Let me start off by saying we are not chareidi.
That being said, we made aliyah when my kids were older – two were in HS, and one in 8th grade. Let me say, from their perspective, it was the best thing we ever did. B”H they all found good kids to be with and they managed to pick up the language. I can compare them to the kids they were with in America, and they are much, much less materialistic than them, and much more idealistic.
We have asked each of them several times since we’ve come if they want to go back to America and live, and B”H they have always said no. And that’s what’s really important, is it not?