Experience with missing school?

[DaniB]

Has anyone pulled their child/children out of Canadian schools to attend WDW?

What was your experience (with the school) like? Do they give you a hard time about it? Does it get held against the kids somehow?

Should I start conversations with the school now? We have already paid for the airfare, passports, put down a deposit at WDW, and my husband has booked the time off. I have no intention of cancelling our plans.

My kids will be in Grade 5 and Grade 1 when we pull them out for a week in September. They will have been in school for only 4 days. I can't imagine they would miss that much... Work-wise that is.

We are with Kawartha Pine Ridge School District.

Dani

[Tantor]

How many days are you going for??

They usually do review work in the begginning of September but I would still try and get some work from the teacher. If you can let them know ahead of time so they can prepare it for them.
I have never had a problem with taking my DD out of school. She was in Gr 6 the last time we went to WDW (4 days away)
We are planning to go in October of this year and she will be in Gr 9. She is in a martial Arts Festival.....4 days away from school is my limit though

[ottawamom]

With the ages of your children you shouldn't have any trouble at all. One teacher one year got a little upset because they like to set up all the classroom routines with the students in those first few weeks. It was easy enough to catch up. Have a great trip.

[DaniB]

The kids will be in school for the first 4 days. Then they will be out for the next 8 school days. Most likely 9 really.

That's a good idea about getting work ahead of time. I might be able to set-up with the school that my kids do extra work over the summer holidays, and hand it in the first week of school.

Dani

[BitsnBearsMom]

I wouldn't worry too much about it at the ages of your kids. I've always found my kids able to catch up without too many issues - and they only do review work for about the first 2 to 3 weeks of school.

[nat1234]

I just pulled my DD out of school this past December to go to WDW. She's in grade 8. We were there for a week and her teacher didn't say anything. She just asked her to keep a journal of our trip and to do some math pages. They shouldn't give you a hard time. They are usually doing review work at the beginning of the year. Have a great time.

[kid@heart2]

We are going in April. I advised the school that we would be taking them out for a week. They said they would note it but thats it. No issues. One is in Grade 7 and one is in Grade 4.

[greenclan67]

I have taken mine out for the last 2 years, and again this year. Last year it was a week, the year before it was the week going back after Xmas, this year it is the 4 days before March Break. Mine have never had a problem getting caught up. My youngest daughter (gr 1 last year) did a journal and handed it in when we returned. Now I have good relationships with the teachers here, because I live beside the public school, and run daycare out of my home, with mostly teachers children in my care. The only thing I had a teacher tell me recently about kids missing school, and not sure if it is the same for every school board, but here, in grades 3 & 6 they do EQAO testing towards the end of the year, to see where our schools line up with the rest of the district. So there is certain things kids in gr 3 & 6 need to know, and if missing it causing them any problems, (mine it didn't, they are both in the top % of their class) but some it would. She just happened to say she had a little girl in her class (she teaches Gr 3) that was going to Costa Rica for a month with her parents, and she said she picked an awful grade to do that to her. Even though she does truly believe kids learn alot on vacations, it was the fact it was a month long!
I think it really depends on the child, and if they struggle at all. For a few days, I wouldn't worry about it!

[suejai]

We have pulled our kids out for the last two years in May for two weeks. One teacher made a comment to my son the second year about why couldn't we go in the summer, but that was the extent of it. Last year they were in grades 8 and 12. Neither of them had any issues. the first year we went I contacted the school to let them know what we were thinking of doing and they told me to just send a note about a month prior to us leaving.

[Alderbrook]

My parents used to pull me out every 2 years for 2 weeks in Oct until Grade 11. Never any issues back then. They would give my parents the school work for the time I missed & the deal was if my parents were pulling me out for 2 weeks I had to do the school work while we were on vacation - if I gave them any trouble about doing it then we didn't do vacations any more during school time. We plan on doing the same with my son. He'll be in JK in Sept but we plan on pulling him during off season always for holidays so we can go when it's cheaper & cooler until it really becomes important for grades (high school).

[DaniB]

Sounds like it should all be fine then :)

School work is a constant struggle with my daughter. She ended up getting exempt from the Grade 3 testing. I recently purchased these great workbooks from Chapters based on the Canadian Curriculum. I believe the school would be fine with her completing the Grade 3 book over the summer, plus an hour reading each day.

