The thing to remember when reading Kathleen Chara and Tasha Lehner's Caleb's Healing Story: An Interactive Story with Activities to Help Children to Overcome Challenges Arising from Trauma, Attachment Issues, Adoption, or Fostering (whew, how's that for a subtitle?) is that this is not a typical children's book designed for independent reading, bedtime reading, or traditional story time. Rather, it's a therapeutic tool. Read through that lens, Caleb's Healing Story can be help children interpret and cope with some of the challenges they face.
Caleb was removed from his birth mother's home at age 4, and adopted by the Smith family. He loves the Smiths, but still has fond memories of his birth mother and sister. Unfortunately, there were plenty of bad memories of neglect and abuse, too. He recognized that "simply removing me from a scary place would not make the fear (and all the problems that came with that) go away." Caleb's Healing Story is for the Calebs out there who have similar stories.
Each chapter tells part of Caleb's story, and offers discussion questions and activities for the child to process all that he or she is going through. In conjunction with counseling and family interaction, these discussions, worksheets, and activities can certainly help a child move forward. I don't know of many resources like Caleb's Healing Story. If you are a parent, counselor, or teacher of children who have been through foster care or traumatic family issues, check this book out. It might be just what you're looking for.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!
No comments:
Post a Comment