What a whirlwind the past few months have been. After living in our current home for almost 14 years, we are selling our house and buying a new one with a little more space for our growing family. The moving process is not for the faint of heart! But as with most homeschooling families, we involve our children in our real life, every-day happenings.
So, they are learning the moving process from top to bottom. Some parts have been really exciting for them, and other parts have been extremely boring for them. But overall, it has been a process the won’t soon forget. This home is the only one my children have really ever known. When we moved to our current home, I had a 2 year-old and a 5 month-old, who are now 16 and 14 years old. Since that time we’ve welcomed 5 more children into our family. So they all have been interested in the details of moving along the way.
If you find yourself moving in the middle of your homeschool year, I urge you to involve your kids in the process. Here is what we’re doing. . .
Be prepared to answer lots of questions
My older children have questions more about the timing of things and what the new sleeping arrangements might be. My younger children want to know if they have to pack the dog and will we be taking the doors and window with us! We’ve also answered our older children’s questions on the technical and legal terms of buying and selling: what a real estate agent does, what settlement means, how/why contracts are written, etc. This is a good learning experience for them and will be something we hope they take with them into their adulthood and their own home-buying journeys.
Take the children to look for new homes with you
Value the opinions of your little ones. They bring perspective that you’d never think of! After looking at a handful of homes at a time, we’d take a vote on the homes we liked (or didn’t like) and discuss the pros and cons. It was also good for my husband and I to watch the way our children would go about through a home we were considering–was there a natural fit, did they show excitement or interest, were they ready to go right away or were they asking if we could stay–bringing them helped us make our final decision.
Let the children help
Moving is an automatic family chore! From the oldest to the youngest, everyone can help, so assign tasks: decluttering, packing, trash detail, donation organization, etc. My little 4 year old girl is so excited! Every day, she wants to know what she can help pack up next, and she has truly been a help to me. I orchestrated the packing room by room, teaching my children how to sort and pack things properly. I’ve had to remember that my children have never done this before and that for some of them, dishes and shoes in one box seemed completely logical! So, this has definitely been a learning experience all around.
Skip school schedules
Moving creates a new normal, so just let it be. You need time to pack the boxes. You need time to fill out all the paperwork. You need time to make and answer all the phone calls. Did I also mention you need time to pack the boxes? Adhering to the normal flow of things is almost impossible. So use the flexibility we as homeschoolers always say that we have. Take the time you need away from the schoolwork to work through real life. We pared our studies down to fit our needs. Some days there was just Bible and Math. Other days we were able to add in History reading and our read-aloud at lunch. I’ve suspended all Science projects until further notice and we will simply read through the lessons and the experiments, and see if we can find the demonstration on YouTube. You get the idea–do what you can and do not stress about the rest.
Help the children understand time frames
All of my kiddos needed help in this area. Some thought we could just immediately live in any home we went to look in–same day. Others had no clue just how long looking, prepping our home, selling and buying actually could take. We started this process back in November and we’re still not quite finished! So helping the children understand time frames and reassuring them of some sort of time line is helpful in keeping worries down.
Remain joyful in it all
Moving is exciting, with all the potentials a new house can bring. However, it certainly has its ups and downs, and some all-time stressful moments. It can be hard to coordinate finances, dates, and logistics. But, choose joy. Remember to give thanks in all the circumstances. We are going through a difficult portion in our move right now and I’ve panicked more than once. Many times I’ve had to pull away for a few minutes to reset and align my thoughts with the Word, to pray, and sometimes to cry. I try to remember that my children are looking to my husband and me to set the tone and the feel for this move. So, we are honest: we give them the bottom line of what we’re facing; we pray together and we keep on smiling. There is always something to be thankful for! We know that our help comes from the Lord and that He is faithful and we need to remain rooted in that truth.
If you feel so inclined, please pray for my family during this time. Our moving hasn’t gone exactly as we’ve expected it to, but we are trying to take things one day at a time. What tips do you have for a homeschooling family on the move? Have you ever had to move while homeschooling?
