As we come to the end of another school year, kids, parents, and teachers are faced with many transition issues.  Teachers are planning for next year’s class placements doing end of the year assessments, etc.  Parents are busy making plans for the summer holiday.  Some are making plans for a move to a different country. 

Kids are dealing with transitions as well,  talking about plans for the summer, getting excited about the grade level they will move into, or dealing with saying goodbye to their friends and then moving away. Some who are not moving are dealing with friends moving away.

In their book Third Culture Kids,  David Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken talk about the five stages of any transition experience:  Involvement, Leaving, Transition, Entering, and Reinvolvement.  It is important to remember that all members of a family will go through these stages at a different pace, and it’s not always a simple, forward direction for anyone.  In addition, our children who remain will be affected and go through a similar pattern of adjustment when a best friend moves away.

Here are a few simple things to make any transition a smooth one:
Explain the reason for the transition to your kids
Say your goodbyes to people and places
Prepare for the transition:  information, opportunities to ask questions
Share memories, opportunities for contacting old friends
Remember it’s okay to feel sad
Transfer your family routines and interests to your new home
Create a support system for you and your kids before, during, and after the move
Talk-talk-talk!

Puxi Campus ES Counselors    
Eileen Knobloch Pre-K-1     
Paul Stambaugh 2 & 3     
Kristina Anderson 4 & 5

Pudong Campus ES Counselors
Jeanine Merrill Pre-K-3
Ed Woods 3-5