Best Tips for Moving During the School Year

Sometimes, the best time of the year to move is, in fact, the cheapest. Winter seems complicated, and autumn is right at the start of the academic period for the young ones. Still, these seasons are typically the slowest for any cross-country moving company, so relocating may be easier and more efficient for you in terms of professional help. However, you can hire packing services in a heartbeat, but how fast can you convince your offspring that relocation is the best thing at that moment?

Moving During the School Year Is a Different Experience for Every Child

Before researching how to transfer schools when moving, you should know that relocating with kids requires some special handling. If your child is shy and has difficulties making friends, no reason to move will be good enough. On the other hand, a sociable kid may adapt easier but could still resist relocating.

The most important thing is that both of these children will appreciate support and honesty during the process because relocating is also hard for someone fully prepared for it, let alone a kid that didn’t even get to make the decision (usually).

Parents Should be Honest and Share the News of Relocating at the Right Time

Maybe you have your mind set on a specific long-distance moving company to contact, and that’s great. High-quality cross-country moving services aren’t always easy to find. However, your kids should know about the move as soon as you start to plan it. Maybe you have one of those jobs that require relocation, or you’re tired of living small and would like to relocate to a big city. Unless your kid is an infant, it should be involved in the decision-making process, at least passively.

This provides the youngsters a chance to get used to the incoming change. Allow them to make the choices for their room design and interior, and emphasize the positives during the house hunting period. The woman in the video below gives a quick insight into preparing children for a move; watch it and try to follow the advice.

Find a District With Good Schools and Opportunities Nearby

There’s no use in relocating to the suburbs if the area doesn’t have a good school district. Each educational institution belongs to a district, and many have multiple schools. The districts can be known for high or low institutional quality, which is the thing you have to research. If you’re relocating away from a bad community, then you’ll do the best you can to find a better one.

The most common factors that define a school district are:

• The use of technology in schools,
• Teacher happiness,
• Test scores,
• The district’s leadership quality,
• Diversity and representation,
• Class sizes,
• After school programs and extracurricular activities,
• Accreditations,
• Upkeep of facilities,
• The percentage of certified teachers.

The second important thing after districts is checking neighborhood safety. Sometimes, these two go hand in hand – great communities are typically in safe neighborhoods, but there can always be exceptions. Websites like Niche.com provide information about the best districts, safety, and crime in each city, town, and even neighborhoods.

After researching these aspects, you can go house hunting and contact long-distance moving services to seal the deal.

Look Into Transfer Rules and Deadlines When Moving in the Middle of the School Year

The process of transferring schools is usually filled with paperwork and lots of waiting. While it isn’t wise to keep your kid out of classes during the process, you should look into how long can a child be out of school when moving with the principal or anyone in charge of transfers.

Relocating stress-free should mean not feeling any pressure from those in charge of your kid’s educational facility. After all, if you’re ready to provide the necessary enrollment and transfer paperwork, there should be no other problems for you. They have to send your child’s records to the new institution and email them other basic data, while you have to announce the arrival date and make sure all the child’s immunizations are up to date.

The tip for relocation day is to put all the documents you get from the board someplace visible and accessible at home. It’s essential to make them easy to access just in case anyone contacts you for more information. When you start packing books, make sure your children’s study books are easy to access since they’ll likely need them in the middle of the semester.

Talk to the Children About the Benefits of Starting Anew

Before you even consider moving cross-country, you should ask yourself is it good to move in the middle of the school year. While we mentioned that a child’s personality matters in making this decision, being confident about relocating doesn’t mean they wouldn’t get hit with relocation anxiety.

However, the likely scenario is that you’ll come across resistance and defiance when starting to move. Children’s reactions to relocating can range from crying to straight-up rebelling by running away from home or destroying the new place once you arrive; there have been all sorts of reactions to relocation.

When you tell them the family decision, give them enough information on where the new home is located, what can be found nearby, and facts they’ll be happy to know about. For example, if your kid is an athlete, tell them about the vicinity of parks and recreational facilities nearby. If they’re artistically inclined, offer to enroll them in the musical academy in the neighborhood. Help them learn it’s possible to make friends in another city and see the benefits of relocating.

If The Kids Can’t Accept Moving, Give Them Time and Space

If, after all, moving in the middle of high school or any other level doesn’t suit your kid, don’t worry. The most beneficial thing you could do at that moment is give them space to process the information. They’ll feel betrayed, sad, depressed, and a lot of everything else, but processing big changes is never easy for adults, let alone kids and teens.

Having a rebellious kid that doesn’t support relocating at home might mean it’ll take long to pack the house, so prepare for that. Make plans to pack room by room, and leave your kiddos to start packing their space independently. That’s also something to do after the move – give them a chance to unpack their belongings and create a layout of their liking. They’ll feel more comfortable and included in the move when they’re being treated as equals to you and for the process.

Keep Up With Schoolwork Even While Packing for Relocation

For any kid, dealing with relocation stress just increases the already existing burden of schoolwork. The house is changing, there are boxes everywhere, they’re leaving their friend group behind, and now, they have to think about homework, too? That’s like an advertisement for all things unfair and uncool in this world.

However, while relocating during the semester may be the cheapest way to move out of state, it shouldn’t be an excuse for the young ones to slack off. Ask the teachers to send homework or some preparatory work before arriving at the new class, and get them to finish work for the old teachers, too. Keeping things as normal as possible in the midst of an abnormal period may be challenging, but it will be helpful.

Create a Calendar With All the Children’s Tests and Important School Periods

As a parent, your first thought in this situation may be is it bad to move kids in the middle of the school year? The answer is yes and no. It could be wrong because of potential missed work and activities; jumping right into a class where your offspring doesn’t know anyone might be tough, but if their tasks are all up to date and finished, the adaptation may be easier.

Prepare a curriculum calendar for the entire family and put it in a visible spot, like on the fridge or in the living room. Combine your kid’s schoolwork with your tasks and responsibilities related to relocating, and ensure everyone does their part. If you follow each other’s schedules, you can hold each other accountable. It sounds like absolute hell, but we don’t mean it in a way that would cause conflict. The purpose of this is to have your kid follow through on schoolwork and feel supported.

Give Your Child a Chance to Say Goodbye to Friends

Maybe the most important part of relocating with the youngsters is giving them a chance to tell their friends and say goodbye properly. Nowadays, everyone’s connected by social media, so your kiddos will stay in touch with anyone they’ve been close to so far. However, physical distance still takes a toll on relationships, so giving them a chance to strengthen the bonds before leaving will mean a lot.

Even if it’s a last-minute relocation, your kid will appreciate you giving them a few days to tell the news and have a proper send-off. When cross-country movers arrive on relocation day, maybe your children’s friends want to come and help with the move. You can even throw a packing party before the day. Of course, under the condition that nothing gets broken or damaged.

Don’t Treat the Kids Differently When Big Things Start Happening

Adults and parents often give excuses like “grown-up stuff” when they can’t or don’t want to explain a situation to their children. However, relocating, especially during the semester, is something that involves them as much as you. They may not be the decision-makers of the situation, but they sure are participants whose lives are changing drastically.

That’s why your priority shouldn’t be to contact long-distance movers, although it matters a lot. Instead, you should prioritize your and your kids’ mental health; if you share frustrations, list positive outcomes, and stay together throughout the process, you could avoid making some common relocation mistakes. Later, all it will take is to unpack after the move and start the academic period with a positive attitude.