Beginners Guide to Adoption Terminology
Our friends at Family Advocacy Law Firm have created a thoughtful and comprehensive guide to basic adoption terminology. It’s a great resource for anyone beginning the adoption journey. Throughout the guide, we’ve added notes on how certain terms apply to adoption profile books because language matters. The words you choose can either invite connection or unintentionally turn an expectant parent away.
Adoption is always evolving, and so is the vocabulary surrounding it. Staying current with positive adoption language not only shows respect for everyone involved, it also helps you create a profile book that feels welcoming, authentic, and mindful.
One of our priorities at Our Chosen Child is to positively influence the adoption conversation. Expectant parents, birth families, and adoptive families all benefit when we speak with care, and society as a whole gains a better understanding of adoption. We hope this guide serves as a helpful starting point.
Adoptee
A person who was adopted
Adoption
Legal establishment of parent and child relationship
Adoption assistance
Monthly subsidy payments that help parents of children with special needs who were adopted
Adoption attorney
An attorney who files, processes, and finalizes adoptions in court; in some cases, these attorneys can also help arrange matches between expectant mothers and hopeful adoptive families
Adoption plan
A personalized plan developed by an expectant mother and documented by an adoption attorney that details her wishes for the placement of her child
Adoption support coordinator
A person who helps expectant mothers and hopeful adoptive families navigate the delicate process of adoption with joy and confidence
Adoption triad
The major parties of an adoption: birth family, adoptive family, and the child who was adopted
Birth mother or birth father
A person who has placed their child for adoption and signed papers to terminate their parental rights (also called first father/mother)
This is a very common term used in adoption profile books and each agency, attorney, or adoption professional has their preference in using birth mother vs. expectant parent
Closed adoption
An adoption where there is no communication between the birth family and adoptive family and all records are sealed
Consent to adopt
A birth parent’s legal permission for their child to be adopted
Disrupted adoption
An adoption that has been stopped by the birth family taking custody of the child; occurs before finalization
Expectant mother
A woman who is pregnant and considering adoption for her child
Finalization
The final step in the adoption process; the adoptive family appears at a court hearing where the judge orders that the adoption be granted and the adoptive parents be named the legal, permanent parents of the child
Home study
The process through which an accredited agency educates and evaluates prospective adoptive families
ICPC
The Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children; the law that establishes uniform practices regarding the adoption of a child across states
Identifying information
Information from birth families or adoptive families that reveals their identity
OCC can remove any and all identifying information in your adoption profile book, We can remove house numbers, vehicle plates, and logos or tags in your photos.
Independent adoption
An adoption not facilitated by an adoption agency
Kinship adoption
An adoption by a biological relative
Legal risk placement
The placement of a child into an adoptive home prior to the birth parents‘ parental rights being terminated
Open adoption
An adoption that involves varying amount of initial and/or ongoing contact between the birth family and adoptive family ranging from letters and pictures to calls and visits
Placement
The period of time between when the child to be adopted lives with the adopted family and the adoption is finalized
‘Placement’ or ‘placed’ are important terms we think you should use in your profile book.
Post-placement visits
Visits conducted by an accredited agency or social worker to provide counseling and support to the adoptive family after placement has occurred and before the adoption is finalized
Private adoption
See independent adoption
Private agencies
Agencies not associated with the government
Public agencies
Social service agencies run by the state or individual counties; these agencies mostly deal with children in foster care
Relinquishment
When an expectant mother voluntarily terminates her parental rights
Revocation period
The period of time a birth mother has to change her mind and regain custody of her child after she has signed consent; revocation periods vary from state-to-state; in South Carolina, for example, there is no revocation period and the birth mother cannot regain custody of the child; however, in Georgia, there is a four day revocation period
Search
The attempt to locate and/or communicate with a birth parent or biological child
Semi-open adoption
The birth family and adoptive family meet one or two times but reveal no identifying information
Transracial adoption
An adoption in which the child and adoptive family are not of the same race
Waiting children
Children in the public foster care or welfare system who cannot be returned to their birth families and are waiting to be adopted by loving families
Your child
Referring to an expectant parent’s child as ‘your child’ versus ‘our child’ is important because it removes the assumption that the expectant parent will choose adoption
We suggest clients use ‘your child’ versus ‘our child’ as much as possible in adoption profile books!
