This study examined how children experienced immigrant separations when families migrated in a stepwise fashion. The study offers evidence that separation between children and one or both parents during the migratory process is common to a majority of immigrant children. Data came from the Longitudinal Immigrant Student Adaptation Study, which focused on parent and child interviews that examined respondents' backgrounds and included a follow-up child interview about the separation and reunification experience. Participants were recent immigrants from Central America, China, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Mexico. Participating youths ranged in age from 9-14 years at the beginning of the study. The vast majority of the children had been separated from one or both parents during the migration process. Chinese families tended to migrate as a unit, while Haitian and Central Americans experienced the most family disruption during migration. Separation from the mother only occurred much less frequently within the whole sample, though the total incidence of children separated from their mothers during the course of immigration was very high. Children who arrived as a family unit involving no separations from their immediate families were least likely to report depressive symptoms than were children who had experienced separation. Separation followed by reunification, after an initial period of disorientation, appeared to lead to an increased sense of closeness and intimacy in some families. (Contains 98 references.) (SM)