I know she will protest, but since we were planning on giving the kids opportunity to earn money for the trip - I'll work it that she'll get a $1 a day for reading aloud to me an hour a day, plus an hour of school work each day over the summer. That should get her to sit down quick :goodvibes

Dani

[Tinkermom76]

I take mine out for a week and all the teachers ever say to me is can I hide in your suitcase, even the principle asked :rotfl:

[My 2 princesses]

You guys have had a lot better luck than me. I pulled DD out last September, exacly the way you did. I too thought that she won't miss much as school had just started. Well, what do you know, the teacher told me at parents/teacher meeting that she thinks she that weak 'put her back'. BTW, DD is in grade 1. So now, my MIL is sick in Australia and we want to take a trip before it is too late. We have no choice but to go now as it is winter there during our summer break. I have booked this trip around March break, so DD is losing only 2 weeks. I say 'only' lightly, but I still had to sign the form that said that she will have to make up on her return in order to be 'promoted'. Again, this is all for Grade 1. We will have to do Disney in Summer from now on.

Enjoy your trip.

[Tantor]

You guys have had a lot better luck than me. I pulled DD out last September, exacly the way you did. I too thought that she won't miss much as school had just started. Well, what do you know, the teacher told me at parents/teacher meeting that she thinks she that weak 'put her back'. BTW, DD is in grade 1. So now, my MIL is sick in Australia and we want to take a trip before it is too late. We have no choice but to go now as it is winter there during our summer break. I have booked this trip around March break, so DD is losing only 2 weeks. I say 'only' lightly, but I still had to sign the form that said that she will have to make up on her return in order to be 'promoted'. Again, this is all for Grade 1. We will have to do Disney in Summer from now on.

Enjoy your trip.

Gr 1.....oh brother.......in order to be promoted....lol.......I am sure she will be fine...the experience alone would be wonderful for her..

My DD has a girl that is in her class (Gr 8) that missed a month of school....now THAT is way to much time to be away

[LoveDopey]

I've pulled my daughter out every year since K for a week to two weeks. She's now in Grade 11. It's never been a problem. Only once did she get extra work to do while on vacation. Other than that I make sure she reads a bit each day while we are away.

[BELLEDOZER]

My kids are in an elementary school, where the parents routinely pull the kids out of school for 2 weeks or more on average for vacations in general. Last year I pulled my son out of kindergarten for 2 weeks for DL, and so long as I gave them a month notice it was fine. They did give him homework, but was able to do it after we got back from our trip. Am planning on pulling the kids of out school in Feb/11 for 2 weeks again to drive down to the mouse, and can't see having any problems so long as I give them enough notice.

[mom of 3 blondes]

I pulled my daughters out of school last sept for a week to go to Disney. They are in grades 2 and 3. Nothing was said but really, what can they say?
Anyways, we are planning to go back in Nov 2010 and hopefully, the teachers will be understanding.....

[mollyseven]

Hey ...we are in the kawartha pine ridge board also and I got to say.....they really don't care.
They will probably be happy to have one less kid.
Seriously, the teachers won't be offering to give you work early, they won't be there.
My son started school in November this year instead of september due to construction at the school and health issues, so you'd think they would send home lots.... barely anything.
To this date, my son doesn't have a computer login, and therefore when there is computer work, he doesn't seem to have to do it......the teacher keeps saying he is waiting on a password......now isn't that odd?
When I constantly asked for more work, they were astounded and said "no what you have is fine"..... and he didn't have to catch up on anything he missed.
Don't even worry about it, just tell them the first week that you are going out of the country and tell them the dates....that's all you have to do.
Ask for a reading list or something like that but otherwise, they won't be into too deep of work yet.
Go....enjoy ..... family time.

