Grandparents and other relatives raising children have unique needs. Because they are family to the child for whom they are caring, they may feel they don't need training in the traditional sense because they have already raised children. However, kinship caregivers can benefit from information on the child welfare system and the financial, legal, and other supportive services available to them. The following resources include training curricula and materials for kinship caregivers on topics such as legal and policy issues, changes in family dynamics, and navigating the child welfare system. Resources include State and local examples.
Developing Rural Relatives as Parents Programming: Promising Practices: A Collection of Practice Wisdom From Across Rural America (PDF - 7,291 KB)
University of Maine Center on Aging & Brookdale Foundation Group (2010)
Provides an overview of rural grandfamilies and contains relevant practice information for serving and building relationships with rural grandfamilies.
The Kinship Care Practice Project
Jane Addams College of Social Work (2005)
Provides downloadable versions of a curriculum and video workshops designed to educate child welfare supervisors and practitioners about strategies for ensuring the safety and permanency of children in kinship care placements.
The PRIDE Program
Child Welfare League of America
Provides information about the Parent Resources for Information, Development, and Education (PRIDE) program, a model for developing and supporting foster and adoptive families.
Tools for Working With Kinship Caregivers (PDF - 92 KB)
Dougherty (2010)
References training materials and handbooks for working with kinship caregivers and describes tools to assess adult relatives as preferred caregivers.
Training for Kinship Caregivers (PDF - 34 KB)
National Resource Center for Permanency and Family Connections (2009)
Compiles State policies and approaches on training and assessment for kinship caregivers.
Training Kin to Be Foster Parents: Best Practices from the Field (PDF - 130 KB)
ChildFocus (2008)
Provides efforts to adapt foster parent training to the needs and circumstances of kinship caregivers, including Federal licensing requirements and State and county efforts to develop training for kinship caregivers.
State and local examples
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: What To Do the Second Time Around: A Self-Learning Resource From MSU Extension (PDF - 360 KB)
Montana State University Extension (2007)
Answers many of the common questions grandparents and other relative caregivers have when they are faced with parenting a second time.
Informal Kinship Care in Minnesota: A Pilot Study: Title IV-E Curriculum Module
Gibson (2005)
Contains discussion questions, selected references, additional resources, suggested guest speakers, and a PowerPoint presentation.
Kinship Care Self-Study Course (PDF - 250 KB)
Martinez (2006)
Provides a two-credit self-study course through the Alaska Office of Children's Services designed to help relative caregivers such as aunts, uncles, and grandparents, and kinship care providers, understand the special aspects of this kind of out-of-home care.
Child Welfare Information Gateway encourages organizations to submit resources from their workforce or training efforts for inclusion in our library. Send information to library@childwelfare.gov.