While the upcoming move that you have planned might be great for your family on paper, when it comes to actually uprooting your life somewhere and starting over somewhere else, you may find this transition very intimidating. And although you might have past experience to prove to you that everything will turn out just fine, this new experience for your young kids could be very unsettling.
To help them through this, you may want to begin getting them excited about the move rather than being scared about it. So to help you in accomplishing this, here are three ways to get your younger kids excited about your upcoming move.
Get Some Kids Books About Moving
One great way to broach the topic about moving, according to Valle Dwight, a contributor to GreatSchools.org, is to ready books about moving with your kids.
In most of these books, your kids will see the character work through their own reservations and emotions about moving. And once they see that the character loves their new home, new school, and new friends, you might find that your child is more excited about being part of these types of experiences, too.
Set Up Ways To Make New Friends
Something your young kids might be worried about is leaving their friends in their old neighborhood and making friends in their new neighborhood.
To ease them into this transition, Ryan and Rachel Ehmke, contributors to ChildMind.org, advies that you set up some different ways for your kids to get involved with other kids in their new community and start making new friends. Things like taking a class, joining a club or team, or participating in other extracurricular activities can help your kids meet more people and build a larger, stronger friend group in your new area.
Talk About Your New Life With Excitement
As you get closer and closer to your actual move, you’ll want to be very careful about the way you talk about the event if you’re wanting to ensure that your kids are excited about going on this new adventure together.
According to Jennifer A. DiGiovanni, a contributor to Care.com, if you find that your kids are struggling with being excited about your move, try to talk with them about all the great things they’ll get to see, do, and experience once you’ve moved. You can visualize things like decorating their new room, playing at new parks, and meeting more friends. And even when you’re feeling stressed about some of these same things, be sure you express that frustration in a helpful way or out of earshot of your kids.
If your kids are nervous about your upcoming move, consider using the tips mentioned above to help them get excited about this new phase in their life.
