For those that take your kids out of school...

[Mugglemama]

Ugh school excuses! I think if I had to fill out a form on educational value I would pull out my hair!
I have always pulled my kids out and will continue to. Family time is very important and lacking in todays society. School starts at 7:30 am here, gets put at 2:10 add homework and sports and I never see my kids except to yell at them to clean their rooms. For years and years and years this is it.
10 years ago we started going to DL regularly several times a year, pulling the kids out of school. I was diagnosed with cancer and too bad if the school wanted a stupid doctors note everytime, I was going to spend time with my kids. It was the best thing we ever did as far as spending time as a family. Last year DH died of cancer, he was just 39. DD13 watched him suffer for 6 months.
So this year I have pulled DD13 out several times. DS23 lives in San Diego and is in the Navy, these are the only times we get to see him too.
So I tell the school that based on all of this garbage that has gone on in the last years, I am and will take DD13 out.
I tell them we are going to Disneyland and spending family time, can I please have her homework. If they don't like it and want to prosecute me, throw me in the pokey then I will take her out and homeschool her, and they won't get a $ from her anymore. I am the parent, I don't need the school acting like they are in control of my kids; and I sure as heck don't need the stress.
Can you tell I have had some issues with the school? Lol

Even with taking her out several times a year, she is in all Honors classes and maintains her grades. So I don't feel bad. But I would still take her out if she was getting bad grades, just get her a tutor! Lol
anyway best of luck to all you school rebels out there!
I think we each have to do what is best for our family and situation.

my sincerest condolences to your family!

you're right....family time is most important. none of us know how long we have here, and memories of time spent together at disneyland as a family are going to far outweigh memories of just another day sitting in class.

that's why disneyland is so special to my family....it's where many of our best memories as a family have been made. we get to recapture it every time we're there. (my kids tell me, "i want my house in heaven to be at disneyland!")

again, i'm so sorry for your family's loss.

 

[MyMonkies]

I'm in CA too & I have to say that I haven't had any real problems. They do expect you to notify them if the child will be out & usually ask if they are sick. If you don't call, they call you.
You fellow CA people may check with your district office but when we had back to school night recently they were explaining something, which I'm not real clear on, but that if your child is going to miss 5 days or more they do get put on a special independent study plan & the scholl will get credit. At least that is how I understood it.
FWIW, my kids are in 5th & 3rd grades. We are pulling them out for a week in December primarily for DL. I personally think that as long as you aren't doing it all the time all year, your child isn't struggling with school already, etc., that it's OK. Family time is priceless. You can make anything educational, really. I don't know how old your kids are but maybe you can set something up that you are going to ask them to discover a few things about DL-something historic, something with numbers, etc. & then ask them to write a trip report of sorts on those topics? Really though, I don't think you need to tell them anything other than that you wil be out of town.

 

[MPHARJ]

Thank you so much for the wonderful more indepth thinking then I was doing answers! They are great. This isn't the first year I have taken my kids out of school, just the first time I stumbled on an answer for the form I had to fill out. I have always had answer when going to WDW with Epcot, the countries, the lands etc... but just locked up this time thank you for looking further into it then I was! Our schools only allow 2 educational trips a year and they can not miss for then 5 days so I always plan the trips over the weekends to include a full week in between and this year I scheduled over an extra day off so we have 10 days. My trips with my children our my life we love to plan them and they pick where we go, I can't always travel in the summer when they are out of school. Even though I have never had an issue with the school district any time we have gone, just don't want to risk the truancy issue with them. Not in my job anyways. We always get their assignments before we leave and that is the first thing that gets done during the flights and travel time and they work on it in th evening before bed to get things done. That is not an issue since we are from the east coast plenty of time in the airports etc...
Thanks again everyone!

 

[kylieh]

Wow, we don't have to tell the teachers anything. We're taking ours out of school for two weeks so don't feel so bad. And all we're telling the teachers is that we're taking them to Disneyland.

Same here - we're encouraged, especially for overseas trips.

