Credit hours:
2.50

Course Summary

For youth who have been living in foster care, the transition to adulthood presents many new and often daunting experiences. This course provides foster parents with guidance on how to help youth and emerging adults build a foundation for a successful transition to adult life outside of foster care.

In this course, you can expect to learn:

  • Unique challenges youth face when exiting foster care

  • Adolescent development and changes in the brain as related to supporting youth in care

  • Laws and programs to support transition aged youth

  • The critical role of foster parents in transition planning and action

  • Tools to empower foster youth to prepare for the transition to adulthood

Step 1

Read this FosterClub Real Story written by Shawn Denise Semelsberger on aging out of foster care unprepared for the drastic transition. 

Step 2

FosterClub recommends foster youth do 21 things before they transition out of care to make sure they have a successful journey to independence. Read FosterClub's "It's T Time" to become familiar with steps foster youth should take before they leave foster care.

Step 3

Read this FosterClub Real Story written by Ricky Ballesteros, who provides valuable youth perspective about why transition planning is important.

Step 4

Review "Helping Youth Transition to Adulthood: Guidance for Foster Parents" developed by the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

Step 5

Join the discussion in the comments below to answer the following question:

When do you think a young person should begin their transition plan, and what are some important considerations as a supportive adult in their life?

Step 6

Finished the module? If you are logged in as a subscribed user, take the quiz to earn your Continuing Education Credit hours and certificate!

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Course Discussion

gdmj0311's picture
4 months 4 weeks ago

gdmj0311 said:

I'm a firm believer that you can never start preparing kids to early. we have started preparing our 16yo foster child for the past few months so she can mentally start to realize how quickly the time can slip away and we want her to succeed.
blcourts's picture
6 months 2 weeks ago

blcourts said:

There are many programs and safeguards for children to protect, transition into foster care and do well. There should be similar programs and safeguards for teens that will most likely age out of the system. This course has been a great eye opener for extra things to incorporate into having teen foster children.
sarahhmiller1970@gmail.com's picture
1 year 4 months ago

sarahhmiller197... said:

Foster kids (all kids really) should begin learning transition type skills as they approach the end of their high school - so I guess around age 16 or so.
wrmiller13@gmail.com's picture
1 year 4 months ago

[email protected] said:

In my opinion - the transition plan should begin at about age 16 - and ramp up as a foster child moves closer to age 18 / high school graduation. Waiting too long means trying to teach and learn too many things and skills too quickly. Some things will always be lost / set aside at that point.
latoyals's picture
1 year 4 months ago

latoyals said:

I believe they should start their transition plan at 16years
Hannaht1's picture
1 year 7 months ago

Hannaht1 said:

I belive that preparing for transition should begin at like age 14, that's 8th or 9th grade. Have them make the shopping list for the household sometimes or help them open a checking account show them how to balance a check book, things like that.
Charetta's picture
1 year 9 months ago

Charetta said:

Making sure that child is perpaired for transition with showing them how to take care of themselves with everyday skills.
annalecomte's picture
1 year 9 months ago

annalecomte said:

Transitioning planning should begin when a youth enters high school. They can slowly practice things like filling out paperwork with guidance so that things like that aren't foreign to them by the time they age out. These are things that bio kids should do as well, but kids in foster care often need more support due to not having positive adult role models for part of their lives.
kateem02's picture
1 year 10 months ago

kateem02 said:

Transition planning should begin when the child is either 14 or in the ninth grade (whichever comes first) , since the classes, career and life preparation courses taken at this time influence the youth's ability to attend college.
roberta838's picture
1 year 11 months ago

roberta838 said:

Where is the certificate for taking the course