At FESC, we want to provide you with information to help you help your children cope with the stress of divorce. One way to do that is to help you cope with the stress of reorganizing your family as you and your now ex-spouse go through a divorce. This means we want to help you be better prepared to be calm (or at least look like it) in the moments of chaos that are bound to come along.
Here are some handouts that we talk about in class.
To Find local MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, Click here: Professional Resource List
Information and Resources for parents and children
Note: The list of resources is constantly updated and is designed to correspond to the age of your children or situation, but there is a lot of overlap, and you will find lessons embedded in all the information.
YOUNGER CHILDREN
- Brown, Laurene Krasny. Dinosaurs Divorce. 1988. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
- Camden, Marian Louise, PsyD. Going Back and Forth: a joint custody story. 2017. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform. (Also in Spanish)
- Camden, Marian Louise, PsyD. Where Do My Sister and Brother Go? 2016. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform. (Also in Spanish) (Ages 5-6)
- Coffett, Nancy. Fred Stays with Me! 2007. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (ages 5-9)
- Gray, Kes. Mom and Dad Glue. 2009. B.E.S. Publishing (ages 5-8)
- Karst, Patrice. The Invisible String. 2000. DeVorss & Company (ages 3-6)
- Karst, Patrice. The Invisible String Workbook: Creative Activities to Comfort, Calm, and Connect. 2019 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
- Kisovec, Polana. Shine: Why Don’t Moon Fairy and Sun Prince Live Together? 2017. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
- Masurel, Claire. Two Homes. 2003 by Candlewick Press. (ages 3-6)
- Ransom, Jeanie Franz. I Don’t Want to Talk About It. 2000. Magination Press. (5-8)
- Thomas, Pat. My Family’s Changing. (ages 3-6)
- Walsh, Melanie. Living with Mom and Living with Dad. 2012. Candlewick Press. (3-7)
- White, Kathryn. When They Fight. 2000 by Winslowhouse International. (ages 3+)
MIDDLE SCHOOL YEARS
- Baker, Amy J. L., and Katherine C. Andre. Getting Through My Parents’ Divorce: a workbook for children coping with divorce, parental alienation, and loyalty conflicts. 2015. Instant Help. (5-12)
- Blume, Judy. It’s Not the End of the World. 2014. Athenaeum Book for Young Readers. (8-12)
- Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown is Green with Envy 2004. Scholastic. (ages 8-12)
- Danziger, Paula. The Divorce Express. 2001. Hodder Children’s (ages 10-12)
- Holyoke, Nancy. A Smart Girl’s Guide to Her Parents’ Divorce. 2012. American Girl Publishing.
- Kisovec, Polona. Shine: Why Don’t Moon Fairy & Sun Prince Live Together? A story of unconditional love for the children of separated or divorced parents. 2017. (Gr. K-9) (Also in Spanish)
- Ricci, Isolina. Mom’s House, Dad’s House for Kids. 2006. Touchstone (ages 10-12)
- Stern, Zoe, and Evan Stern. Divorce is Not the End of the World: Zoe’s and Evan’s coping guide for kids. 2008. Tricycle Press.
TEENAGERS
- Blake, Ashley Herring. Suffer Love.. 2016. HMH Books for Young Readers.
- Buscemi, Karen. Split in Two: keeping it together when your parents live apart. 2009. Zest Books.
- Dessen, Sarah. Whatever Happened to Goodbye. 2011. Viking Press.
- Diaz, Natasha. Color Me In. 2019. Delacorte Press.
- Draper, Sharon M. Blended. 2018. Athenaeum Books for Young Readers.
- Kade, Stacy. Finding Felicity. 2018. Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers.
- King, A S. Still Life With Tornado. 2016. Dutton Books for Young Readers.
- King, A S. The Year We Fell From Space. 2019. Arthur A. Levine Books.
- Myers, Lily. This Impossible Light. 2017. Philomel Books.
- Norfleet, Celest O. Pushing Pause (Keneisha Lewis #1). 2007. Harlequin Press.
- Recca, Sophia. Mend: a story of divorce. (Zuiker Teen Topics). 2018. Zuiker Press.
- Ribay, Randy. An Infinite Number of Parallel Universes2015. Merrit Press.
- Schab, Lisa M. The Divorce Workbook for Teens. 2008. Instant Help.
- Skinner, Vicky. How to Breathe Under Water. 2018. Swoon Reads.
- Triana, Gaby. Summer of Yesterday. 2014. Simon Pulse
SPANISH LANGUAGE BOOKS TO SHARE WITH KIDS
- Camden, Marian, PsyD. De Ida y Vuelta: Una historia sobre la custodia compartida. 2017. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform. (grades 2-3)
- Camden Marian, PsyD. ¿Adónde van mi hermano y mi hermana?: Una historia para niños pequeños en familias mezcladas. 2016. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform.
- Carbonell, Paula. Valentina tiene dos casas (Miau). 2017. Ediciones Jaguar. (3-6 yrs)
- Ippen, Chandra Ghosh. Cuando No Estabas Conmigo. 2019. Piplo Productions. (3-12yrs)
- Kisovec, Polona. Brilla: ¿Por qué el Hada Luna y el Príncipe Sol no viven juntos?: Una historia de ficción excepcional que explica el divorcio y la separación a los niños. 2019. (Spanish Edition) [Print Replica] Kindle Edition.
- Licitra, Jimena. Con ojos de niño. 2016. Cuento de Luz
- MacGregor, Cynthia. El Divorcio Explicado a los Ninos: Como Ayudar A los Ninos A Afrontar el Divorcio de Sus Padres. 2004. Obelisco.
- Mallinos, Jennifer Moore. Cuando Mis Dejaron de Ser Amigos. (Spanish Ed). 2006. Edebe.
