1. Communicate!

Communicate with them about your ideas and dreams!

This is always #1 for me and in our family.  We talk about everything.  Traveling was not a surprise to any of our kids.  As soon as Erik and I decided to travel with our family,  we started talking about it with our kids.  Some kids will have an initial reaction and want to talk about it,  but some will ponder and think about things,  then wait till a later time to share their thoughts.  I have had 6 children and have seen both. Open communication will encourage all members and in turn unite everyone in 1 common goal!

2. Educate!

Educate your child about family travel and the kids/teens that are doing it!

When we were starting down our travel road I actively tried to educate our children about travel and cultural things.  We were already homeschooling so our focus became very geography centered.  There are many great sites and blogs about family travel that are kid friendly.  Since returning back to the US our family has started Family Adventure Podcast.  Our children LOVE listening to the interviews of other families and their adventures. Stories and blog posts written by kids are helpful as well.  This not only encourages kids but will help them to feel like they are not the only traveling kid in the world!

3. Connect!

Connect your kids with other traveling kids and keep up with the ones they have now!

We know many kids that have connected through the internet. Our daughter was 13 when left the US and we started her on a FB page.  Most kids now have these and others to keep up with friends.  The trick is connecting them with other traveling kids so start that now. Also blogs and articles written by other traveling kids.  Be bold and have your kids and reach out to other traveling kids Traveling is a bold lifestyle anyway…so start taking bold step now!

4. Listen!

Listen to their fears and concerns,  and try to address them.

Your kids will have their own set of fears and concerns and hopefully express them.  I remember hearing things like..”I will NEVER have friends.”  “How can I get a drivers license?” “Will I be able to work?” “What about school?” Some of these fears can just be talked through and are irrational like the friends issue.  I can tell you that kids are kids everywhere in the world. Our kids found opportunities all around the word to meet friends,  serve others,  and earn money. My son and daughter played instruments on the downtown streets of Jerusalem and earned money .  We actively sought out friends.  If we were anchored or stopped somewhere and spotted kids (any age) we almost always made efforts to introduce ourselves.  We made tons of traveling friends staying in marinas and even made international friends at parks. I could go on and on about connecting with people as you travel and getting out of your comfort zone but that is a whole other topic!  My point is listen to their fears and talk through and find solutions if you can! Remember some things you may not be able to find solutions for but talking about them assures them that their feelings are valid and that they are important enough to be heard.

5. Team Player!

Help your kids feel like they are part of the team!

This is a big one for older kids.  Bottom line is that they need to feel like they are part of the team.  As we traveled with older kids and teens we included them in as many things as we could.  Even before we started our kids were given books everywhere from navigation to knots.  As we traveled, we often gave guidebooks to the older one and asked them to read ahead and help plan the route.  If you have a techy kid ask them to find helpful aps. Remember this new way of living will “stretch” everyone and kids that are given responsibility will rise to the occasion.  If you don’t involve them you could be fighting them all the way.

Traveling with older kids is WONDERFUL!  Don’t wait til their out of the house to go.  Help them to be part of the TEAM.  And your family travel will be better because of it!

{Rachel Hemingway is a homeschool mom/travel writer. Her goal is to encourage Wives and Moms about Homeschooling ‘outside the box’, give them the tools then need to get started and to show that sometimes traveling with kids will give them a better education than any textbooks. She lives in Wilmington, NC where she homeschools 4 of her 6 children. And travel writes in her spare time.}