need advice especially from school employees

[DLANGE3386]

We have an opportunity to go to Hawaii for 2 weeks in January. my kids will miss 2 weeks of school. they are not straight A students but do well and work very hard. I need to let school know. should I just tell them the truth or embellish the truth (business opportunity.etc..) The school really frowns upon kids missing due to vacation. I normally wouldn't pull them out but basically the trip is now or never. Thanks for any advice

 

[The Mystery Machine]

What grades?

 

[DLANGE3386]

6th and 8th

 

[lovetoscrap]

I am a big believer in the fact that my kids are MINE and the less you say the better. My note would say (and has said in the past!)

Susie will miss school from X date to X date due to a family commitment. We will be able to take any work that is available with us for her to complete during her absence, and the rest will be completed in a timely manner when we return.

I don't ask for permission to take my own children out of school for any reason. I did at one time when plans were flexible ask when would be the best week for them to miss but wasn't asking permission.

Be prepared that the school will count this as an unexcused absence, and may give you some hassle over it. But I think a once in a lifetime type experience like this is a priority. School will always be there, work can be made up, it will all get learned. Family is precious, and you never know what tomorrow will bring.

 

[padams]

A 2 week trip to Hawaii would not be excused at my 6th and 8th grader's private school. At best, our school would give zeros for all assigments during the vacation. I suspect our school might even tell you to find a new school.

Our local public school would require your kids to repeat the grade as they would exceed their allowable unexcused absences. There's no way a trip to Hawaii would be excused even if it's a business trip.

 

[Liberty Belle]

A 2 week trip to Hawaii would not be excused at my 6th and 8th grader's private school. At best, our school would give zeros for all assigments during the vacation. I suspect our school might even tell you to find a new school.

Our local public school would require your kids to repeat the grade as they would exceed their allowable unexcused absences. There's no way a trip to Hawaii would be excused even if it's a business trip.

Wow. If a child in your district misses more than ten (?) days of school they have to repeat the grade?! That's crazy.

 

[Darcy03231]

I'd go and deal with any consequences, even if it meant all zeros for everything missed and/or the possibility of repeating a grade. If the school district decided that repeating a grade was necessary, I would take my kids out and homeschool. I can tell you that I don't remember what did for two weeks in either 6th or 8th grade, but I would remember, in great detail, a 2 week trip to Hawaii. There is more to learning than just school and classroom work.

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

First you need to get the districts policy on 10 missed days. I would think no vacation is worth having to repeat a year of schooling. Most parents these days cannot just take their kids out and homeschool. Two weeks is a very long time to miss for both grades. Even if the school lets you make up the work, do you want to have them doing school work throughout the vacation?

But as I stated in the first post, what state are you in so that is can be easier to determine if this is something you should even be considering.

 

[rgf207]

Talk to the school and explain the situation. No reason to lie. They are your kids and it's your decision but be prepared for the consequences. 10 days of school is an awful lot of time. You may find that the school has no problem. you may find that your children will receive all zeros for the assignments and tests. There is also a possibility that you may also find yourself in court for truancy. A lot of states have strict laws for truancy. These laws are enforced by the state and have nothing to do with the school. Just make sure you check those before so you aren't hit with any surprises.

 

[DLANGE3386]

I forgot to mention that I want to tell the school soon so they can get a packet of work ready for the kids to bring with us. I know they will have to stay after often for a couple of weeks when we get back to catch up. we are also doing our best to not miss ANY school before or after that. missiing 10 days will not make them "fail". It is a vacation but we do plan on doing educational activities -not just laying on a beach. My kids haven't missed school for a vacation since they were in 1st grade. I am nervous about the school's reaction but I am not going to let my family miss out on the opportunity. I was just looking for advice on the best way to word our plans

