Has anyone here taken their kids out of school for a disney trip?

[starlette]

We'd like to go to Disneyland this year but would like to avoid the crowds and hot weather. The dates that I have tentatively come up with are Sept. 13-20.

13-14 drive from Tacoma-Anaheim
15-17 Disneyland
18 nothing planned as of yet
19-20 drive home

The only thing I'm struggling with is the fact school will be starting up appro. Sept. 7 and if we go they will be missing about a weeks worth of school right off the bat. My kids are 16, 13, and 8 and do very well in school.I've thought of flying instead of driving to save on days missed from school but it's so much more expensive than driving. I like the drive...it adds to the anticipation of the fun that is just around the corner...

Has anyone else here taken their kids out of school and not regret it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Alex2kMommy]

I had the same concerns when we were trying to plan our trip. When would it be least crowded AND still decent weather AND not impact DS's schooling too much?

I talked with our school office staff as well as DS's teacher (he's only in kindergarten, but I don't take missing school lightly, so we asked for homework and maybe a special writing project like a journal.) Both were very enthusiastic for us, and DS's teacher will be giving us some math homework (which they will just begin learning) and put together a journal for DS to take to Disneyland. We'll write a bit each night, and ask questions for him to answer on paper, like who his favorite character is, what was the best ride today, what did he eat, and so on.

We haven't gone yet (13 days away!) but you could always talk to the school folks and see what their opinion is. I know we're talking about the next school year, but maybe this years' teachers could provide some advice, or relieve your worries.

 

[w and r]

ABSOLUTELY...we do every year. Our children are eleven and six. They do up journals with writing and pictures at the end of each day to present to the class. The teachers always tell us that the "learning" that goes on for kids on trips more than makes up for the week of missed school. They always catch up the week after the trip.

My parents took us out of school when we were kids and they were the best days and trips of our life. You can't beat the family time.

Enjoy!

wendy

 

[momahubbard]

Hi,
I'm new here.
We are going to Disney for the first time in about 2 weeks. My kids (ages 8 and 12) have their spring vacation next week. I asked their teachers to please have all homework they will need to complete ready to bring home this coming Friday. They will have all spring break to get it finished and the I will bring it to the school the day we leave (april 24th) so they won't be behind when we get back. My 8-year old's teacher also assigned her a journal to write about her trip. Both kids get good grades so I'm not worried.
Good Luck
Lisa

 

[cinderella_bella]

We are taking ours out in a week to go to Hawaii then on to Disneyland. We will be gone 3 weeks. I have learned recently that life is too short. I value education and I wouldn't take them out several time in a year but you can always work around it and all will be well. Unless you end up with jerk teachers that think school IS the world. Then again who cares.

Tania

 

[starlette]

Thank you all.... for your help. I'm feeling better about my dates and taking them out of school. I'm hoping that since it's the beginning of the year they won't miss too much...I think the first couple of weeks they're getting used to "routine" more than anything else. I will, though, touch base with their schools to get an idea of they think. Thanks again!

If anyone else has something else to add, please do!

 

[Honeybehr1]

We took our oldest (8) out of school for a week when we went to DW in October. His teacher was great about it. She just wanted him to keep a simple journal of money spent, have him listen to each park (learning about different sounds that week) and have him guide us using only the map. I found some pages on the internet that made a journal and he did that each day plus kept a log of the weather each morning. Some of it he did before we even left for the park - kept him busy while I was getting ready for the day. He did two presentations when we got back.
I would definately do and not feel guilty. So far its the only 5 days he has missed from school.

We are thinking of going to DL next April. Its only in the planning stages though. I feel like a fish out of water when it comes to DL

 

[dondiego]

We took our children out when they were younger and like other parents, we requested assignments from their teachers. One of the assignments they enjoyed the most was recording "mystery" sounds for their classmates to identify. I remember the long discussions they would have about which sounds to choose, and I can still picture them closing their eyes and listening to the sounds in the park. Also, the journals they keep are a wonderful memory of the trip.

 

[jakoky]

hi there, we leave in 32 days and i struggled with date...i knew i was going to take them out of school, but had to decide when would be the best time...my kids are 10, 12, and almost 15...i wasnt worried about the younger two, but my oldest daughter is on a semester system...we are going to be gone 12 days, but it is timed that they only miss 6 school days(no US holidays while we are there either, but 1 canadian one)....in 6 days, she misses 510 minutes per class....i am still a little nervous, but her teachers are ok, and 2 of her classes are art and digital media....i am hoping to get most of her work a week early and she can finish the rest when we get home...i dont think we have to take any work while we are away for any of them...i think if you discuss it with the teachers and make sure they get all their work done, this is an amazing chance to spend family time and to me that is beyond important....school and grades are also very important, my kids are A/B students, and they know they have to put in extra work to get the fun...hope u have an awesome trip
sharon

 

[hlbtimes2]

We have taken our daughter out 3 times (once in K and twice this year in 2nd) for Disney trips. But, its usually only for 2 days combined with a long weekend. I dont know that I would be willing to take her out the first month. I think its good to let them get in to the swing of school, find out how their teacher is, what is expected,etc.