But for perspective, if would be like taking DD out of school and taking her to the Gold Coast for a week. We still wouldn't have to do all forms, excuses, etc, but it wouldn't be as popular IYKWIM.

 

[cruise cruise cruise]

I wish I knew what grades we were planning for, but here are a few ideas

math-

Money- Student has $40 for the day. If they spend $9.99 on lunch, how much is left for dinner and a t-shirt, etc.

Time- FP return time is 5:45, how much time do we have until we need to return

Science-

for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction- have you ever paid attention to how steep the UP hill is at the end of pirates? Why is this, well you have gone down 2 drops.

Mechanics of the gears and pullys to make rides move

Gravity-Golden Zepher and swing ride (orange stinger?)

3-D (Toy Story and blanking on the movie)- why does wearing a red lense and a blue lense make picuters appear to pop out at you?

Flying (if you are) how and why do planes stay in the air

Geography-

all the things PP listed

if you are flying- what areas of the country will you be passing over and/or will you have a layover

Jungle Cruise- Amazon, Abariganies, etc etc

History

Walk in Walts Footsteps tour

Main Street Cinema- Steam Boat Willie the first synchronized-sound cartoon

Transportation

train, river boat, sailing ship, monorail, canoes, main street vehicles, horse drawn carraige

 

[alvernon90]

I have some advanced topics to add:

Economics:

Supply and demand -- Why do we pay $10 for a hamburger meal that would sell for $3 outside the park?

Marketing strategy -- How does a company convince its customers to pay a heavy premium for clothing that advertises the company's brand?

Biology:

Why does that teenage boy keep touching that teenage girl there when they're kissing in the Splash Mountain queue?

Urban planning:

Why is it so hard to get in and out of this parking garage?

Criminal law:

Can the designer of the parking garage be taken out back and shot?

Education policy:

So what exactly are the district goons going to do to us for not having a sufficiently educational vacation?

 

[snickerboo]

I have Birnbaum's "Disneyland with Kids". At the back of the book it has a whole chapter on what about Disney would be deemed educational for schools. It's too long to type it out here but see if your local library or bookstore has it and fill in your form using that.

I am so glad we don't have to deal with this! We're in Canada and our teachers/school never care that the kids miss school for Disney. They know it's educational and my kids are both strong students who aren't effected by missing school.

 

[JennHales]

Honestly I wouldn't try to BS my way into explaining why Disneyland is educational. I would just simply say the dates you are going and say something to the fact that it's a much needed family vacation.
Jen

 

[Mugglemama]

I have some advanced topics to add:

Economics:

Supply and demand -- Why do we pay $10 for a hamburger meal that would sell for $3 outside the park?

Marketing strategy -- How does a company convince its customers to pay a heavy premium for clothing that advertises the company's brand?

Biology:

Why does that teenage boy keep touching that teenage girl there when they're kissing in the Splash Mountain queue?

Urban planning:

Why is it so hard to get in and out of this parking garage?

Criminal law:

Can the designer of the parking garage be taken out back and shot?

Education policy:

So what exactly are the district goons going to do to us for not having a sufficiently educational vacation?

LOL!!!

ALVERNON - i know we've never officially "met" on these boards, but i've been reading your posts for months and always love your take on things (particularly that bashing several months back directed at the father who dragged his poor son onto TOT and then took pictures of his ensuing misery). thanks for keeping me entertained with your....let's see, what shall we call it?....creative sarcasm? HAHAHAHA!!

 

[Pacific Northwest]

Here is a teacher's opinion/perspective.

Having to fill out that form is a ridiculous waste of time. Glad I don't work there (or have kids there).

I teach 7th/8th grade math/computers. I have no problem with kids leaving school for family trips IF they are responsible and make up their work. I've seen both types of kids leave school for a week-ish. The responsible students make up their work (sometimes staying after school to get help with things they did not understand) and do just fine.