[Cdn Gal]

Go for it! I'm a teacher and travel is one of the best things for kids. If there are any major assignments they will catch up. It is one week out of their academic career. This won't set them back! :goodvibes Hope you have a wonderful, wonderful trip!! :thumbsup2

[Tinkermom76]

my DD missed a week of school this year for WDW and she missed a week last year because of the Chicken Pox and a week the year before for Disney, really what's the difference

[calena]

You guys have had a lot better luck than me. I pulled DD out last September, exacly the way you did. I too thought that she won't miss much as school had just started. Well, what do you know, the teacher told me at parents/teacher meeting that she thinks she that weak 'put her back'. BTW, DD is in grade 1. So now, my MIL is sick in Australia and we want to take a trip before it is too late. We have no choice but to go now as it is winter there during our summer break. I have booked this trip around March break, so DD is losing only 2 weeks. I say 'only' lightly, but I still had to sign the form that said that she will have to make up on her return in order to be 'promoted'. Again, this is all for Grade 1. We will have to do Disney in Summer from now on.

Enjoy your trip.

I'm glad you are going to Australia to see MIL and taking your daughter too.

Don't think that just because this year it has been tough means other years it will be. I know when DS was in Grade 1 he really struggled (three different teachers and no consistency) and now is at the top of his class in Grade 8. It clicked in Grade 7 for him. Back in those days Grade 1 was very important because that is when they really work on reading but I think the curriculum keeps changing and they are reading in SK and JK now. Each teacher is different when you approach them. All our teachers really support us taking the kids on trips and only one gave a lot of homework to DD. We got back from our trip - Family wedding in California combined with a bit of sightseeing for 10 days - and DD was about a week ahead of the class, so she just sat there. And we had lugged textbooks to California. Never again. This was for a child in Grade 4!! :confused3

DD is in Grade 9 now and we are going to Florida over March Break and then tagging on a few more days.

I do think it is much easier to take kids out of school in Canada from what I have seen on these boards. In the US they can fail a child for truancy for missing too many days.

P. S. if your daughter is struggling with reading - the book I used for DS was Reading Rescue 123, recommended by the school and really worked for me to work with him at home.

[dis_guy]

I certainly don't want to "mix it up" in this thread but as a teacher of 26 years I thought I'd throw some of my experiences out for sharing. Maybe a perspective from the other "side" might be interesting.

Ten days ago, I was home sick (ill enough to miss five days) when I got a call from a parent. They were going to BC for two weeks and wanted me to get their son's homework together since they were leaving the next morning.

Then last week, on the last afternoon before our annual conference (one that is a two hour drive from our school), another parent comes in and wants a week's worth of homework because they were flying to Mexico in the morning.

Today I got a note from yet another parent to have a week's worth of work ready tomorrow morning because mom and dad are going to the Dominican Republic and their daughter is going to stay with grandma and won't be attending while they are away. Grandma lives nearby and as far as I can tell she could come to school. This girl already has 24 days missed this year so the new total will be 29. We've been in school for 115 days or so, well you can do the math there.

Add to all this the fact that I work in Alberta where we have high stakes testing in my grade and if the kids don't perform, we'll hear about it from central office.

So when teachers don't seem thrilled about your vacation plans consider that our experiences may not have all been positive ones.

[Tinkermom76]

I certainly don't want to "mix it up" in this thread but as a teacher of 26 years I thought I'd throw some of my experiences out for sharing. Maybe a perspective from the other "side" might be interesting.

Ten days ago, I was home sick (ill enough to miss five days) when I got a call from a parent. They were going to BC for two weeks and wanted me to get their son's homework together since they were leaving the next morning.

Then last week, on the last afternoon before our annual conference (one that is a two hour drive from our school), another parent comes in and wants a week's worth of homework because they were flying to Mexico in the morning.

Today I got a note from yet another parent to have a week's worth of work ready tomorrow morning because mom and dad are going to the Dominican Republic and their daughter is going to stay with grandma and won't be attending while they are away. Grandma lives nearby and as far as I can tell she could come to school. This girl already has 24 days missed this year so the new total will be 29. We've been in school for 115 days or so, well you can do the math there.

Add to all this the fact that I work in Alberta where we have high stakes testing in my grade and if the kids don't perform, we'll hear about it from central office.

So when teachers don't seem thrilled about your vacation plans consider that our experiences may not have all been positive ones.

I don't think that is very fair of those parents to ask you for the work with little to no notice.
We went in December and I spoke with both teachers and the vice-principle in September. If parents want to take their kids out of school then I think they must do it in a responsible way.

