Explores issues that are specifically relevant to single people considering adoption. The factsheet includes information about available adoption opportunities, including domestic adoption, intercountry adoption, and adopting from foster care. It also discusses the importance of having a support system and dispels the myth that being single impedes the adoption process.

Introduces families to the various pathways to building your family through adoption. It addresses how prospective adoptive parents make the decision to adopt, such as with the help of an agency or adoption service provider. It also introduces the different types of adoption and guides you to relevant resources. Exploring your adoption options will help you understand the needs of children you may adopt and your family's strengths and challenges in caring for and supporting those children. Understanding your family's abilities can help you make thoughtful decisions about the child you are best suited to embrace as part of your family.

Provides an overview of the seven core issues in adoption and how they may affect the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of children and adults who have been adopted, birth parents, and adoptive parents. Although adoption is often a joyful and exciting occasion, it can also give rise to lifelong challenges for members of the adoption constellation. Awareness of these issues can help families better understand each other and the personal effects of the adoption experience.

Provides caseworkers with information and resources about the importance of preparing adoptive parents as well as how they can help prepare them for this journey. Information in this bulletin also may be pertinent for working with families formed through other types of permanency, such as guardianship. Caseworkers can support families adopting children from foster care by being upfront with them about what they might expect regarding bonding with the child, parenting a child who has experienced loss and grief, how parents and children may emotionally process the adoption, the supports available to both the child and parents, and other important topics.