the task of examining lifebooks by researching what was available in the adoption literature and what was being presented in adoption workshops in the New England area. After meeting adoption specialist Cindy Probst in a workshop at Concord Family and Youth Services in Concord, Massachusetts, they embarked on a project to combine Cindy's professional expertise in lifebooks with a session model. The goal is to bring this information to FCC members in a thoughtful, gentle way, in a manner that would allow individual questions to be considered and discussed, in sessions focusing on adoption from China.
A lifebook as presented in FCC/NE's Lifebook Sessions is the story of the child's early life, from birth or even earlier, an explanation of facts presented in an age appropriate manner. We have found that when parents write the books, an understanding of the words, an appreciation of the facts, and an ability to become comfortable themselves with the story emerges.
The model for the project was derived not from a "teacher as lecturer" format, but from the belief that a small group approach, with parents talking to parents, would best allow us to explore the feelings and issues adoption from China presents to children and their parents. Many parents have told us that even in just thinking about writing a lifebook, they got used to the words, and found they found themselves more at ease talking to their children and answering their questions.
To find put more about the project, please see the FCC/NE Lifebook Web Page.
Sincerely,
The FCC/NE Lifebook Committee:
Jennifer Chen
Shelagh Ellman-Pearl
Jacqueline Farrell, Chair
Lisa King
Susan Ladd
Rika Smith McNally
Nancy Nies
Maura Valle