[Alderbrook]

I don't think that is very fair of those parents to ask you for the work with little to no notice.
We went in December and I spoke with both teachers and the vice-principle in September. If parents want to take their kids out of school then I think they must do it in a responsible way.

I agree, that's not fair to give no notice. My parents always gave tons of notice so the teacher had time to prepare.

I also agree, lots of kids miss school because they're sick, what's the difference? I was super sick as a kid & missed weeks at a time, didn't stop me from passing school. I always made up the missed work.

[Sheribo]

I have taken my kids out of school for vacation but the last time was overwhelming for my daughter. Getting classroom work ahead of time with proper notice is a courtesy that most teachers will accommodate. The tough part is the instructional time missed to teach the child HOW to do the work. When they're in elementary school, parents are usually able to teach them what they need to know to complete the missed assignments. As they get older, it gets much harder. It is not fair to ask the teacher to give up her lunch to catch up your child. It's extremely kind of them to offer but you should assume that you'll be taking on that job at home until the student is caught up.

All in all, it's a personal choice based on you and your child. We have some of the best memories from those vacations but no more.

[Mickey's Best Girl]

Hey ...we are in the kawartha pine ridge board also and I got to say.....they really don't care.


This is my experience with the KPR board as well.
My DD and I have been going to Disney for a week every year since she was 14 (last Nov. was 2 weeks). And as long as they have a note and make up the work on their own time, it's never been a problem. We bribe a child in each of her classes (always a good friend) with a small trinket from Disney and they collect all the work she misses while we are away.

[DaniB]

Hey ...we are in the kawartha pine ridge board also and I got to say.....they really don't care.


Ohh, lets not get me started there! :headache:

We are thinking of pulling her out of KPR and going into another school for fall...

You're right though. The more I thought about it over the past couple of days, I don't think they will care.

[DaniB]

P. S. if your daughter is struggling with reading - the book I used for DS was Reading Rescue 123, recommended by the school and really worked for me to work with him at home.

Thanks! I'll look that up.

[DaniB]

I certainly don't want to "mix it up" in this thread but as a teacher of 26 years I thought I'd throw some of my experiences out for sharing. Maybe a perspective from the other "side" might be interesting.

Ten days ago, I was home sick (ill enough to miss five days) when I got a call from a parent. They were going to BC for two weeks and wanted me to get their son's homework together since they were leaving the next morning.

Then last week, on the last afternoon before our annual conference (one that is a two hour drive from our school), another parent comes in and wants a week's worth of homework because they were flying to Mexico in the morning.

Today I got a note from yet another parent to have a week's worth of work ready tomorrow morning because mom and dad are going to the Dominican Republic and their daughter is going to stay with grandma and won't be attending while they are away. Grandma lives nearby and as far as I can tell she could come to school. This girl already has 24 days missed this year so the new total will be 29. We've been in school for 115 days or so, well you can do the math there.

Add to all this the fact that I work in Alberta where we have high stakes testing in my grade and if the kids don't perform, we'll hear about it from central office.

So when teachers don't seem thrilled about your vacation plans consider that our experiences may not have all been positive ones.

I have to say that's pretty RUDE of the parents to give you last minute notice and EXPECT you to provide homework on the drop-of-the-hat!

I'm going to let the school know in June, and remind them again when school starts up. Since we're going to work on a lot of remedial homework at home over summer, and reading every day - I'm not going to ask for catch-up homework after-all. Especially if it's all review anyways in the first week or two.

Dani

[Cdn Gal]

popcorn::

[Channyn]

As a teacher, I always tell the families in my class to have a great time! I feel family time is very important and the experience of a vacation is fantastic. I teach elementary school and all my students have been able to get caught up. I am teaching grade 5 this year and have 2 students away right now on vacation. I asked them both to prepare a speech about their vacation. I have some work for them to do when they get back, and they can work on that at home. I do not give work ahead of time - as I don't always know how far we'll get when they are away.

Have fun!

[Sheribo]

This whole thread is making me smile. I wish my kids were still little!! They're teens now and high school/university isn't the time to miss class.

Have a wonderful time! I'm so envious.

[xipetotec]

Well we typically go on 10-day stays. So we take them out for a couple of days. Granted, it's not a whole week, but they've always taken it well as long as I warn them in advance.