The struggling students are the ones I worry about. They have a difficult enough time at school, but to miss a week-ish just kills them. I really feel that it is the parent's decision though. If questions arise later about their child's struggles, I will not hesitate to point out the missed time as a factor in their child's difficulities.

For the record: I took my own kids (DD 9 and DS 7) out of school last Wed and Thu (we had Fri off) for a trip to Disneyland. I am fortunate enough to have 4 personal days and had to use 3 of them for the trip. I would have no problem doing it again. It's MY choice. The same as it should be for any parent.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

We are in CA too and I took my 3rd grader out for 4 days last month. Our district has independent study and we brought her work for the days she was gone on the trip. The school didn't loose out on their $$ because she isn't counted as absent (except for the day they had a sub, but it was straightened out before we even got back). DD is in GATE this year, and has a much higher work load than last year, so I've limited any further days off this year to one at a time.

 

[quadaunt]

and while we're on the subject of Soarin', try to fit in some time before your trip to read and learn about amelia earhart and/or the wright brothers, because as you wait in line there are photos and information about them.

Great suggestions! Wanted to add something about Soarin' Over California. The photos lining the walls in the queue are of famous California aviators, or tie-ins with California, such as the space shuttle sometimes lands in California. It's great because they have information posted below each photo explaining who the person was and what his or her contribution to aviation was. Perhaps have the kids do some online research regarding what California has contributed to the development of aviation. Just as with Mugglemama's suggestions, this will make what they see in the queu much more meaningful. You could have the kids research a little about each place that is "soared over" in SOC. If you don't have a list, here it is:

Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco; Redwood Creek in Humboldt County; Napa Valley; Monterey, Lake Tahoe; Yosemite National Park (including Yosemite Falls and Half Dome); the PGA West golf course in La Quinta (credited in the queue video presentation as Palm Springs -- and did you know that that's Michael Eisner sending that Hidden Mickey golf ball into the stratosphere); Camarillo, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park; San Diego; Malibu; Los Angeles; and last, but definitely not least...Disneyland!

 

[Mugglemama]

Great suggestions! Wanted to add something about Soarin' Over California. The photos lining the walls in the queue are of famous California aviators, or tie-ins with California, such as the space shuttle sometimes lands in California. It's great because they have information posted below each photo explaining who the person was and what his or her contribution to aviation was. Perhaps have the kids do some online research regarding what California has contributed to the development of aviation. Just as with Mugglemama's suggestions, this will make what they see in the queu much more meaningful. You could have the kids research a little about each place that is "soared over" in SOC. If you don't have a list, here it is:

Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco; Redwood Creek in Humboldt County; Napa Valley; Monterey, Lake Tahoe; Yosemite National Park (including Yosemite Falls and Half Dome); the PGA West golf course in La Quinta (credited in the queue video presentation as Palm Springs -- and did you know that that's Michael Eisner sending that Hidden Mickey golf ball into the stratosphere); Camarillo, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park; San Diego; Malibu; Los Angeles; and last, but definitely not least...Disneyland!

well then maybe i was incorrect about the wright brothers being featured in the queue? they weren't californian, were they?

OP, better follow Quadant's suggestions about the aviators here! sorry for the misinformation! (i was sure i'd seen the wright bros in there!)

 

[MPHARJ]

Thanks again everyone for your responses, you were all thinking much deeper then I was, lol! They are great answers and so much info and their forms are completed! I really hate to have to send these in and my daughter even said earlier that the teachers don't care, however she did have one last year in 8th grade that was going to refuse to give her the assignments while we were gone. However did. Both of my children are in advanced classes so I am not worried about that and would not take them out for the 5 days if that were to be an issue. Just so looking forward to heading west again, we have fallen in love with CA!

 

[keptwoman]

I forgot to say that if you actually want to do some prep on the educational side there are some wonderful "Science of Disney Imagineering" DVDs that would really make going there quite an education. Sadly they were rather more than we could afford. Amazon sells them if you are interested.