 

[MrsMork]

We did until they hit high school when it became too difficult to make up the work and grades do count at that point.

 

[A Litle Pixie Dust]

Hello,

I have taken my daughter out of school for various trips from 2 weeks to drive to WDW (from CA) to extra days for a cruise. The teachers overall were great - sent home her school work and we brought things for my DD9 to share with the class when she returned.

I always make sure that some part of our trip is educational. On our drive to WDW 2 years ago..we stopped at the Alamo, New Orleans, and the Gulf of Mississippi...she learned things that she wouldn't have from a book or pictures and has the memory of her trip.

By the way...next year.. we are taking her out of school again..she will miss 5 days when we take a 14 day cruise to HI... it leaves the 23rd of Dec and returns the 6th of January. I have already informed her school and hope they will provide her school work early. We have scheduled educational tours for Pearl Harbor and the Hawaiian Culteral Center so she will have educational activities there too.

Enjoy your time and your trip. your children will appreciate the time with you and will be just fine as far as school goes. A journal is a great educational tool as well as a great memory for them.

have a MAGICAL trip!

Desiree

 

[yipee]

Yup! We have for several trips. Our kids are in elementary, though, so it may be tougher on your 13 and 16 year old. I am a teacher (middle school), and I never had a problem with students missing school, provided they could handle the catching up! (Even if they couldn't, who am I to tell a family not to go on vacation! )You mentioned that your kids do well in school, though, so I'm thinking they will be able to catch up easily! We really enjoyed the off season holidays while I wasn't working. The one downside of teaching is that although we get great holidays, they all occur during prime time!

Have fun and enjoy the "off season!"

 

[samkj]

We must be in the minority. We will not pull our kids from school for vacation. My husband is a teacher, and can not miss work for vacation, but we also feel its not necessary. We can deal with the extra crowds with going during school holidays. We have just as wonderful family time at peak season as during the off season. Yes family time is important, but I think its possible to do that during holidays as well. The school year is 180 days, which leaves 185 family days....

 

[RADOPT]

I do. We can't do crowds or heat so we have to go off season if we are ever going to take vacation. I don't have a problem with it as a parent and did not as a teacher - it's up to the parent whether or not it is correct.

 

[victorandbellasmom]

We have and will probably do so in the future. We took ds out for the first time in kindergarten. Teacher and school staff cleared our vacation and ds had homework. It was for 3 days. We've been horrible since ds started 2nd grade though. He was out for 2 week in late sept-early oct as we had a family reunion in southern CA and was out again for 1 week late March-early April. Again we cleared each trip with teacher and school office. He was given homework prior to each trip and had to keep a journal. This last trip, ds began an online blog of our trip so that teacher had a daily update to what he had been doing. Dh works a lot and has only certain times of the year he may take vacation. This family time means a lot to us even though we value the importance of education. Luckily ds is one of the top students in his class and doesn't have much difficulty in catching up when he gets back from trips.

 

[agoofylover]

I am new to this too! I plan on going in September 10-14th DL and then 2 days in San diego. My DS will be 5 and just starting kindergarten and my other DS will be 3 and starting pre-school. We chose September, because my DH and I went before kids for our anniversary. It was a great time to go...still summerish weather and few crowds, except on the weekend. We weighed the options and figured it was more important to enjoy ourselves as a family, than to miss a few school days. I think I'd feel the same no matter how old they get. We're just excited that we get to go and it will be our first family trip.

 

[Judy from Boise]

My DD has had a week out of school for a Disney vacation every year so far K-9 !

On a different note. I beleive that will be a very busy time for two reasons........first it is the Half-marathon which is brining in 10,000 runners (not counting families)secondly it is the last two weeks prior to the end of the anniversary, and i think many locals may go "one more time".

 

[ZeusNike]

We have taken our daughter out most every year for at least a few days a year to go to DL since she was in Kindergarten. This year she was in Grade 11 when we went and the three days we took off made things very difficult for her. She is in a pretty intense academic program and even though her teachers were very good about it, the missed time made things rough. She doesn't want to even try next fall so I guess we go a year without our November trip . Oh well, after that she will be out of high school!

 

[Judy from Boise]

I don't think we will be able to swing it 10-12 either! Oh well.....it was a great run while it lasted!