Your thoughts on kids missing school to go to Disney

[bsblady01]

The parents that pull their kids out for vacation will be the first ones to scream if their child does bad on a test. There is a lot of stuff covered in a week that can not be made up with a work sheet. I have a friend that works in another school and they are allowed to give makeup work she told me most of the time the stuff comes back not done at all. and the parents told her they did not have time to do the work. she will no longer give work before a vacation anymore . I know a lot of people think it is ok to pull for vacation but think about the amount of work your kids will have to make up before you do it and can you teach your child how to do the work if they have not done it before. I always tell my parents if you must do it do it on a short week so they do not miss as much.

 

[tvguy]

This is a very frequent topic here on the DIS and everyone has valid arguments on both sides.
The reality is, you really need to check with your child's school first to see what their policy is and make a decision based on that information.
In some districts in some parts of the country it is not an issue, and in others it is considered truancy.
It is not allowed here. Once a semester here, the School District does Truancy sweeps, and the people arrested are an interesting mix, everything from stoned parents who may not even remember they have kids, to upstanding professionals who took their kids to Disneyland or on a Disney cruise.
My kids are adults now, but as kids went to private school. That is how some parents here dealt with the issue, put their kids in private schools that allowed some flexibility on vacation during the school year. However, that has ended because the organizations that accredit private schools have said allowing vacation time during the school year is not an acceptable practice.

 

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]

I used to have an opinion about this, but I forgot what it was after hitting my head multiple times while tripping over all the dead beaten horses lying around here.

 

[BearFamily]

However, that has ended because the organizations that accredit private schools have said allowing vacation time during the school year is not an acceptable practice.

"The organizations that accredit private schools"???

What organizations are you referring to? There are many, including individual state associations in most states. The multiple organizations that have accredited our private school apparently have no problem with our policy, which allows vacations during school time. And our national organization, which does not actually do accreditation, has made no statement at all about vacations and acceptable practices.

I do wonder why people get so worked up around this topic. I teach. I parent. I've pulled my kid out (and took a personal day) for a grand total of one day for a family vacation in six years. And yes, it was actually a travel day back from Disney! I might do it again in the future, but definitely not when she gets to a certain grade. For my kid, and my school, that will be 7th grade. I have students who have missed up to two weeks in a row for family travel to various places, including Disney. My choice, their choice, whatever, parent your own kid. I don't see a reason to get defensive (or offensive).

 

[tvguy]

"The organizations that accredit private schools"???

What organizations are you referring to? There are many, including individual state associations in most states. The multiple organizations that have accredited our private school apparently have no problem with our policy, which allows vacations during school time. And our national organization, which does not actually do accreditation, has made no statement at all about vacations and acceptable practices.

I do wonder why people get so worked up around this topic. I teach. I parent. I've pulled my kid out (and took a personal day) for a grand total of one day for a family vacation in six years. And yes, it was actually a travel day back from Disney! I might do it again in the future, but definitely not when she gets to a certain grade. For my kid, and my school, that will be 7th grade. I have students who have missed up to two weeks in a row for family travel to various places, including Disney. My choice, their choice, whatever, parent your own kid. I don't see a reason to get defensive (or offensive).

Depends on the school I resume. This was a Catholic High School, so in this case it is the Western Catholic Educational Association (WCEA) and they are co-accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). Not sure which, if not both had the issue.

 

[PollyannaMom]

...I have a friend that works in another school and they are allowed to give makeup work she told me most of the time the stuff comes back not done at all. and the parents told her they did not have time to do the work. she will no longer give work before a vacation anymore...

When DS was in 4th grade, we pulled him a couple of days early before a scheduled school break. I asked his teachers in advance for anything they happened to already have copied or planned in the text and luckily received most of the things he would miss. Conferences were soon after we got back, and one teacher mentioned how happy she was to see he had kept up and brought the work in when he came back. I was shocked when she explained that many families asked for work and then didn't do it!

 

[Skiton]

I always assumed we'd pull the kids out for a week every year in elementary school, back before they were actually in school. My parents used to do that with me, and I don't remember it being such a big deal. We did take my oldest out for a whole week in kindergarten, for a Disney cruise. But ever since, we've been limiting it to 2 or 3 days, falling on the tail end of another break. A whole week is just too hard to make up, even in first and second grade. We took ours out for three days at the end of the last break to cruise, and they'll miss another two in May when we go to Disneyland.

I do agree that it's an imposition on teachers. Our school has a policy that they don't give homework ahead of time, and I completely respect that. We get all makeup work done promptly on our return, and we make sure we aren't pulling the kids out during a block of standardized testing that would have to be made up later. And it's still an imposition, I get that, but we try to make it as minimal as we can.