 

[kd2226]

I live in Australia and, as a couple of other Australians have mentioned on this thread, it has never been an issue here. Fortunately, our school and the kids' teachers have always been very supportive and talked about the value of travel and family experiences. They usually just ask them to keep a journal, prepare a presentation for the class, do a little scrapbook, etc.
We place a high value on education - but I would really not appreciate someone telling us that we can't take our kids out of school for a vacation.

 

[quadaunt]

well then maybe i was incorrect about the wright brothers being featured in the queue? they weren't californian, were they?

OP, better follow Quadant's suggestions about the aviators here! sorry for the misinformation! (i was sure i'd seen the wright bros in there!)

I didn't mean to imply that Amelia Earhart and the Wright brothers aren't mentioned in the SOC queue, because they are. It's just that the theming of the queue and ride is based on California's contribution to aviation. There's a tie-in with Earhart and the Wrights and now I'll have to make sure to read those plaques again when I'm riding SOC on 10/24.

 

[Mugglemama]

I live in Australia and, as a couple of other Australians have mentioned on this thread, it has never been an issue here. Fortunately, our school and the kids' teachers have always been very supportive and talked about the value of travel and family experiences. They usually just ask them to keep a journal, prepare a presentation for the class, do a little scrapbook, etc.
We place a high value on education - but I would really not appreciate someone telling us that we can't take our kids out of school for a vacation.

yeah, i never appreciated it, either! it's really, really nice that your school system appreciates the educational value in family travel.

we homeschool now, so we don't have to worry about it. but i tell you, last year i had to beg my oldest daughter's high school to excuse her for a week so we could go see my ailing father in another state (i let them know it would possibly be the last time we ever saw him - and as it turned out, it was). in this district, if a kid misses 9 days in a semester, the teacher's can fail them, regardless of their current grade in the class! so even if the kid has an A, and has turned in every single assignment for the semester, if the school chooses to, they can fail them if they needed to miss more than 9 days. (i'm not sure how often that actually happens, but they DO reserve the authority to do it).

i HATE, HATE, HATE how public school's behave as though they own our children. my oldest graduated from high school last year, so thankfully, our dealings with public school's are over. the districts we've dealt with over the years ALWAYS had it specifically stated in their handbook that the only absences that were excused were for illness or medical appointments (they even expect you to bring back a signed printout from the doc or dentist stating that you were there, and what time the appointment was, so they can harp on you if you didn't return your child directly after the appointment was over!) and if the kid is sick for more than 3 days, you have to have a doc's note saying the kid was actually sick! SO, SO annoying (because let's face it, a kid isn't always going to benefit from a trip to the doc just because they had a bad head cold or something that lasted 3+ days).

sorry for going off topic!

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

Sorry, yes, they require us to fill out a short paper for the dates and where we are going and the educational value.

Seriously? WOW

DD is a 1st grader now, we took her out for a week last year for DL and we will again this year. This is our annual trip and DH just tells her teacher we will be gone and gets her work. Now that might become more complicated as she gets older and the work gets harder but for now it isn't a concern. This is the only time we take our kids out of school. It probably helps that DH is a teacher at her school.

I really don't see harm in taking them out for DL unless they have academic issues or miss time for other things.

 

[Dinder1]

The website handsofachild.com has a Disneyland lapbook project pack for $12. We're homeschoolers, so we did it last year before our trip.
Basically, it's an eBook with lessons and activities that you can print out. The idea is that you'll then make a cute little folder with all the stuff in it. Lessons include Disney history, layout (mapping skills), Disney around the world, Walt Disney biography, and a bit of vocabulary. Activities include making a timeline, writing a Walt Disney biography, creating your own 'land', learning to draw Mickey, planning and itinerary, etc. It might be too young for your kids. Mine we're 1st and 2nd grade, but a bunch of the stuff was too advanced for them. You could have them work on it on the plane, or in the hotel room.

Spend some time in the Animations building in DCA- art lesson right there! Also, wouldn't all the shows you'll be seeing count for art credits?