Goodbye, House

From the Parents' Guide: It's never easy being the new kid on the block. Goodbye, House invites your child to express and order his feelings as he chronicles the family move in his very own book. It engages the child in activities from the moment he is first told about the impending move. As he fills in the book, the child will gain a sense of mastery over the new environment and the feeling of overwhelming newness will diminish. Once the adjustment is completed, Goodbye, House will serve as a scrapbook that can be reviewed fondly. The most important function of Goodbye, House is as a diary in which the child can feel free to express herself as the move approaches. By writing down what she feels when she first hears about the move, and again around moving day, and later when she arrives in the new place, she will be able to acknowledge and clarify the range of emotions she passes through. She will also be better able to talk about her feelings with you. We suggest you take the time now to read Goodbye, House before your child begins to fill it in, so you'll know what questions your child will be likely to ask in the weeks ahead. The following pages offer general suggestions to help you make the move easier for your child, and specific suggestions to help your child use Goodbye, House.Banks, Ann is the author of 'Goodbye, House', published 1999 under ISBN 9780517361290 and ISBN 0517361299.