Kids missing school for a cruise!!

[Ndsmorrison]

Last fall was our 1st Disney Cruise and we didn't have to worry about it, our DD was only in daycare and while we were on that one we booked another cruise. This time she is in 5K at the elementary school and we are leaving Thanksgiving day and she will have to be out the week after. So she will only miss 5 days but South Carolina schools frown down on missing more than like 3 in a row. They only can only miss 10 days the entire year from what I have heard. I know its only 5 days but I'm afraid if I take her out she may end up missing more days throughout the year for some reason or another. Plus I'm worried about asking the principal about it, I guess it worries because they will have something bad to me. Anyone else from SC that has any issues and has advice for me???

 

[cruisecrasher]

I'm from Texas and we have similarly harsh truancy policies. I'd ask the other parents at the school or any friends I have who teach what to do.

 

[NeverSayNever]

I am one of those that feel that my children reap huge benefits on our travels (which are not many) from the quality family time to experiencing other cultures and places to just seeing and understanding how things work and how to do things (board an airplane, go through security).

In the big scheme of things we don't believe that missing a week of school is going to adversely impact their education or future career goals. And when they are grown are they going to remember the work they missed or the family vacation...

With that said we have taken our kids out of school almost every year since K for one week for vacation - we try to schedule around one of the fall holidays but it does not always work. This year, they will miss 7 days (gulp) in October - they are both changing to middle school and the 6th grade. I am apprehensive that the school will highly frown on this as they have not been thrilled in the past. My children are very good students.

Our work obligations also make vacationing during the summer a very difficult request.

I often use the rocking chair test... ie. when I ma old and on the porch in the rocking chair will I regret having taking them out... I highly doubt it... would I regret if I didn't and we did not have a vacation... Yes, I would.

For what it is worth, that is my opinion.

Best,

Never Say Never

 

[NYIceQueen]

I will say just check with your district. Ours is "strict" but it's strictly for truancy. While family vacations are considered "unexcused" (with the exception of traveling for a funeral), the kid is with their parent. Because our district has such a strict illness policy -- no fevers or coughs or they have to stay home until 24 hours off medication -- they do NOT count illnesses towards the total. My daughter gets strep often and she's made to stay home.

But yeah, check with your districts and keep a line of communication with the teachers as the kids get older WRT to homework and things the kids can do while on vacation -- ie, reading counting toward class reading logs, port reports for Geography, etc.

 

[Stinkerbe11]

I have homeschooled for 5 years and had planned on continuing when we booked our Alaska/repo cruise/Disneyland trip for September. It turns out that to keep my professional license current, I have to go back to work and can't homeschool this year.

The school we have chosen is private and doesn't start until September, but the kids would still be missing 3 weeks. I have decided to homeschool for the first month and enroll them at the end of September. Surprisingly, the school administrators are totally on board and encouraged us to go We have been using the same curriculum as this particular school, so it should be no problem staying on track.

 

[scgustafson]

We've never pulled our kids out of school for a vacation. As an educator, my wife will never do that, plus she teaches in the same district as the kids attend and absolutely loathes when she has to have a sub, not to mention they have 2/3 weeks off in October, December, and March because it's a year round district.

My wife is the same way as she teaches at the same school as our daughter. Plus, my wife never has enough sick days on the books to be able to skip school for a cruise. Luckily, we have the year-round schedule, so we can make our cruises work within the 2 weeks for fall break, 2 weeks for winter break, 2 weeks for spring break, and 7 weeks for summer vacation.