When children are removed from their parents' home, their world is turned upside down and they suffer physiologically and emotionally. They may lash out in words or behaviors, then become despondent and hopeless, and finally, detach themselves emotionally to cope with their significant loss. Their healthy development and ability to adjust normally to losses throughout life may be compromised. When relatives are available to provide a support network, the blow is softened. Familiar faces and surroundings they know and trust will comfort them. Relatives provide homes for the vast majority of kids whose parents can no longer care for them, caring for some 2.5 million children and saving taxpayers an estimated $6.5 billion a year in child welfare costs (Vestal, C. 2006). Kinship care is the full time care, nurturing and protection of children by relatives, members of their tribes or clans, godparents, stepparents, or any adult who has a kinship bond with a child (Children's Defense......
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Approximate Pages: 9 (260 words per double-spaced page) |