Celebrating National Adoption Month with Day by Day Activities
Ideas for Each Day of the Month of November 2011
By Carrie Craft, About.com Guide

Tuesday, November 1
Begin Adoption Month by celebrating your family’s story and sharing it online! Don’t forget to also write it down or print it out and add it to your lifebook/scrapbook.
Wednesday, November 2
-Light a candle as a family for children in foster care who are still waiting for adoptive families. Set the candle outside in a safe place. Ask your neighbors to join you by lighting a candle as well.
Thursday, November 3
-Have secret pals all month long! Place each family member’s name in a hat and have each person draw one. Secretly perform several acts of service for this person or leave them small treats or gifts. Draw a new name each week.
Friday, November 4
– Contact your local paper and/or news media about National Adoption Month. Encourage them to run a positive story about adoption – consider sharing your own story.
Saturday, November 5
– Write out a family mission statement. Ask each member to write down ideas that they feel are important for a great family to have like respect, sharing, and/or honesty. Include goals and dreams.
Sunday, November 6
– Look for events in your area celebrating National Adoption Month and the focus of foster care adoption.
Monday, November 7
– Read adoption themed poems as a family. Consider writing your own to place in a lifebook and/or to send in to adoption@about.com for possible publication on About Adoption.
Tuesday, November 8
-Work on your life books together. Get out those piles of pictures and saved school papers and add them in. Make a goal for each family member to complete 2 pages.
Wednesday, November 9
-Write a thank you note to a foster care agency and thank them for the work they do to help children. If your child was in foster care consider writing to the social worker or judge from his/her case.
Thursday, November 10
-Contact a children’s organization or foster care agency and ask how you can help. For ideas see Ways to Help Children in Foster Care.
Friday, November 11
– Choose a country and discuss as a family how you may be able to help a child in that country who waits in an orphanage. Try researching on the Internet ways to donate care boxes or money. Check references and beware of scams.
Saturday, November 12
-Create your family tree. Complete one about your child’s birth family (if information is known) as well as your adoptive family.
Sunday, November 13
– Create a fun craft as a family. Great gifts for birth and/or adoptive family. Can be easily saved for future reunions with birth family too.
Monday, November 14
-Do something to keep the children in foster care awaiting permanent homes in your thoughts this month. How about cutting out 107 paper dolls (1 for each 1000 in foster care who need adoptive homes) and display in your windows? How about 107 ribbons tied to the limbs of your trees.
Tuesday, November 15
– If you have one, ask your place of worship to offer a special prayer next Sunday for children in foster care waiting for adoption.
Wednesday, November 16
– Subscribe to an adoption themed magazine or one dealing with a specific culture.
Thursday, November 17
-If your child was adopted internationally display the map of his/her homeland in a prominent place in your home. Make a special dinner that is common in your child’s country. For more ideas read Focus on Culture.
Friday, November 18
– Call your local adoption agency and ask if there is a family who needs mentoring as they wait for a child to be placed in their home.
Saturday, November 19
– National Adoption Day!
Sunday, November 20
– Join an adoptive parent support group in your area. If there isn’t any, consider starting your own.
Monday, November 21
-Rent a movie with an adoption theme and watch it as a family. Pop some popcorn and/or make root beer floats.
Tuesday, November 22
-Ask your child to write a letter to his birth parents. Have your child think of questions, tell about himself, and about your home. Include hand drawn pictures and photos. If unable to send, keep for a possible future reunion. His birth parents will cherish this gift.
Wednesday, November 23
– Donate books about adoption to your local or school library.
Thursday, November 24
-Thanksgiving. Enjoy with family and friends. Go around the table and take turns sharing something that you are thankful for.
Friday, November 25
-Decide as a family to join a toy drive or sponsor a waiting child for Christmas. Join the holiday rush to shop and buy some items for the toy drive or sponsored child.
Saturday, November 26
– Have fun with a book about adoption as a family and enjoy the craft and recipe that goes along with the story.
Sunday, November 27
– Search for music with an adoption theme on the Internet.
Monday, November 28
-As a family create fliers detailing the need for adoptive homes and ask to leave them in places of business or use one of these posters. Don’t forget contact numbers to your local foster care/adoption agencies.
Tuesday, November 29
-Take a family photo today. Have a copy framed for each member of the family to be placed in his/her room.
Wednesday, November 30
– Donate book bags and/or suitcases to a local foster care agency so kids don’t have to use trash bags when moving home to home.