- Mansour, Vivian. La Mala del Cuento. 2009. Fondo de Cultura Economica.
- Roca, Marichel. Drilo: Mama y Papa Ya No Viven Juntos. 2017. Urano (PreSch-3rd)
- Spelman, Cornelia Maude. El Divorcio de Mama y Papa Oso. 2006. Grupa
- Editorial Norma. (3rs+)
Parents with TRANSGENDER children,
- Michelle Minette’s wonderful resource page. Michelle’s resources are much broader than just gender and sexually diverse (GSD) kids and adults, there are also specific resources there. Michelle was a long-time Parenting Instructor and helped build our c0-parenting curriculum.
- Free Mom Hugs: An organization of parents working to empower the world to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community through visibility, education, and conversation.
- Proud Parenting: A website with the latest news and information impacting LGBTQ+ lives and the lives of their families.
- Translife provides resources for families and youth, including a vocabulary list with additional links to more information. In English and Spanish:
BOOKS for ADULTS
- Baker, Amy J. L., and Paula Fine. Co-Parenting with a Toxic Ex: what to do when your ex-spouse tries to turn the kids against you. 2014. New Harbinger.
- Behrman, Lauren J, and Jeffrey Zimmerman. Loving Your Children More Than You Hate Each Other: powerful tools for navigating a high-conflict divorce 2018. New Harbinger.
- Bonkowski, Sarah. Tots Are Non-Divorceable: a workbook for divorcing parents and their children. 1998. ACTA Publications.
- Bonnell, Karen. The Co-Parenting Handbook: Raising well-adjusted and resilient kids from little ones to young adults through divorce or separation. 2017. Sasquatch Books
- Emery, Robert E. The Truth about Children and Divorce: Dealing with the Emotions So You and Your Children Can Thrive. 2006. Plume Books.
- Lemen, Kevin. Single Parenting That Works: 6 keys to raising happy, healthy children in a single-parent home 2006. Tyndale House Publishers.
- Paulsen, Shannon Rios. Healthy Children of Divorce in 10 Simple Steps: Minimizing the effects of divorce on your children 2017 Life Threads Books.
- Priebe, Heidi. This is Me Letting You Go: how to turn a devastating loss into the best thing that ever happened to you. 2016 by Thought Catalog Books
- Simons, Rae. Single Parent Families. 2010. Mason Crest Publishers.
- Trafford, Abagail. Crazy Time: Surviving Divorce and Building a New Life. 1992 by Harper Perennial.
REMARRIAGE AND STEPFAMILIES
- Baksh, Nadir. 8 Strategies for Successful Step-Parenting. 2010. Hohm Press.
- LeBey, Barbara. Remarried with Children: 10 secrets for successfully blending and extending your family 2005. Bantam.
- Smith-Broersma. Stepparent to Stepparent: Answers to Fifty Common Questions Stepparents Ask. 2004. Kregal Publications.
- Turchenko, Jed, and Jenny. 131 Conversations for Step Family Success: how to grow intimacy, parent as a team, and build a joyful home. 2017. Create Space Independent Publishing.
- Weiss-Wisdom, Diana. Wisdom on Step-Parenting: How to Succeed Where Others Fail. 2012. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.
APPS
The following Apps provide opportunities for divorced parents to share information documents and schedule events with each other and their children.
Truece: Basic Service is Free. www.truece.com , Google Play, and Apple Store. The app for today’s co-parent for coordinating schedules and records between parents and professionals.
TalkingParents.www.Talkingparents.com Provides an unalterable record of past conversations, helping to avoid child-custody disputes and minimize tensions. Shared calendar to coordinate events
CoParenter. fee required – Collaborate, cooperate and make better parenting decisions for your children. Organize & Connect, Plan & Agree, Mediation & Coaching, Records & Evidence.
Cozi. Free. Apple Store and Google Play Store. PC/Mac, Apple, or Android. Organizer for Families: coordinate & communicate everyone’s schedules and activities, manage to-do lists, and keep the family on the same page. Anyone in the family can access the shared information so that it can be used with adults and children.
Partnership. The first month is Free, but after, it is fee-based. Has everything you need to commit to organized co-parenting.
2Houses. Fee-based Pricing is per Family, not per Parent. Apple and Google
WEBSITES
BUTLER County Child Support Enforcement Agency.
note: every county is a little different, so you can find your specific county’s website to be sure.
The Butler County Child Support Enforcement Agency is dedicated to serving the public to assure a higher quality of life and a better future for our children. The CSEA helps families by establishing paternity, collecting child support, enforcing support and medical orders, and modifying support orders.
The child support program ensures parents support their children, encourages family responsibility, and reduces the cost of welfare to taxpayers.
The Center for Nonviolent Communication
The Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC) is a global organization that supports the learning and sharing of Nonviolent Communication (NVC), and helps people peacefully and effectively resolve conflicts in personal, organizational, and political settings.
Children’s Success Foundation: The Nurtured Heart Approach
The Nurtured Heart Approach® is a relationship-focused methodology founded strategically in The 3 Stands™ for helping children (and adults) build their Inner Wealth™ and use their intensity in successful ways. It has become a powerful way of awakening the inherent greatness in all children while facilitating parenting and classroom success.
CoParenter.
coParenter is a mission-driven social venture that promotes the well-being of children. We do this by providing education, tools, and technology to help parents communicate, optimize their coParenting skills, and make better, more informed, child-centric decisions for their kids.
Mindful
https://www.mindful.org/about-mindful/
Mindful is a mission-driven non-profit. We’re dedicated to inspiring, guiding, and connecting anyone who wants to explore mindfulness—to enjoy better health, more caring relationships, and compassionate society.
Videos
Seated Progressive muscle relaxation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cBVjHWuXnE