Assisting Children of Incarcerated Parents
According to recent statistics show that more than 2.7 million children in the US alone have an incarcerated parent (Rutgers, 2014). In simple terms, that is a representative population of 1 in every 28 children. Statistics also show 10 million children that have experienced parental incarceration at some point. Moreover, about half of all children whose parents are incarcerated fall below ten years of age. It is for this reason that the society should place more emphasis on assisting children of incarcerated parents (Rutgers, 2014). Anyone who cares about the posterity will understands the extent of the damage and what the effects of parental incarceration can cause to a child. These damages range …show more content…
Some of the options we offer the child is that of acquainting him/her with new friends as well as organizing some bonding sessions with their single or foster parent in order to help create the feeling that while they might have lost their real parent to incarceration, there are many more people out there who still have his/her best interests at heart. Help Cope with Society’s Stereotyping
In most cases, the society can be harsh on these children and they may have to bear unpleasant comments from their neighbors, other relatives, and even friends. (book) For some children, this sudden change in the attitude of people is incomprehensible. We help the child understand the situation in a most polite and careful way while ensuring the sentiments of the child are not hurt and he is able to accept the situation with courage and confidence. We also let the child express what he or she feels about the situation and take the help of professional counselors incase the symptoms seem to be on the verge of depression or aggression. (internal link) On a wider scale, we also educate members of the public to learn to embrace these children and treat them with exceptional care and concern. We try to help members of the public view these children as products of their circumstance as opposed to creators …show more content…
The creation of an emotional and physical fragmentation of child-parent relationships usually occur during incarceration. This can mostly be mitigated when the sense of love and unity is restored. To this end, we facilitate scheduled visits so that the children can spend some quality time with their parents. While visiting their parents, we ensure the children are accompanied by our counselors who dedicate their efforts in counseling the parents on how to cope with life behind bars while still keeping some touch with the loved ones they have left
According to recent statistics show that more than 2.7 million children in the US alone have an incarcerated parent (Rutgers, 2014). In simple terms, that is a representative population of 1 in every 28 children. Statistics also show 10 million children that have experienced parental incarceration at some point. Moreover, about half of all children whose parents are incarcerated fall below ten years of age. It is for this reason that the society should place more emphasis on assisting children of incarcerated parents (Rutgers, 2014). Anyone who cares about the posterity will understands the extent of the damage and what the effects of parental incarceration can cause to a child. These damages range …show more content…
Some of the options we offer the child is that of acquainting him/her with new friends as well as organizing some bonding sessions with their single or foster parent in order to help create the feeling that while they might have lost their real parent to incarceration, there are many more people out there who still have his/her best interests at heart. Help Cope with Society’s Stereotyping
In most cases, the society can be harsh on these children and they may have to bear unpleasant comments from their neighbors, other relatives, and even friends. (book) For some children, this sudden change in the attitude of people is incomprehensible. We help the child understand the situation in a most polite and careful way while ensuring the sentiments of the child are not hurt and he is able to accept the situation with courage and confidence. We also let the child express what he or she feels about the situation and take the help of professional counselors incase the symptoms seem to be on the verge of depression or aggression. (internal link) On a wider scale, we also educate members of the public to learn to embrace these children and treat them with exceptional care and concern. We try to help members of the public view these children as products of their circumstance as opposed to creators …show more content…
The creation of an emotional and physical fragmentation of child-parent relationships usually occur during incarceration. This can mostly be mitigated when the sense of love and unity is restored. To this end, we facilitate scheduled visits so that the children can spend some quality time with their parents. While visiting their parents, we ensure the children are accompanied by our counselors who dedicate their efforts in counseling the parents on how to cope with life behind bars while still keeping some touch with the loved ones they have left