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

Our school system states in writing that students can't miss more than three days in a marking period. This includes being absent, dismissed & tardy. The school can send a letter to parents of children with more than three in a marking period. Before sending a letter, they will look at the child's grades and also take into consideration any notes from doctors. They are trying to discourage vacations during school & also appointments made during the school day.
I did take my children out of school once for 4 days to go to WDW w/extended family. They were in 1st, 6th & 8th grade. I did ask permission before booking the trip because I didn't want the middle school students' grades to suffer. I told the principals that we normally don't miss school for trips, but this was a small family reunion. The middle school principal told me she would have to look at my childrens' records & talk to their teachers & would get back to me. She called me back the next day & said it would be fine but the children would have to make up all missed work within a few days of our return. Some of the teachers gave the work a head of time. My first grader's principal said no problem & the teacher gave the work ahead of time. My older kids said that while they did have a great time on vacation, they did not want to miss school again. They felt like they missed too much. I respect that & we won't miss school again.
Two weeks is a long time. Would your children be given all the work ahead of time? I would be honest with the school especially because you don't want to worry about what your kids will say.
Going to Hawaii is a great opportunity, I don't what the right thing to do is.
Good luck!

 

[punkin]

well let us know what happens. I am also thinking about pulling DD10 out of 6th grade for 2 weeks and am unsure what to do or say.

 

[MizTink]

I'd go and deal with any consequences, even if it meant all zeros for everything missed and/or the possibility of repeating a grade. If the school district decided that repeating a grade was necessary, I would take my kids out and homeschool. I can tell you that I don't remember what did for two weeks in either 6th or 8th grade, but I would remember, in great detail, a 2 week trip to Hawaii. There is more to learning than just school and classroom work.

and i have always been surprised at how little work my kids have missed. either the teachers didn't have them do everything they missed, or there is an awful lot of wasted time. even more than i imagined...

 

[rgf207]

I forgot to mention that I want to tell the school soon so they can get a packet of work ready for the kids to bring with us. I know they will have to stay after often for a couple of weeks when we get back to catch up. we are also doing our best to not miss ANY school before or after that. missiing 10 days will not make them "fail". It is a vacation but we do plan on doing educational activities -not just laying on a beach. My kids haven't missed school for a vacation since they were in 1st grade. I am nervous about the school's reaction but I am not going to let my family miss out on the opportunity. I was just looking for advice on the best way to word our plans

I hope this all works out for you but please don't expect the teachers to put together 10 days of work for your kids. That's a lot of extra work for teachers since they usually need to spend hours preparing this ahead of time. Also, it may not always be valid as sometimes lessons change based on how the students are taking the material


ETA: I agree with everyone that this is a once in a lifetime experience. I think you should do what you want because they are your kids but unfortunatly there are laws and rules that, no matter what, need to be followed or there are consequences. I also agree that missing 2 weeks of school, albeit a long time, will not greatly affect your children's learning. They will catch up and will be fine but it's just the underlying consequences that will probably make or break this for you. I hope it all works out.

 

[DWGal210]

I agree with the PP, please keep us up-to-speed on what they tell you.

Now, let me preface this by saying I have no kids, at least not yet. But it just kills me that kids are having to repeat grades and jump over hoops because they're spending time with their families on vacation.

NOW, that being said, I 100% understand the value of education, and that it's important to be in the classroom. I also understand the great amount of work that goes into teaching and how it can be hard when kids are gone from the class for extended periods of time. AND I also understand there has to be some benchmark so that kids aren't missing loads of school each year.

But at the end of the day, I agree with LovesToScrap - they're your kids and as long as you're not leading them down the path of extreme truancy and they're not missing 3 out of the 5 days of school each week, I don't see what the problem is.

 

[MizTink]

I am a big believer in the fact that my kids are MINE and the less you say the better. My note would say (and has said in the past!)





I don't ask for permission to take my own children out of school for any reason. I did at one time when plans were flexible ask when would be the best week for them to miss but wasn't asking permission.

Be prepared that the school will count this as an unexcused absence, and may give you some hassle over it. But I think a once in a lifetime type experience like this is a priority. School will always be there, work can be made up, it will all get learned. Family is precious, and you never know what tomorrow will bring.

this is exactly how i feel too. i like the wording on the notice letter too.

