The following chapters are many and stand alone, but also work well as a cohesive whole.
- Congratulations: You’re Raising a TCK! by Patricia Linderman
- Bombay baby: Pregnancy Abroad by Karryn Miller
- Right Next Door But Worlds Away: Our Adoption Story by Gretel Backman Patch
- Overseas Schools: A Parent’s Guide by Anne Allen Sillivan
- British School Overseas by Katie Jagelski
- French School Overseas by Rory Burnham Pickett
- Looking at the Boarding School Option by Rebecca Grappo
- Homeschooling in the Foreign Service: Doubly Unusual! by Amy Macy
- U.S. College Admission and the Foreign Service Teen by Francesca Huemer Kelly
- Comparing Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate
- Gifted and Talented Children in the Foreign Service by Leah Moorfield Evans
- The Art of Acquiring a Second Language by Jen Kirk Dinoia
- Living Overseas When Your Child has Special Needs by Lauren Salazar
- When Kids Struggle Overseas by Rebecca Grappo
- Raising a Child with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder by Laurie Kelleher
- Prepare Before You Hit the Air: Going Abroad with your Special Needs Child by Michelle Grappo
- Staying Safe While Living Abroad by Shelly Goode-Burgoyne
- Saying Cheers In three Languages: Foreign Service Kids Talk About Alcohol by Laura Tasharski
- Tandem Couples and Kids by Amy and Joshua Archibald
- The Single Parent and the Foreign Service by Tamara Shie
- How to Manage Parenting and Working in the Foreign Service by Marcelle Yeager
- Joy for a Dime and a song: A Case for a Washington, D.C., Tour with Children by Laura Merzig Fabrycky
- An Unacompanied Tour by Amanda Fernandez
- Mothering Across the Miles by Anne Aguilera
- Transitions with Kids by Lexy Boudreau
- Traveling with Kids by Ana Gabriela Turner
- Starting New by Miriam Engstrom
- The Ties that RemindL Maintaining a Connection to the Home You Left Behind by Julie Tully
- Tame that Clutter and Make your Move Easier! by Tara Kniew-Fraiture
- The Oxygen Mask – Mindfulness for Foreign Service Parents by Jodi Harris
- Patchwork Parenting, Quilted Kids by Laura Tasharski
- Resources for Parents in the Foreign Service by Nicole Schaefer-McDaniel
This up-to-date look at all the education options available to globally mobile families is a fairly quick read but surprisingly comprehensive. For parents wanting to know all the options and their pros and cons, I would highly recommend Wrobbel’s book. She takes an honest look at each option and gives her experienced opinion in an unbiased manner. The appendices at the end also offer helpful education resources.
The chapters include:
- So You’re Moving Overseas
- Intentional Planning for Children’s Education Overseas
- International Schools
- Host-Country Schools
- Homeschooling
- Distance Education
- Boarding School
- One-Room School or Homeschool Cooperative
- Special Education Needs
- Transitioning Between Educational Options
- Educational Planning for the Transition to University and Adulthood
- Living and Thriving in the Host Culture
“TCKs: A Gift To Care For” is an excellent addition to comprehensive books about TCKs. I would say this differs from Pollock and Van Reken’s classic “Third Culture Kids” book in that there is a focus on developmental stages, child psychology and it includes many many practical activities for parents to do with their children. These activities help children to integrate experiences and thoughts into their bodies for a holistic approach to TCK care.
This book is on the larger side (405 pages) which may seem daunting, but it’s used best when you pick and choose the chapters that are relevant to you and your kids. You don’t need to read the whole thing at once but look for the information and activities that are best suited to your current needs. And then open the book again later when you want something else!
Included in the chapters sections are:
- A Gift to Care For
- Transitions and Emotions
- Identity and Beliefs
- Relationships and Globalization
- Stress and Structure
- Grief and Joy
- Developmental and Long-term Goals
- Protection and Boundaries
- Debriefing and Storytelling
- The Power of Getting Together
- What Can We Do?
Available in English and Swedish now with Portuguese, Chinese, Spanish coming soon.
This compilation of essays and blog posts has a refreshing range of topics and authors from differing perspectives. There are some essays from experts like Ruth Van Reken but the majority seem to be from normal TCKs and parents of TCKs, sharing their experiences and insecurities. Rather than giving out facts and advice, the majority of essays are very personal and introduce questions and things to think about rather than answers.
The essays are grouped into these sections:
Discovering Third Culture Kids
Parenting Third Culture Kids
Struggling Third Culture Kids
Transitioning Third Culture Kids
Thriving as Third Culture Kids
This is a short but eminently practical book about helping Third Culture Kids process emotions related to grief and trauma. Lauren Wells, herself an adult TCK, applies research on the impact of Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs) to TCK experience, noting the various types of experiences that may leave TCKs with unresolved grief and pain.
She then uses the term Grief Tower to paint a picture of how painful experiences may stack up when TCKs don’t have the opportunity or support to process them. And what happens when the tower gets too high? It comes crashing down, making a tremendous mess! To prevent that, Lauren offers practical activities parents and TCKs can do to purposefully deconstruct those Grief Towers piece by piece.
This little book is quick and easy to read, and whether you are an expat parent, a professional working with TCKs, or even a TCK yourself, it is well worth your time.
Der kleine Hase Löwezahn zieht von Hasenhausen, wo er mit seinen Hasenfreunden lebt, in eine andere Stadt in einem anderen Land. Hier ist er der einzige Hase unter vielen verschiedenen Tieren. Er ist ratlos wie er hier Freunde finden soll, da alle so anders sind als er. Doch als er genauer beobachtet, merkt er, dass die Tiere doch miteinander spielen. Nach längerem Nachdenken weiß er auch warum: Alle diese Tiere haben trotz ihrer Verschiedenheit eine Gemeinsamkeit gefunden die sie verbindet und das Band der Freundschaft entstehen lässt.
This book is also available in English and French
