29 July Making Your House Your Home: How to Move During the School Year July 29, 2024 By Melisa Rana Just for Fun kids, new homeowner 0 MAKING YOUR HOUSE YOUR HOME: HOW TO MOVE DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR July 29, 2024 | Just For Fun | new homeowner, kids The experience of moving into a new home has an element of excitement and an element of stress. Either way you slice it, a new home is a new adventure. While adults tend to have the maturity to navigate moving with an adequate amount of grace, change is tough on a kid. Inevitably, emotions can run high. Some moves are planned, but others can be more short notice, the result of a career change or a dream home becoming available. Most families try to move during the summer, seeking a smoother transition for school-aged children, but moving during the school year can have its own benefits with the right preparation. If you’re anticipating a major move during this school year, here are a few tips to help your kids through the transition. Mid-Year Moves vs. Summertime Switches First things first, summer is a clear favorite for homebuyers, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best time for kids to get a first impression of their new school or their new neighborhood. Parents that facilitate their kids' transition to a new home, especially one in a new town or a new state, should prioritize plugging their kids into a new community. Oftentimes, summers just aren’t the best time to accomplish this. Summers are the most common time for families to take vacations and for kids to attend summer camps, which can make it hard to sync schedules with neighbors and potential new friends. Word of mouth can be the best way to get advice on which extracurricular activities are the best to join or which stores and restaurants are great to check out. Homeowners moving into a new area need to make an effort to get to know their neighbors, something prioritized less and less in recent years. The benefits are off the charts and will have the entire family easing into their new space much faster. Transitioning to a New School Turning a house into a home may be as easy as allowing for some time to pass and integrating with the neighborhood, but adapting to a new school can be more difficult for kids. Making new friends, getting to know their teachers, and even navigating the school grounds will take time and practice, which is why many prefer moving during the summer. The thought is that, while being “the new kid” comes with its own struggles, things can be a bit easier when everyone else is also dealing with the same growing pains of a new year. This isn’t always the case, though! While moving midyear does mean that students have to tackle the challenges of being “new” alone, teachers, classmates, and school administration will have found their own rhythm to the year. Kids are then more likely to receive any extra attention they might need to help them acclimate since their teachers will have a bit more bandwidth to ease them into their classrooms. Moving to a new school is always tough, but avoiding the chaos of the early school year can be a benefit. Parents who want to make their children’s transition as smooth as possible should prioritize establishing their child’s new routine quickly. For younger kids, that means going over where and when they can expect to be picked up and dropped off at school and whether they are going to take the bus. For older kids, discuss any curfews and expectations for when they should be back home. Regardless of age, it’s important for children to make new friends local to their area. Although modern technology can help maintain long-distance friendships that weren’t possible in the past thanks to phone calls, video chats, and text messaging, in-person relationships are necessary for positive mental health. One of the best ways for kids to make new friends is to have them join clubs, sign up for sports, audition for the play, or pick up an instrument. Whatever they’re interested in, help them join an activity where they can find others that share their interests. Moving can often be equal parts frightening and exciting. Overall, help your kids see the bright side of your midyear move by keeping a positive outlook and encouraging them to get involved! Another way to make sure your next move is as smooth as possible is by getting ahead of any surprise repairs. Order your home inspection with the industry’s best. Call NPI before you buy! Comments are closed.