View: Wednesday's Child video for Hunter

If you have completed an adoption homestudy and would like to have your information forwarded to this child's worker, contact us.

HUNTER (10/00) is an adorable boy of African American and Caucasian heritage. Affectionate and likeable, he is very smart and observant and loves to learn. Some of his favorite pastimes are playing video games, riding bikes, and playing with his toy trucks. He also enjoys soccer, softball, skateboarding, and playing outside. Hunter, who enjoys older children, does best when he can be the youngest child in the home. Legally free, Hunter came into foster care in October 2003.

Since then, Hunter has become very responsive to strong, healthy male involvement at home, school, and therapy. He also enjoys being nurtured by mother figures.

Hunter’s special needs are thought to be rooted in his early environment, biological history, and prenatal exposure to drugs. Weekly counseling and medication therapy (the medications help lessen his attention difficulties and curb his anxiety) are important components of his intervention program. Although he qualified in his school program last year for speech, occupational, and physical therapies to address a slight speech impediment and weakness in his ankles, he is so much better now that he is no longer eligible for those services.

Hunter is most apt to be successful at home and at school when he has structure, a predictable daily routine, simple, clear, consistent rules, expectations, and limits, and kind, attentive supervision to help redirect him on the spot if needed. It is when he has unstructured time, such as recess as school, that he typically gets into difficulty. Hunter, who will be in second grade in the fall of 2008, has tested within average range for reading and written language and above average in math.

Easily overly stimulated and subject to hyper-arousal, Hunter struggles with his high energy, difficulty focusing, mood swings, and soothing himself. Having a caring adult nearby to redirect him can help him get back on track. Although he generally like other kids, he has not yet learned to share and can still be too rough in his interactions and play. He is also too rough with animals, although he is gentle with his foster parents’ dog.

Hunter is able to learn best when the information he is given is presented in very simple, concrete terms. Visual aids, too, help him understand what he is supposed to do in various situations.

Hunter’s worker is interested in hearing from two-parent families with lots of daily time and attention to provide to a new family member. It will be important for his adoptive folk(s) to have a good grasp of how early neglect and abuse amidst parental substance abuse, mental health issues, and domestic violence can interfere with a child’s sense of well being and safety, and his overall development. Being the youngest child in his adoptive family will help give Hunter a nice boost forward. Of course, Hunter adoptive folk(s) need to take pride in his heritage and make sure he has opportunities to feel connected to the African American community as he is growing up.


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