The Search for Happiness through Adoption

W

hen couples get married, they usually plan to have children. Sometimes, however, a couple cannot have a child of their own. In this case, they may decide to adopt a child. In fact, adoption is very common today. There are about 130,000 adoptions each year in the United States alone. Some people prefer to adopt infants; others adopt older children. Some couples adopt children from their own countries; others adopt children from foreign countries. Some people adopt children of their same race, i.e., white, black, Asian; others adopt children of different races. In any case, they all adopt children for the same reason: they care about children, and want to give their adopted child a happy life. This includes a comfortable home, a loving family, and a good education.

Most adopted children know that they are adopted. Psychologists and childcare experts generally think this is a good idea. However, many adopted children, or adoptees, have very little information about their biological mother and father. As a matter of fact, it is often very difficult for adoptees to find out about their birth parents because the birth records of most adoptees are usually sealed. The information is confidential, so no one can see it. Sealed documents protect both adoptees and their natural parents.

Naturally, adopted children have different feelings about their birth parents. Many adoptees want to search for them, but others do not. Jake, who is thirteen, was adopted when he was only two and a half months old. He says, “I don’t think I’ll ever search out my birth mother. I might want to get some more facts, but I don’t feel I really want to go looking. Maybe she would be awful and I’d just be disappointed.” Carla, who is twelve, was adopted when she was four years old. Her adoptive parents also adopted another little girl. Carla says, “Sometimes my sister and I will talk. She says she doesn’t want to look for her birth mother when she gets older, but I have mixed feelings. Sometimes I feel that I want to look for herㅡand my mother says she’ll help me when I’m olderㅡbut sometimes I don’t want to look for her at all because I’m scared of finding out what her reactions would be. I worry that she’ll have a whole new life and I’ll just be interfering with that new life. She might not want anyone to know about her past.” Sue, who is thirteen, was adopted when she was a baby. Her family helped her find her birth mother. Sue says, “I think adopted kids should be allowed to search whenever they’re ready. They need to know where they came from. And they need to know what their medical history is. As soon as I searched and found the information I was looking for, I felt more worthwhile in the world. Beforehand, a part of me had always been missing.”

The decision to search for birth parents is a difficult one to make. Most adoptees, like Carla, have mixed feelings about finding their biological parents. Even though adoptees do not know about their past or their natural parents, they do know that their adoptive parents want them, love them, and will care for them.

#1 Worksheet

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Check whether they are True or False.

ㅡ True ㅡ False Adoption is common in the United States.

ㅡ True ㅡ False People only adopt babies of their same race.

ㅡ True ㅡ False Most adopted children don’t know they are adopted.

ㅡ True ㅡ False It is easy for adopted children to find their birth parents.

ㅡ True ㅡ False Most adoption birth records are confidential.

ㅡ True ㅡ False Jake wants to find his birth mother.

ㅡ True ㅡ False Sue found her birth mother.

#2 Worksheet

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Fill in the chart below with information from the reading.

Feelings About Adoption
Name	Do These People Think It Is A Good Idea To Find Birth parents?	Reasons
Childcare Experts	Yes/ No/ I don’t know	childcare experts generally think this is a good idea
Jake	Yes/ No/ I don’t know
Carla	Yes/ No/ I don’t know
Sue	Yes/ No/ I don’t know

#2 Worksheet

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Imagine that you want to adopt a child.

What kind of child do you want? Describe the child’s age, race, sex, etc.

Why do you want to adopt this particular kind of child?

What kind of life do you want for your adopted child?