Families today come in all shapes and sizes. Many kids live with both
parents. Many other kids live with either just Mom or just Dad. Some kids might
go back and forth between their parents' houses. Others might live with a
grandparent or another relative, or they might be a part of a foster family.
Keep reading to get all the facts about foster parents and foster
families.
What Are Foster Parents and Foster Families?
The word "foster"
means to help someone (or something) grow and develop. It also means to take
care of someone's needs. Foster parents, then, are people who provide a safe
place for kids to be cared for. They take kids into their homes and let them
stay for a while. It might be just for overnight, or it might be for a few
months or several years.
Like any other family, foster families come in many shapes and sizes. Foster
parents can be a married couple, or a single or divorced person. They can be
young or old, with jobs outside the home or not. They can have young children of
their own, grown-up kids, or none at all.
Not just any adult can be a foster parent, though. It takes someone very
special to do this job. A foster parent needs many qualities like patience,
firmness, and a lot of love. Foster parents are also given special training to
help them understand and work with the kids who come to live with them.
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