Art-Making for Families:

This paper presents an art therapy curriculum for foster care youth and their foster and biological families, created as a method to improve family attachment and decrease the adverse effects of trauma and maladaptive behaviors. Designed to parallel counseling services for the foster care population, this curriculum provides art therapy interventions for foster youth counseling sessions, as well as take-home family art activities. Through careful review of Attachment Theory, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, this curriculum is geared towards the use of art therapy interventions aligned with these methodological perspectives. Furthermore, this curriculum was inspired through the review of work with other community and at-risk art therapy programs, utilizing principles from the open studio and sketchbook models, and emphasizing the strengths in family collaboration.