How many of you take your kids out of school for WDW?

[DisneyAunt]

I have 2 nephews (4 -pre school & 6 1st grade) and we took them out of school for our May 2004 trip and February 2005 trip. I wanted to take them out 2 days again this May but my Sis in Law won't let me.

I have already told her that they are coming in November 2005. They are still young and every trip we have I try to teach them something. So they are getting educated just not seated in a class room.

 

[Momof6]

When I first saw the thread I figured I would be in the minority...of course, wasn't thinking that I am among WDW lovers! LOL!
Our girls missed two weeks right before the two weeks off for Christmas vacation the year before last. If they struggled at all with school we might rethink it. Teachers have been great. We've been honest. My boys - well, we never had any money when they were little, so it was never an issue. I think it is vital for families to experience vacations together. My dh is in the military - and I will tell you that it will be more important in my children's lives to spend two weeks of very special family time every couple years - just celebrating our blessings - than it will ever be to have an A over a B. I'm honestly more concerned with DH missing pointe class twice!
Oh...but she is going to be in the Disney group in two years! Insurance for our vaca this April to not be our last!

Denise

 

[luvsgrumpy]

We have 3 kids, pre-school, 2nd, and 5th. The two in school are in the "gifted" program. Never had any problems yet, we've been taking them out every other year or so since kindergarten. Luckily our school is wonderful and very encouraging. Usually the teachers give the kids some work to do but are sometimes more concerned with the kids just having a good time than getting it all finished. Heck, I've already had three faculty members ask if they can go with us --LOL! I am careful when planning though to avoid any important "testing" periods, etc. that would be impossible to make up and I think that is appreciated.
I say go for it, they are only young once!

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

So far this is the nicest part of year-round schooling. We have a 3 week break in the fall when most traditional schools are just returning (WDW here we come), a 3 week break at Christmas, and a 3 week break at Easter. Downside is we have to cram summer camps and trips into 6 weeks.... but I NEVER hear my kids say they are bored halfway through summer vacation!

 

[mill4023]

We'll be taking our 1st and 4th graders out for 7 days in April/May.
Because they are both gifted, being bored is a much bigger concern than being behind. Their school has done a very poor job of providing work that is challenging enough for them. I have a feeling that our 4 year old might be a different story. When she goes to school, we'll just have to see how she does and if school is harder for her, we probably wouldn't want her to miss any days. The last thing we want to do is harm our kids education. What many people who look down upon this don't seem to realize is that every kid is different and it is really up to the parent to decide if missing school to go to WDW is going to be harmful or beneficial for their particular child.

 

[LlamaFace]

We took our 4.5 year old DD out of school the first time she went to WDW during April. Really no big deal, but even Pre-K is a huge building block these days.

We are taking her out again this April (1st grade) for a week and I had talked to her teacher about this several months ago. Her teacher had no issues with this due to our DD's grades being so good. This is also a motivation tool we have used for our DD.....she doesn't need much, but every little bit helps and you get to have those discussions about WDW now and then

For a bragging point: Her last report card (last week) stated that she led the class in all subjects. Now if that does not deserve a WDW reward, I don't know what does. We gave her the new Bambi DVD (with Thumper plush toy) that night and we watched our WDW planning DVD again. We are all getting excited.....especially her.

Disney Magic knows no bounds.

 

[dpic]

Our children are now 12 & 15. We'll take them out of school for a week in Dec. Our schools have been very understanding of family vacations. Basically, if your children have over a C+ in all grades (a cinch for our kids), they have no problem with kids missing school for family vacations.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I understand that gifted kids have few worries in school and can miss school with no problem. However, one note to those who don't have a "gifted" kid. Take your kid out too! I do it and will continue to do so until DS is in middle school and then we'll see. I don't think my daughter who tries very hard should be penalized because she isn't gifted. As I said in the beginning of this post, its not just about assignments, its about overall classroom experience and that can't be made up regardless of grade point average. My daughter (and son) missed 4 days in December for a trip to Disneyland. Then a couple of weeks ago she missed 6 days due to strep. I thought, oh no now she'll be so behind, I'll be kicking myself for taking her out last December. Guess what, report cards came out and she did just fine and showed a lot of improvement. Just because a kid struggles doesn't mean they will struggle even more because they miss some school. Sometimes it just takes a little time and growth, and attendance while important, isn't necessarily anymore of a deciding factor for an average or below average student than a gifted one. Incidentally, that last statement is what my daughter's teacher told me at conference today. She has 20 years experience teaching second grade and thinks family time is important for ALL kids of all levels.

 

[Tiger Fan]

We have taken DD out twice during the school year and always try to work it around long weekends/holidays etc. to minimize days missed. This year we wanted a longer stay, so are just going in the summer. We would take her out again if things worked out ok and she was doing fine in school. I think it all depends on your own kids and their needs/abilities, etc. Have fun.
Lisa
Tiger Fan

 

[hugsquared]

Count me in...we're taking DD out for 6 days in September...she'll be in 4th grade and I think this time with her is important too. We'll have fun, learn some stuff and get to enjoy being a family without all the "everyday" chores and routines. We can't wait.

 

[Loops]

We will be taking our daughter out of kindergarten for 5 days. I already notified her teacher and her teacher told her to have fun (and asked her to make a little book about the trip). I asked her teacher to give her any missed assignments when she returns and we would go over the lessons with her.

If a kid can miss a week of school to be sick, why not a week to have fun??

