Without an approved homestudy, I doubt that you'll receive much information on any child at this time. We never received a case file until after we had been selected for a child. You can start asking questions now, but don't be surprised if they go unanswered until you are farther along in the process.

We seen several extremes regarding case histories. My son's file was several inches thick and very informative, including the case files on half-sibs that were removed before he was even born. However, it painted a dire picture of his cognitive abilities. The caseworkers and his foster mom felt strongly about his potential, though, and helped us make a decision based on more than what was on paper.

My daughter's file was very small. She was on a TPR fast track -- bio-mom never appeared for a visit, any counseling, psych evals, nothing. Her rights were terminated in six months.

Our worst experience involved a child that had very serious issues and needed to be in a therapeutic home. However, her worker never believed the things that had been reported about her in past foster homes -- and didn't put that information in the case files. We disrupted that placement because we really weren't qualified to parent her and she was a danger to our son.