I don't understand people who pooh-pooh the expense of going at peak times, though, or don't have sympathy for people who can't get time off during those times. Our family is in the latter category, but what about a middle-class family who desperately wants to go on a Disney cruise but simply can't afford to do it over Christmas? The prices during the holiday season are astronomical. By the time you book airfare and transfers and everything else, you're easily looking at $10K or more and that's just not feasible for many folks, but they could cruise for half that in the off-season. I can't subscribe to the idea that Disney is for rich people and that middle class families have no business going if they have to take their kids out of school to make it happen.

 

[Patch'sD]

Your Kids, Your Decision.

 

[mefordis]

One of the many things I love about the idea of homeschooling - vacations whenever the family wants!

 

[Halloweenqueen]

I've found that it really depends on the school district. Our schools were much more strict when we lived in NC. I still chose to take my kids out when they were in elementary school. Not for a full week, but to take advantage of piggybacking additional time off with a holiday.

When we moved I knew they would have to miss a week because of travel time, unless we went in summer. I immediately noticed families taking full weeks, sometimes more. The district had a totally different philosophy. Maybe because we have a very high international population. Many families are from England or Russia and their kids sometimes miss a couple weeks or more.

It is tougher to pull them out now that they are older. The last couple of years I have scheduled our vacations to start a couple of days before the end of school. That helped with airfare pricing, etc. They don't miss much because exams are over and it is mostly autograph signing and movies.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I always assumed we'd pull the kids out for a week every year in elementary school, back before they were actually in school. My parents used to do that with me, and I don't remember it being such a big deal. We did take my oldest out for a whole week in kindergarten, for a Disney cruise. But ever since, we've been limiting it to 2 or 3 days, falling on the tail end of another break. A whole week is just too hard to make up, even in first and second grade. We took ours out for three days at the end of the last break to cruise, and they'll miss another two in May when we go to Disneyland.

I do agree that it's an imposition on teachers. Our school has a policy that they don't give homework ahead of time, and I completely respect that. We get all makeup work done promptly on our return, and we make sure we aren't pulling the kids out during a block of standardized testing that would have to be made up later. And it's still an imposition, I get that, but we try to make it as minimal as we can.

I don't understand people who pooh-pooh the expense of going at peak times, though, or don't have sympathy for people who can't get time off during those times. Our family is in the latter category, but what about a middle-class family who desperately wants to go on a Disney cruise but simply can't afford to do it over Christmas? The prices during the holiday season are astronomical. By the time you book airfare and transfers and everything else, you're easily looking at $10K or more and that's just not feasible for many folks, but they could cruise for half that in the off-season. I can't subscribe to the idea that Disney is for rich people and that middle class families have no business going if they have to take their kids out of school to make it happen.

I think most people who "generally speaking" don't "approve" of pulling kids for vacation DO sympathize with those who absolutely can't get off work any other time of year. And to a lesser extent, they sympathize with those who have major cost constraints:

HOWEVER - if cost is a major constraint, Summer is much cheaper than Christmas. And driving is much cheaper than flying (generally speaking). And going every year takes you out of the "we feel bad for you financially" category LOL

 

[design_mom]

I think it depends on a lot of factors, including the school's attitude about it, your kids' ability to catch up on what they missed, your kids' personality, and the vacation factor. Is this something that can *only* be done at that time of year?

When I was growing up, I attended private school and my parents always "tsk, tsk"ed when families pulled kids out for vacation. We never got pulled out. But when they moved to Florida in retirement and they wanted to see the grandkids they were all like "Bring 'em down! Florida in February is gorgeous. They'll be fine!"

I think we pulled my son out twice (kindergarten and 3rd grade) and my daughter out once (kindergarten.) And it really WAS nice to go in February, and they had a teacher work day that week anyhow, so they missed fewer days of school. And we really justified it to ourselves. And our school actually has a procedure to get trips approved as an Alternate Learning Experience, and they're pretty generous with it as long as your kid is in good standing academically and attendance-wise.

We stopped doing it though for a couple of reasons:
1) It never quite felt right to me. Even though my parents were encouraging it, I kept remembering those "tsk, tsks" from grade school.
2) Although my son did fine academically when he missed, and completed all homework, it stressed him out to miss school. I didn't realize how much it stressed him out until my sister called one day when we were on vacation to tell me that I was missing a "snow day." My son was thrilled that he wasn't missing school. I didn't realize it had been bothering him. We haven't pulled out for a vacation since then.
3) My daughter really needs to be in school. She's a good student, but she's not one who can just look at the example problem and figure it out for herself, and she'd get stressed/overwhelmed at having to do make-up work in addition to the regular class work. I don't think it would be a good idea to pull her out.

