Arkansas Restorative Initiative
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Kid Connections

A place for kids, teens and the people who care for them to explore questions, feelings, visits, stories, creativity and the confusing parts of having someone they care about incarcerated.

No intake form. No story you have to tell us. Walk around. Click what feels useful. Skip what doesn't.
Children spending time together
Child with caregiver
Young people learning and creating
🌼🪁
Start anywhere

What do you need today?

This isn't an intake form. It only points you toward a good place to start.

No login required. “My Shelf” lasts only while this page stays open.
The Garden Map

Pick a place and wander in.

Every part of Kid Connections is still here. The garden simply gives you a more playful way to find it.

You can love someone and still be angry with them.
A missed call is not proof you were forgotten.
Grownups don't always have every answer yet.
You can skip anything you don't want to explore.
Friendly Guides

Pick a helper to walk with you.

A softer doorway into questions, visits, feelings and creating.

Wonder Trail

Choose what today feels like.

The page can guide you without asking for your whole story.

Explore Everything

See the whole shelf first.

Search and filters are optional. Everything starts visible.

Family Journey

The system moves in stages. Families feel every one.

Nova says: stories can make a hard question easier to start.
Story Greenhouse · Video Theater

Stories that lead somewhere.

Videos open here, then point to a useful next activity.

Phone Tree

Why didn't they call?

Tap a leaf to explore a possible reason. Then use the full Call Decoder below. A possibility is not a conclusion about one missed call.

Pick a leaf from the tree.
Phone Tree · Practice Call

Practice the call before the call.

ARI Practice Call · No microphone · No recording
0:45
Build your talking list, then start when ready.

What do you want to make sure you say?

Tap as many as you want.

My Talking List
Nothing selected yet.
    Why Didn't They Call?

    A missed call can feel personal when the reason is invisible.

    Tap a possibility. This explains possibilities, not what happened in one specific case.

    One missed call does not prove why it was missed.
    Play

    No scores. Just answers.

    Pick what you think. This does not grade you.

    Why this exists

    Kids often fill silence with explanations: “Was it my fault?” “Did they forget me?” “Do I have to tell people?” This game answers the thought behind the question.

    Nova says: big words don’t have to stay big.
    Question Patch · Justice Word Lab

    What the heck does that mean?

    Pick a word.

    See what it means, what it does not automatically mean, and why a kid might care.

    🧸 Pebble says: we can walk through the visit before the visit.
    Visit Trail · Visit Lab

    Walk through the visit before the visit.

    Every facility differs. This prepares the child for what may happen.

    Visit Backpack

    Pack a few reminders.

    This is a thinking tool, not a list of items allowed inside a facility.

    My backpack: nothing packed yet.
    🪁 Skye says: if talking is hard, making counts too.
    Maker Shed · Create & Connect

    Make something without giving it to the website.

    Stuck? Start here.

    Nothing typed here is sent to ARI.

    Maker Shed · Project Table

    Pick it. Preview it. Print it.

    🦊 Juniper says: more than one feeling can be true at the same time.
    Feelings Garden

    Pick what is growing today.

    Tap any flower that feels close. You can choose several, change your mind, or choose none at all.

    Your feelings can be mixed.

    Tap a flower to see a simple reminder about that feeling.

    0 feelings picked
    Feelings Wall · Another Way to Explore

    There is no required emotion.

    Pick a feeling if you want.

    You can also keep scrolling.

    Teen Loft

    No baby talk.

    Teen students together

    You can care about somebody without pretending this is easy.

    School, siblings, privacy, anger, calls, visits, people knowing, nobody knowing and coming home can all get tangled together.

    This part of Kid Connections starts there.

    Pick a real-life situation.

    See what may be true, what is in your control, and words you can use.

    Caregiver Porch

    Hard questions do not need fake certainty.

    Caregiver and childCaregiver Porch
    Bookshelf

    Sometimes a story explains what a definition cannot.

    Arkansas Corner · Visit Finder

    Find the facility. Then verify the visit.

    Search the Arkansas correctional facility list and use the official source before traveling.

    Resource Library

    More help, without making families hunt for it.

    Trusted national resources plus Arkansas support.

    Sesame Workshop

    Incarceration Collection

    Videos, storybooks, activities and caregiver resources for young children and families.

    Open Sesame Resources
    Youth.gov

    Children of Incarcerated Parents

    Resources for youth, families, schools, corrections staff and caregivers.

    Open Youth.gov
    Rutgers University–Camden

    National Resource Center

    Books, films, programs, fact sheets, research and family resources.

    Open NRCCFI
    Northwest Arkansas

    Growing & Coping Together

    Support for children and adolescents with incarcerated parents or caregivers.

    Visit Organization
    Arkansas

    Mended Hearts & Families

    Family support connected to maintaining parent-child bonds during incarceration.

    Visit Organization
    Official Arkansas Source

    ADC Visitation

    Current official visitation procedures and facility information.

    Check ADC Visitation