ADD
Attention Deficit Disorder

ADHD
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

AEA
Adoption Exchange Association

AFCARS
Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System. AFCARS is a system for collecting data on children in foster care and children who have been adopted. State child welfare agencies are responsible for reporting to the federal government on children in the state's foster care system, and on children who have been adopted under the auspices of the state child welfare agency.

ASFA
Adoption and Safe Families Act

acting out
When describing a child's behavior, acting out refers to expression of emotions, particularly feelings such as anger, sadness, through actions as opposed to words. Behavior which may be appropriate to younger children, such as a throwing a temper tantrum, may fall into the category of acting out for an older child. Children who have been sexually abused may engage in sexual acting out behavior.

addendum
An addendum, also called an update, is a brief addition made to a homestudy to bring its contents up to date, and keep the homestudy current and usable.

adoptee
A person who joins a family through adoption. An adoptee may be an adult who was adopted as a child.

adoption
A permanent, legally binding arrangement through which a person, usually a child or teenager, becomes a member of a new family. In this arrangement, persons other than the birthparents assume all parental rights and obligations. The birthparents no longer have these rights and obligations and are no longer the legal parents of the child.

adoption agency
An organization that is licensed to prepare families to adopt children and/or to place waiting children with adoptive families.

adoption assistance agreement
An adoption assistance agreement is an arrangement for providing assistance to families who adopt children with special needs who are in the custody of a state or county department. In addition to financial assistance (subsidy), it may include a service subsidy, to cover needs such as respite care or medical equipment. An adoption assistance agreement should be completed and signed prior to finalization.

adoption assistance programs
State and federal programs that provide financial and medical assistance to help parents care for children with special needs.

adoption benefits
Benefits to employees who are adopting a child or children, offered by some employers. They may include adoption information and referral services, paid or unpaid leave time, and/or financial reimbursement.

adoption certificate, adoption decree
An adoption certificate may also be called an adoption decree . A legal document issued by the court upon finalization of an adoption that certifies a child has been adopted, the adoption has been finalized, and the adoptee is the legal child of the adoptive parents.

adoption exchange
An adoption exchange is an organization that assists in matching children in need of homes with parents wishing to adopt. As a rule, exchanges do not approve families for adoption, have children in their custody, or place children. However, they work closely with agencies that do these things, and perform other support and resource services, such as maintaining web sites featuring photolistings of waiting children. Families may register themselves or have their worker register them with one or more exchanges. Many exchanges are run by state governments, while others are run by non-profit organizations.

adoption petition
An adoption petition or intent to adopt petition is a brief document which gives identifying information about the adoptive parents and the child to be adopted. This, together with the adoptive parents' homestudy, is filed with the court to initiate adoption proceedings.

adoption plan
An individual plan a particular set of birth parents makes for the adoption of their child. "Making an adoption plan for a child" is a positive alternative to phrases such as "giving up a baby" or "putting a child up for adoption."

adoption triad
The three major people in an adoption: birth parent, adoptive parent, and adopted child or adult adopted person. The term "adoption triad" has generally replaced the less positive "adoption triangle." "Adoption circle" may also be used.

adoptive parent, adoptive family
A person or persons who become the permanent parents through adoption, with all the social, legal rights and responsibilities of any parent.

advocacy
Active support, defense, arguing for a cause, idea, or policy. As a prospective adoptive parent, you are encouraged to become your own advocate as you are navigating your way through the adoption process , acquiring the skills and knowledge to be an active participant in moving the process along. These advocacy skills will continue to be valuable after placement, to ensure that the adopted child receives needed services, such as medical care and appropriate educational placement.

affidavit
A legal document in which the party who makes it swears that the information contained in the document is true and correct to the best of his or her knowledge.

age out
Aging out, or aging out of the foster care system refers to a young person reaching the age of 18 and therefore no longer being considered eligible for adoption. Plans are usually made to prepare the youth for independent living.

agency, adoption agency
An organization that is licensed to prepare families to adopt children and/or to place waiting children with adoptive families.

agency adoption
An adoption that is arranged by a public or private adoption agency, as opposed to an independent adoption or private adoption, which may be arranged by an adoption lawyer or other facilitator.

amended birth certificate
The document issued after a child has been adopted reflecting the adoptive parents as the child's parents.

Apgar scores
Apgar scores or Apgars are the results of a series of brief tests given to newborn infants. Five areas are tested, with two points given in each area. For an infant in good condition, the highest possible score is ten. The areas tested are heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, reflexes and color. Scores are generally taken at one minute and five minutes after birth.

approved
A family approved to adopt is one that has completed the homestudy process and for whom the homestudy document has been written or updated, signed, and dated within the past year (or other period specified by the state in which the family lives).

available
Refers to a waiting child who is currently in need of an adoptive family and ready to begin the adoption process as soon as a family is located. Many in the adoption community prefer the more positive terms "waiting child" or "child in need of a family."