That being said, I'm not sorry that we did it the two times we did. But I haven't done it since and probably won't do it again (they're in 6th and 9th grades now). If it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that couldn't possibly be rescheduled for a school break, then I might reconsider. But if it's a matter of spending more, or paring the trip down so we can afford it, or being stuck going with the masses, then I'll keep them in school.

 

[Skiton]

I think most people who "generally speaking" don't "approve" of pulling kids for vacation DO sympathize with those who absolutely can't get off work any other time of year. And to a lesser extent, they sympathize with those who have major cost constraints:

HOWEVER - if cost is a major constraint, Summer is much cheaper than Christmas. And driving is much cheaper than flying (generally speaking). And going every year takes you out of the "we feel bad for you financially" category LOL

I see what you're saying, but I guess I don't necessarily agree. For one thing, summer IS super-expensive. Check out DCL fares to Alaska, they'll make you blanch. Resorts at WDL and WDW are through the roof in the summer, too. And driving isn't a viable option if you live in Colorado and you need to get to Orlando. You don't have to be a "struggling" family to find it all very cost-prohibitive, but maybe you CAN afford a yearly Dis vacation if you go in September. Who am I to judge Disney-loving families who make it work in whatever way they can?

 

[Magpie]

This is a very frequent topic here on the DIS and everyone has valid arguments on both sides.
The reality is, you really need to check with your child's school first to see what their policy is and make a decision based on that information.
In some districts in some parts of the country it is not an issue, and in others it is considered truancy.
It is not allowed here. Once a semester here, the School District does Truancy sweeps, and the people arrested are an interesting mix, everything from stoned parents who may not even remember they have kids, to upstanding professionals who took their kids to Disneyland or on a Disney cruise.
My kids are adults now, but as kids went to private school. That is how some parents here dealt with the issue, put their kids in private schools that allowed some flexibility on vacation during the school year. However, that has ended because the organizations that accredit private schools have said allowing vacation time during the school year is not an acceptable practice.

As a Canadian, living in an area where "truancy" charges are never laid except in conjunction with other allegations of neglect or abuse (confirmed by a friend who is a lawyer in family law here), I find this amount of state control over families who choose to make use of public schools (and possibly also private schools?) to be fascinating.

When my son was in kindergarten, he found school very stressful. So, with his teacher's blessing, I only sent him two or three days a week. There were other children who would spend half the year abroad, returning after months of absence. A family friend had a son with an anxiety disorder, who never attended full time until high school. No special exceptions needed, they just sent him as often as they could. And, of course, we took days off whenever we wanted, whether for family trips or doctor's appointments or illness. We never had to do anything other than call the school and let them know how long our children would be absent (and the only reason we had to do that, was because otherwise they'd be calling us).

I'd never heard of "truancy sweeps"!

 

[BLAZEY]

I'm also Canadian, and have never heard of "truancy" charges for taking a child out of school for vacations. We took DD6 out of school (Grade 1 French Immersion) for a week long trip but she only missed 2 days due to Remembrance day stat and the district having 2 Pro D days following it. It just happened to work out for us that way. But if she had to miss more days we still would have taken her. When I was in grade 12 I missed 8 days in addition to our week long spring break for an exchange trip to Japan. Kids miss school all the time for sports, band trips multiple times a year and nobody bats an eye. I can't enough get time off during school breaks for a trip to make it worth the travel. Summer is high season for my company, Xmas break is month and year end (calendar) and Spring break is Tax and fiscal year end. So November and February it is.

 

[pryncess527]

One of the many things I love about the idea of homeschooling - vacations whenever the family wants!

I thought that too, and I'm sure it's true many times, but I was shocked to learn one of my friends is home schooling using some sort of state-approved online system, and the kid MUST log in to the computer for a minimum number of hours any day that public schools are in session! Still more flexible, because she can log in from the hotel at Disney World, but they had to set aside a few hours every day of their vacation to make sure she did some work. I found it a bit odd & arbitrary. if the work gets done, why do they need to dictate the days/hours you have to log in?

 

[kaytieeldr]

I used to have an opinion about this, but I forgot what it was after hitting my head multiple times while tripping over all the dead beaten horses lying around.