 

[digskat]

We took our kids ages 5(SK) and 7(GRADE@) out of school in Nov. I let their teacher know so they could get together a folder of "homework" for the kids. My son's big project was drawing pictures of his favourite things to share with his class when he got back. My daughter is in french immersion where everything is in french so her teacher sent little books to read and math pages which my daughter loves. We have to go during the school year because summer is considered "prime time" at both mine and hubbie's jobs.

 

[Johnfish]

I have had a very tough time with this. Unfortunately I can't take a vacation this summer so it will have to be the week after Thanksgiving. My son will be in his junior year of high school. I told him as long as he maintains Bs or better we can go. It seems as though the last 2 years he has missed at least one week in the fall. Last year he was out due to an operation and the year before we attended the 1st flight celebration in Kitty Hawk NC. What an amazing experience that was! He has done well catching up when we return. I really dont like to take him out but hopefully it will work out ok this year.

John

 

[joshsmom]

We've gone three times and I took him out of school all three times. When we go in May, he'll miss 2 1/2 days, but since they get out on the 25th, he's not missing any actual class time!

 

[drdesigns]

We leave for Disney this Monday. We will be taking DD out of school for a week. She is in the 7th grade and an excellent student. This is the first time we have ever taken her out of school for a family vacation.

We planned our vacation around my DS schedule. He is in college and his grades are not as good as DD. SO - his Spring vacation dictated when we would go.

I sure wish the local colleges and schools could coordinate their breaks.

 

[TheLeonhardts]

During elementary school, we took our daughter out for about a week a year. We got her assignments in advance, and she was usually ahead of her class when she returned to school. We usually got all the homework done before leaving for Florida -- sometimes taking some on the plane, more to pass the time than anything.

Middle school has been a different story. The GT classes are truly more challenging (finally, but be careful what you wish for). She's been sick a few times (new school, new viruses), and has struggled to keep an A/B average in her advanced mathmatics course. We're a bit overreaching and anal, and freak when her grade point approaches 3.5. (But we do take great vacations and have a lot of fun as a family -- looking for that happy balance ) I cancelled a much anticipated 7 day cruise with out-of-state friends on DCL because we just couldn't justify the effect of a week out of school on her overall understanding and the grades.

We're having Disney withdrawal, and really prefer to visit the parks during "value" season, when crowds are down. School break times are just soooo crowded and the prices on everything (air, car rental, hotel) are at a premium. I've also always wanted to attend MNSSHP , which starts the first week in October when the weather is glorious. We're going to use one of the Jewish holidays in October to go for 5 days, missing 2 days of school. We're there to have fun, and would have a difficult time selling ourselves on the "educational" aspect at the middle school level. Although, preparing and paying for the trip is a tremendous exercise is project planning, budget, and schedule management. I could probably teach her how to do an GANT chart with budget projections

I'm jealous that you've squeezed out 10 days using a similar approach. Unfortunately, our school district doesn't give the kids the day off for Columbus day -- or we'd be right there with you.

Judy

 

[Sherrypooh]

Skipping to the bottom. I am taking my 7th and 9th grader out of school in may for 5 days. I am going to contact the school and get assignments. The school is not happy, but I am a true believer in that some important life lessons can not be learned in school. Family values etc are just as important and being a single parent I feel that it is very important to have quality time with them when we can. JMO.

sherry

 

[Took]

We've taken our elementary school age dd out for a few days every year. Usually we try to limit her absences to 3-4 and usually in conjunction with other school "free days" (days when school parties are planned and so forth). Our dd always is quite willing to give up these days (she's missed her school Xmas party two years running).

We always discuss our trip with the teacher in advance (beginning of school year) and have not, so far, been offered anything but encouragement (it's a private school so they're able to be more flexible, perhaps). Our dd makes up not only the "work" but spends extera time with me going over concepts that kids learned in class. As a college instructor, I'm aware that nothing makes up for class time in quite the same way,but I do try hard.

Nevertheless, I'm with several of the parents here: families need time, too. Busy moms (and we ALL are whether we work in our out of our homes) perhaps most of all!

Took

 

[sarahandhannahsmom]

School is very important, but so is family. My theory is a child can always make up school work. You can't make up for lost family time. They are only little once. Having lost a child, I cherish every moment with my two DD's. If you need to take them out, then take them out. If our school system had harsh consequences for family time, I'd probably move shcools.

I'll probably get flamed for my care free attitude, but when my kids grow up and become adults, they will remember all our great family times (including vacations). It doesn't matter if its a week at Disney, a day at the local amusement park, or a picnic in the park, my priority is family time.

We usually do our homework for the week on the long drive to Disney. It helps to pass the time.

 

[gabbygrennell]

I completely agree with what sarahandhannahsmom said above!!!

In our family, our lives do not revolve around the public school system and their "schedules". My hubby and I cannot simply have time off that coordinates with their vacations... as these tend to be busy times for us at work!

So, we take ours out! And I dont think twice about it! Our school doesnt mind as long as we give advance notice and the kids teachers have been happy to prepare work ahead of time. Our oldest usually gets some kind of assignment such as write a report etc... about what you did, and we have him pick a country in epcot, to study, learn about, etc... he buys some stuff from that country and presents a report to the class... they all enjoy it!

Your children are only young for a short time and you can never get it back! Family is very important to us! Education is also very important, but family comes first.
If our school had rules on taking kids out like some I have read on these boards, i would be homeschooling again!

My parents took me out of school at least once a yr for family vacations. I always made up the work... usually on the plane... but the memories I have from those wonderful family times will last a lifetime! Sitting in a classroom staring at the clock will soon be forgotten!

Enjoy your little ones before they arent so little any more!