Resources for Expat Kids, Third Culture Kids, Military Brats, Diplobrats and MKs

Oye Expat! No te Pierdas Subscribe to GoSouthExpat

INFO BY COUNTRY

Resources for Expat Kids and Third Culture Kids

TCK Home Page Books Resources Schools Moving Overseas Family Rooms

Expat kids, young and adult third culture kids, and parents of expatriate children of all types and backgrounds can research and make use of the resources offered below.

It isn't easy to be an expat kid. Children of diplomats, military personnel, missionaries and other expats experience constant and continuous change in their lives, geographically and emotionally.

I'm your webmaster and as a TCK, former expat kid, and now the mother of one, I have a very special interest in offering all the resources and support possible for expat children, young adults and expat parents.

So whether you're an MK (missionary kid), TCK (third culture kid), CCK (cross culture kid), diplobrat or any other type of global nomad (or parent of one) please spend some time looking through the resources below.

And be sure to RSS our Blog so you'll get instant updates on new information and pages as we add to this and all the other sections on our website continuously. You can also Follow our Tweets. Anything new added automatically runs through our blog and tweets.

Website Resources for Expat Kids and Parents

Are you, or is your child, a third culture kid?
Definition: What is a third culture kid? You might be surprised at what you'll learn.

Did you ever feel like you don't belong anywhere?
Most TCKs do. Now we have our very own Online TCK Community and it's huge!

Ever feel like no one prepared you for life overseas?
Read this to see why Cultural Transition Coaching is vital for expat parents and kids!

Are you a diplobrat (the child of a diplomat)?
The US Government has a special department just for Children of US Diplomats

Do you work overseas with the US Government?
Read about the support and services provided by the US Govt. Transition Center

Are you an MK (missionary kid)?
MKPlanet is an online community exclusively for you.

Looking for the perfect school for your expat kids?
The websites on this page list and describe International Schools in South America

Have you already gone to school in South America?
Rate, rank, recommend (or warn us about) Schools in South America.

Want to see what other Third Culture Kids have to say?
Denizen is an online Third Culture Kid Magazine just for you. You can contribute too.

Books and Articles for Expat Kids and Parents

Be sure to visit our Reading Rooms. They contain articles we hand picked for you or were contributed by other expatriates to this site. Begin by checking out these four topics:

Expat Kids Relocation Living Overseas Repatriation

The Expat Bookstore is where you'll find these and many more books about living abroad:

Third Culture Kids is one of the best books written about expatriate children. It defines what a third culture kid (TCK) is and discusses some of the problems and feelings they experience as well as the results of all the moving around!

Third Culture Kids: The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds (Second Revised Edition) is also available on Kindle.

Club Expat: A Teenager's Guide to Moving Overseas is written by two expat brothers who wrote the book while attending Yale. Check out what both kids and adults have to say about this resource on the Amazon.com comments page. It gets 5 stars all the way.

Raising Global Nomads: Parenting Abroad in an On-Demand World also gets 5 stars all the way. This book specifically for parents relocating with children hits the mark with readers.

Excellent Goal Setting for Kids. Improve your child's self-esteem and help them feel a sense of purpose. Expat kids often lack a sense of direction and belonging. Moving around and uprooting frequently can leave them feeling aimless and without a sense of continuity. As a result, many expatriate children are left without the skills they need to excel as adults. You can help your kids express their wishes, learn to set goals, outline steps toward achievement, and feel pride in their accomplishments. Kids need to learn these skills very early on so read more about Goal Setting for Kids, a system of fun books and activities that teaches kids of any age these skills. Click Here!

Are you expat kids in college? Save 50% on your class textbooks at coursesmart.com
You can even get your college textbooks online now and they cost tons less! Save on the books and no shipping so double savings. And if you're an expat parent helping your college-bound expat kid pay for school, you can pay online from anywhere in the world and they can download at their location (or iPhone!) Find eTextbooks at CourseSmart.

Expat Forums, Chat Room and Community

One of the best ways to obtain any information you need about expatriate living is to participate actively on the site either through our Expat Chat Room, Expat Forums, or by introducing yourself to our online South America Expat Community where you can ask questions (or help others out) by contributing your own thoughts.

Learning Spanish for your trip

If you’re interested in exploring options for Spanish lessons for yourself or your children, we’ve listed multiple options and programs available on this page: Learn Spanish. One of the best things you can do to prepare for moving with kids is to provide them language basics. Being able to communicate is one of the most effective self-esteem boosters.

17 documents expat parents can't live without

When moving with kids, one of the most responsible actions you can take is to store valuable or irreplaceable family documents in a safe place and have your wealth management, will and testament in order. No one likes to talk about this subject but it is your responsibility – it truly is! – as an expat parent to have these things in order. If anything should happen to you in a foreign country, would strangers, your consulate, or the local authorities know what to do for your child? Get our FREE "Expat Life" kit at ExpatCFO.com (it’s free!) and read it. It’s provided by an American company that serves USA expats, but no matter what your country of origin, read it and get a feel for the type of preparation you should be making to keep your kids safe.

Moving overseas with kids

Expat parents: read this article about relocating overseas with children. Your webmaster (a former expat kid and now the mother of one) has written this three-part article detailing what you can do to help your kids accept the idea of moving overseas and transition to a new culture smoothly.

Are you concerned about how to keep your children busy during long flights and trips?

Traveling with kids made easy!

Everything for traveling with little ones! Click Here!

TravelKiddy - the ticket for travel fun

You know you're a TCK when...

We encourage TCKs and expat parents and kids of all types to contribute your thoughts, experiences, advice and tips, recommendations, stories, photos, concerns and anything else you'd like others to know about by using the very simple online messaging form on our TCK Home Page. The best support and guidance really does come in the form of first-hand information from our expat peers.