 

[Darcy03231]

I forgot to mention that I want to tell the school soon so they can get a packet of work ready for the kids to bring with us. I know they will have to stay after often for a couple of weeks when we get back to catch up. we are also doing our best to not miss ANY school before or after that. missiing 10 days will not make them "fail". It is a vacation but we do plan on doing educational activities -not just laying on a beach. My kids haven't missed school for a vacation since they were in 1st grade. I am nervous about the school's reaction but I am not going to let my family miss out on the opportunity. I was just looking for advice on the best way to word our plans

I wouldn't ask for a packet of work ahead of time as that can sometimes create more work for the teacher. I would approach the teachers and let them know you'll be away, where you're going, for how long and ask them how they would like your children to make up any school/home work missed. I would also find out what their after school days are so your children can stay after on those days when they get back to make sure they understand what they've missed.

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

I would be honest with the school ahead of time. You need to find out their policies on unexcused absenses. If your decision did, in fact, lead to your children having to stay back or go to summer school, they would have a long, long time to regret your decision. You really should find this out before you decide to go. Personally, I would never take my chidlren out for that long a time--and they wouldn't want to miss that much.

You can't count on the 12-14 teachers all giving yoru child a "packet". Seriously, I can't imagine the size of packets my oldest two would get in that situation! And my oldest would never have wanted to miss that much of math class, in particular--it would have taken her weeks to catch up. And she's in honors algebra, it's just not her best subject, and she has to work to maintain her place in the class.

I also think it's wrong to send the message to your children that a vacation is more important than school. Sure, vacations have value, and everyone trots out the tired argument that "you never know what's going to happen". Yeah, true enough--but your children aren't great students to begin with, and they are going to pay whatever price is to be paid fr this trip. Bottom line, that's not their burden to have to bear.

 

[Mickey's Minion]

I forgot to mention that I want to tell the school soon so they can get a packet of work ready for the kids to bring with us. I know they will have to stay after often for a couple of weeks when we get back to catch up. we are also doing our best to not miss ANY school before or after that. missiing 10 days will not make them "fail". It is a vacation but we do plan on doing educational activities -not just laying on a beach. My kids haven't missed school for a vacation since they were in 1st grade. I am nervous about the school's reaction but I am not going to let my family miss out on the opportunity. I was just looking for advice on the best way to word our plans

First of all, you will have to ok it with all the teachers that they are ok with staying after to help your child catch up.

If there are specific after hour help sessions, then no problem. But if you are expecting teachers to take extra time away from their family to help your child catch up after their family time, then that is something you will have to ask politely for. But be prepared that teachers do not have to take their family time to help your child catch up after their vacation.

Also, you will have to check with your district policy on getting a packet of work together. Many districts are not allowed to put together work packets ahead of time for unexcused absences. This is usually a district policy and not teachers being curmudgeons. Many schools will not allow makeup work for a 10 day unexcused absence.

Then the last thing you need to check are your district and state truancy policies. Our district will not excuse 10 days of vacation and might report the parents to social services for truancy. There is a possibility you could very well find yourself being monitored by social services for the next couple of years, attending parenting classes and social services classes, especially if you lied about it.

That said, if it is a once in a lifetime opportunity, I would try to work with the school.

The 6th grader, I wouldn't worry about at all. Nobody ever sees or even remembers 6th grade work.

But the 8th grader, failing 8th grade might affect classes in high school, which will in turn affect the high school transcript, which in the long run could affect college eligibility.

 

[DLANGE3386]

I would be honest with the school ahead of time. You need to find out their policies on unexcused absenses. If your decision did, in fact, lead to your children having to stay back or go to summer school, they would have a long, long time to regret your decision. You really should find this out before you decide to go. Personally, I would never take my chidlren out for that long a time--and they wouldn't want to miss that much.

You can't count on the 12-14 teachers all giving yoru child a "packet". Seriously, I can't imagine the size of packets my oldest two would get in that situation! And my oldest would never have wanted to miss that much of math class, in particular--it would have taken her weeks to catch up. And she's in honors algebra, it's just not her best subject, and she has to work to maintain her place in the class.

I also think it's wrong to send the message to your children that a vacation is more important than school. Sure, vacations have value, and everyone trots out the tired argument that "you never know what's going to happen". Yeah, true enough--but your children aren't great students to begin with, and they are going to pay whatever price is to be paid fr this trip. Bottom line, that's not their burden to have to bear.

please don't be harsh. you don't know me or my background. my 6th grader has 4 teachers and the 8th grader 6. they are not straight A students but that doesn'yt make them bad students either.