Psychoeducation
Foster Care
Mentoring foster children: Psychoeducation in action
One of the developmental challenges for foster children is finding positive role models, particularly if they experience frequent upsets in their daily routine as they shift from one home to another. Other adults can act as mentors to provide a stabilizing force in children's lives such as adults involved in Big Brothers/Big Sisters-type programs. Positive authority figures, both formal and informal are necessary to support normative development. Outside activities; spending time with children; and offering academic and personal support such as tutoring and counseling must be conducted in an appropriate way but can provide a vital source of positive reinforcement. Ideally, mentoring should be an enriching and entertaining experience but should also contain elements of psychoeducational interventions which encompass problem-solving strategies for the child's problems. Psychoeducation encompasses the principles of "behavioral therapy, self-assertiveness training, problem-solving training, communication training, and further family therapy interventions…Psychoeducation looks to combine the factor of empowerment of the affected with scientifically founded treatment expertise in as efficient a manner as possible" (Baum et al. 2006).
A useful approach for mentors is to combine educational activities with mentoring. This might include a visit to a local library or bookstore. Mentors can offer to help students with their homework. Visiting local science and art museums can reinforce lessons taught in school. Even 'fun' visits, like...
Ideally, outings should be fun, interactive, and good learning experiences. Although going to the movies or to a toy store might be preferred by the child, ideally engaging the child in some kind of stimulating and hands-on activity is best. For example, instead of going out for ice cream, baking cookies from scratch together, including: buying the ingredients; measuring the ingredients; and learning about different recipes is a more interactive activity. Accomplishing hands-on tasks also gives the child a needed sense of autonomy and accomplishment.
Many at-risk children in low-income settings do not have safe areas to play or the funds to engage in extracurricular activities. Making some form of physical activity a priority, such as playing pick-up basketball, riding a bike, or playing on playground equipment in a safe area can be an important source of health education and also an outlet for the child's energy. The mentor can have a valuable role in setting the tone for the child's future attitude towards exercise. Providing basic instruction in a noncompetitive environment can help to break down any hesitation the child may feel about participating.
When providing instruction, foster mentors must be prepared to deal with children who have had negative experiences in academic settings, particularly if they have been moved from home to home on a frequent basis. The founding principles of psychoeducation are "briefing the patients…problem solving training, communication training, and…
