Grandparenting Resources

Kinship Care Resource Kit

This kit is designed to help churches:

• Understand what kinship care is;
• Learn how to offer services and support to kinship care families;
• Discover the kinship care resources that are available to families;
• Find national and state kinship care organizations and resources.

Download documents (in pdf format) from the Children's Defense Fund Website: www.childrensdefense.org

Second Time Around . . . Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Second Time Around is curriculum for grandparent support groups. Researchers at Western Michigan University, in cooperation with the Michigan State University Extension, received funding to develop a curriculum for use in training grandparents in the "not-so-new" role of parent. Drawing from community, university, and private resources, the project resulted from the collaborative effort of attorneys, researchers, professors, and technical advisors in assembling the "need-to-know" subject matter that will contribute to successful parenting the "second time around." The curriculum guide, teaching resources, and instructional materials represent a critical resource for working with these grandparents and their grandchildren. The curriculum contains materials applicable for 8-16 sessions. Topics include:

• Notes to the Sponsor Organization
• Notes to the Facilitator
• Understanding Your"Not-So-New" Role: Grandparents in the Role of Parent, Again
• Promoting Personal Well-Being
• Refining Parenting Skills
• Building Relationships
• Working with School and Community
• Managing Finances
• xploring Legal Issues
• Looking to the Future

For further information, contact: Linda L. Dannison, Ph.D., Family and Consumer Sciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008; 269-387-3704; Linda.dannison@wmich.edu.

Parents & Grandparents as Spiritual Guides: Nurturing Children of the Promise
Betty Shannon Cloyd
(Upper Room Books, 2000) 164 pages; $13.00

Cloyd explores the simple ways parents and grandparents can introduce children to the presence of God and nurture them spiritually during daily, routine activities. This must-have book includes biblical models of spiritual guides along with insightful stories from children, Christian educators, and the author's own family experience.

This article first appeared in the Spring 2004 issue of Center Sage, a publication of the Center on Aging & Older-Adult Ministries.

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