Moving is hard on everyone. Even a cross-town move is stressful for adults. For kids, it can be rough – especially if it is their first move. Giving up the security of the only home they’ve ever known can be hard on some kids.
Others may see it only as an adventure. There are so many factors involved, including the strength of their relationships with neighborhood friends, their attitude toward new and unknown experiences, the relative merit of the new home compared to the old (in the eyes of the child), and the way the opportunity is presented to the child.
Moving to a whole new town is generally harder for elementary age children. Leaving behind their home, their friends, their school, and their familiar surroundings seems like an unbearable punishment to many children. But properly framing the opportunities the move presents can help alleviate the stress on our children.
If the move is presented with a unified front of positivity, kids will respond. Years ago, we moved from the only home my son had ever known to another home. The trade off for a superior location was a smaller home with no pool. Our son, five at the time, was so delighted with the tree swing in the front yard that he felt like the new house was a huge upgrade for him.
Allowing the children to feel like they have some say in things also helps – even if their ‘choices’ are more illusion than reality. Picking their own room, wall colors, or furniture arrangement can help mitigate the anxiety that children feel when moving and move them toward embracing the change.