In your experience, what are some basic steps to settling in?

• Tour the neighborhood.

Take a tour of the neighborhood to find the nearest hospital, grocery stores, police and fire stations, churches, post office, libraries, parks, neighborhood shopping centers and area malls.
• Gather service information.

Ask your real estate agent or call your Chamber of Commerce or town hall for information on trash pick-up, cable service, emergency services and voter registration.
• Give notice of your change of address.

Check delivered mail for forwarding stickers. Send a change- of-address card (available free from your local post office) to each sender who used your old address.
• Focus on cars and drivers.

Change vehicle registration and drivers' licenses to the new state, if needed, and transfer home and auto insurance policies to a local agent.
• Ask for medical referrals.

Get referrals for doctors and dentists, and have your records forwarded to them. Also, find a good local veterinarian, if needed.
• Explore local shops.

Check out local service providers such as banks, dry cleaners, florists, hair salons, etc.
• Make time to talk.

Spend family time talking about the move and monitoring how each member is adjusting.

What are your suggestions for starting to feel at home immediately?

Secrets to settling in easily

• Call a local newcomer's group to develop a link to the community.
• Volunteer at your place of worship or at your child's school.
• Sign up for a local adult education course.
• Host a dinner party for a small group of co-workers.
• Introduce yourself and your family to neighbors.
• Invite the parents of your child's new friends over for dessert.
• Join the same types of clubs or groups that you left behind - homeowner's association, health club, bridge group.
• Sample a new restaurant one night a week.
• Schedule weekly family outings to parks, lakes, theaters, sporting events, parades, or other community activities.
• Ask neighbors for suggestions on hairdressers, dry cleaners, doctors, etc.

What can I do to help my kids get off to a good start at school?

• Before school starts.

For children with special needs, or those coming from gifted or other special programs or magnet schools, communication with the school administration should start as early as possible by mail or while visiting the destination area on a house-hunting trip.
• During the school year.

If the move is during the school year, parents should check back with the school and monitor their children's work to be sure they are adjusting well and are in the correct levels or classes. But don't expect disaster. Often "new kids" are a popular novelty during the year, and nothing beats the bus for making new friends.
• Making friends is important.

A good social adjustment at the start is just as important as academic adjustment - especially for junior high or middle school students. While a teacher may assign a buddy for the new child for the first few days in elementary school, junior high students are often left to fend for themselves, and often suffer some days of eating alone in the lunchroom. Parents can help by making a point of finding at least one schoolmate for their child and arranging a meeting before starting school.

How can I make settling in easier for my children?

• Parents' positive attitudes about a new environment inspire positive attitudes in children.
• Schedules kept as normal as possible help give children the extra security needed in the new surroundings.
• Calling on new neighbors allows children to meet other children who may live nearby.
• Ask for academic tutoring if a new school is dramatically different from a child's old school, and give the child much encouragement and praise.
• Parents should be available at mealtime, bedtime and after school, to listen and to share in their children's new experiences.
• Signing up a child for one or two activities, sports or lessons helps the child meet new friends and establish or continue special interests. Ask the school if they have a "buddy program" for new kids, especially a neighborhood bus buddy.
• Listen to special requests for clothing, bikes and other equipment that may not have been a "necessity" in the previous neighborhood but can help a child get along with new peers.
• Visits to the old home and visits from old friends help a child adjust, while maintaining a sense of roots.
• Patience is important during the whole adjustment period; finding a new sense of "home" takes time.

What are some critical steps to making a good childcare choice?

• Make a list.

Make a list of qualities you want and need from a provider, like hours of care, size of group, location, costs and physical setting.
• Contact agencies.

Contact local government childcare and social service agencies to find out about childcare licensing standards and programs available.
• Schedule appointments.

Schedule appointments to visit providers. Visit alone the first time to discuss fees and to observe the children, the program and the caregiver without distractions.
• Get references.

Ask for (and follow up on) references from parents who have used the provider. Would they send their child there again? What were their likes and dislikes?
• Examine policies.

Request information about the provider's policies, procedures and responsibilities.
• Go back again.

Revisit the provider with the child to see how the child and provider get along.
• Be involved.

Choose the program you and your children are most comfortable with. Remember to be involved with the provider and monitor the situation carefully.