Well, you know, you probably missed all the "avoiding tripping over clichés" lessons when you were out of school on vacations

 

[shoney]

I think most people who "generally speaking" don't "approve" of pulling kids for vacation DO sympathize with those who absolutely can't get off work any other time of year. And to a lesser extent, they sympathize with those who have major cost constraints:

HOWEVER - if cost is a major constraint, Summer is much cheaper than Christmas. And driving is much cheaper than flying (generally speaking). And going every year takes you out of the "we feel bad for you financially" category LOL

by pulling the kids out and going off season, we can afford more vacations. I have no shame!
we live in NY and will never consider driving to Florida. We also love to go to Mexico and won't be driving there either!
I honestly don't see what the big deal is about missing a few days of school. In the early grades, it had no impact what so ever. Now in HS I do check with the kids first.
It is quite popular around here to do so and I've never gotten any flack for doing so.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I see what you're saying, but I guess I don't necessarily agree. For one thing, summer IS super-expensive. Check out DCL fares to Alaska, they'll make you blanch. Resorts at WDL and WDW are through the roof in the summer, too. And driving isn't a viable option if you live in Colorado and you need to get to Orlando. You don't have to be a "struggling" family to find it all very cost-prohibitive, but maybe you CAN afford a yearly Dis vacation if you go in September. Who am I to judge Disney-loving families who make it work in whatever way they can?

While this is a Disney forum, there are many other cruise lines that go to Alaska. DCL prices overall would make anyone blanch. And the Alaska cruise season is very short - probably half of it is during summer break.

Nobody needs to get to Orlando for a vacation. That Colorado family could drive to Florida, but it would be infinitely more sensible to visit DLR, especially for a desired (again, not needed) family vacation.

As for through the roof resort rates, well, here's CBR from May to October (courtesy of Mousesavers.com):

...............................Standard King Pool Water
May 30-Jun 30 Summer $223 $251 $255 $306
Jul 1-Jul 3 July 4th .......$234 $264 $269 $322
Jul 4-Aug 13 Summer ...$223 $251 $255 $306
Aug 14-Aug 18 Regular $215/$252 $249/$286 $242/$284 $298/$333
Aug 19-Sep 17 Fall ......$206/$234 $237/$263 $226/$243 $278/$286
Sep 18-Oct 6 Regular ..$215/$252 $249/$286 $242/$284 $298/$333

AKL for pretty much the same time frame:

.........................................Standard....... Pool ...........Bunk ......Savannah
May 27-May 29 Memorial Day $487 ..........$574 .........$597 .........$674
May 30-Jun 30 Summer ....$404/$410 ..$467/$467 $492/$492 ..$577/$595
Jul 1-Jul 3 July 4th ...............$431 ..........$490 .........$516 .........$626
Jul 4-Jul 9 Summer ..........$404/$410 ..$467/$467 $492/$492 ..$577/$595
Jul 10-Aug 13 Value 2 ......$370/$370 ..$396/$422 $450/$450.. $505/$541
Aug 14-Sep 22 Value .......$346/$376 ..$387/$416 $410/$439 ..$495/$515
Sep 23-Oct 6 Regular 2 ....$422/$449 ..$432/$478 $488/$539 ..$597/$630

So, not a whole lot of difference from low to high. Certainly not through the roof, or, reasonably, the excuse for taking kids out of school.

 

[roseaster]

Educational funding may be different in Canada, I don't know, but I do know in the US public schools (I can't speak for private, my kids all go to public school) funding is received based on attendance. The schools have marked interest in having the kids in school to maintain their current levels of funding. Agree with it, or not, that is how it works.

Different districts handle absenteeism differently. I would guess that this is dependent on their reliance on government funding, but I don't really know.

Our district is fairly strict. Vacations are unexcused. The teacher can opt to issue no credit for assignments missed and classroom participation on the days missed. Some will some won't. It is why we opt to keep this type of absence to a minimum. 4 out of 5 of my kids are average students.

I have a coworker whose school district is very strict. She was summoned to truancy court after taking her son out of school for a week for vacation. The vacation put him over the limit for unexcused absences. It was an $850 fine.

As an aside exchange programs are considered educational and are often excused, like college visits. School trips aren't absences as the student is technically attending school that day.

For the record, I can't afford a DCL cruise regardless of the season. While the atmosphere may be "family friendly" the price is not. No matter what season a DCL cruise is a luxury. We have cruised Carnival for 1/3 the price. Really, in the grand scheme of things, WDW is a luxury, too. I think because this is a Disney board our views are skewed as to traveling to WDW being the norm, but in truth, for the majority of people, yearly trips to WDW are not the norm.