Pulling 7 year old out of school. What do you do?

[princessmom29]

Well........you never to seem to hesitate to point your finger at what you perceive to be everyone else's "sub-standard" education. Over and over and over again.

I don't believe too many people claimed that there wasn't any make up work to be done. My kids had make up work to do. They did spend time outside of school to complete their missing work. It just wasn't the major maladjustment that you try and make it out to be. Everyone just puts on their big girl panties and deals with it.

Don't take your kids out of school. I don't care what you do. Stop telling everyone else that they are bad, uncaring parents for letting their kids miss school to go to WDW.

I am not pointing a finger at anyone. I was responding to ONE poster who said that her kids didn't have to dso any work to get caught up after missing a week of school. I said that if that is the case, then there is something wrong and I would be asking why my child can miss a week and miss nothing or importance. That has NOTHING to do with all the other posters on this thread who sadi that their children miss and do makeup work, or account for the missed material in some other fashion. The ONLY point I was trying to make is that it is disturbing to me that a child could miss aweek of school and miss nothing. It is ahuge red flag that there is a problem.
Iti s not about "wanting to argue" as some seem to think. I think there are several posters here that are tying to cause friction, and many of them are the ones pointing the finger. They are pointing it at me. If you go back ad re-read my posts you will se that I DO pull my DD from school for trips, and we do the work to get back on track. I don't have a problem with doing so. I choose not to do it for a week at a time becuase, for us, it is a LOT of work to get caught up. Does that mean YOU shouldn't. NO, that would depend on your school.
The post I was responding to was one of those deliberately trying to bait me and perhaps I should not have taken the bait, but that attitude that everyone in the South is stupid is a real pet peeve for me.

 

[spacemountainmom]

I don't seem to recall implying that everyone in the south is stupid. My comment is that the south is not really known for having top quality education. Southern states routinely are listed at the bottom of the educational spectrum. I am also not ignorant enough to believe that all southern schools are bad or all northern schools are great. There is disparity everywhere. I do understand that I very likely received a better quality education in a large, suburban district as compared to my cousins who attended school in a small rural district. My schools had far better resources, both staff, quipment and supplies, than theirs did. In the end, however, I believe the largest part of the educational process is what the student and their parents put into it. I see all too many kids in the middle school setting who just don't care at all and I guess their parents don't either. I really don't know how some of them think they are going to handle the rigors of high school.

I'm sorry, but to me (and apparently to others) you do seem argumentative. That may not be your intention, but it is how you come off.

 

[ccgirl]

I'm just wondering about the 8 year old child who has to go to swim practice for two hours every day. WOW! That really puts a dent in homework time.

Then again, I've just never understood the "over" scheduling of children today. Parents complain about kids not having enough time to do schoolwork, yet schedule their every waking minute in some sort of sport or activity. One of the biggest laughs I ever had was a local news story about parents who were getting concerned that they and their kids were overscheduled...the solution...they started a weekly discussion group to try and figure out what to do. OK?!?

Since this was post was directed at me I will be kind enough to answer it. My DD is a competitive swimmer. She would like to be in the Olympics some day. I do not push her. Believe it or not, this is her choice, her dream, so I support it. Practice is not every night. It is 3 nights a week right now. As she gets older the practices will increase. This is all she does, until soccer season then she adds that in. Again, her choice. She has no trouble keeping up with her studies at all and consistently receives straight A's so I do not think it is "over" scheduling her at all. My point was that, although not detrimental to take her out, she did have to spend a lot of extra time doing the make up work. Having said that, I will repeat that I have taken her out for 1 week in each grade thus far (K,1, and 2). It is a parent's choice and as long as the school guidelines are followed I see no problem with it.

What is a magnet school? Is this a private school? I live in the Boston area.

I think it is the same thing as a Charter school? There are many in MA.

To Missingthejob: I wanted to thank you for taking the time to explain the school your children go to. It helps me to understand how missing a week of school for your children would not require a lot of makeup work. I would also like to commend you for taking the time to find a school that fits with your children and the lifestyle you provide. I urge all parents to read the handbook for their child's school. Each school will have a policy as far as absences/vacations and when you agree to send your child there you agree to adhere to the policies. Some schools require the parent to fill out a form of the "educational advantages" of the vacation prior to receiving approval. As you can see, policies vary widely school to school not just state to state or district to district.

 

[livndisney]

Funny thing is she actually stated that she DOES take her kids out of school for vacations. If you notice she only wants to argue. It's tiring. I think missingthejob summed it up perfectly earlier....a waste of time.

I figured out awhile ago, some threads are more enjoyable when you use the ignore feature

 

[katieandrob]

We are doing the exact same thing this year. My son's will be in 1st and 3rd grade. We will be going Sept. 24-Oct. 1. I think family time is very important along with school. I am also a little nervous about telling there new teachers but feel I am the parent and am able to make these decisions for my children. I plan on them doing any homework on the plane and the night before we leave.

 

[C&G'sMama]

I think it is the same thing as a Charter school? There are many in MA.

Totally off topic but as a parent of children in a charter school there are a lot of confusion around these.

And the above quote was in response to what a magnet school is.

A magnet school is generally a school within the public school system that specializes in something, languages, science, performing arts something. So using Boston as an examplie, they are actually a Boston Public School and part of the Boston Public School district. They generally draw from throughout the entire district or perhaps a zone or region in the larger districts (Boston, Chicago, Dallas, LA etc.)depending upon how the district is set up.

Charter schools are public schools. Admission is pure lottery. In New York I believe the only preference allowed is sibling preference. Charters operate independently of the district in which they reside. Roughly 70% of any state money allotted to a child in the district follows that child to the charter school. The remaing 30% is held back to cover any transportation or Special Education expenses which are the responsibility of the district in which the child resides. Most children reside in the district in which the school resides but not always. If a child moves they can stay at the charter school and the money comes from the district they move to. A child from outside the district in which the charter school can apply to go to that school but generally children outside the district are given last preference in the lottery and Each state has its own rules and regulations around the opeartion of charter schools. Some are run by large for profit corporations, others are their own invidual 501(c)(3) entities. Our school is the latter. Ours is called Urban Choice Charter School in Rochester, NY. It has its own Board of Trustees. I also believe the schools run by for profit companies each have their own board but "corporate" manages the school (I'm not really familiar with this model, so feel free to jump in)

Generally charter schools operate in underperforming districts and tend to be most prevelant in Urban and rural areas. Charters generally need to out perform the school within their district or they can be shut down. And I'm going with what I know in New York State which tends to have more rigorous rules. NYS has only had Charters since 1999. Here in Rochester we did have 2 schools shut down in 2005 as they were not meeting their goals. There are arguments all over the place for and against charters. We're at the charter as it is the best for my children now.

Okay, back to topic

 

[ccgirl]

Totally off topic but as a parent of children in a charter school there are a lot of confusion around these.

And the above quote was in response to what a magnet school is.

A magnet school is generally a school with the public school system that specializes in something, languages, science, performing arts something. So in Boston they are actually a Boston Public School and part of the Boston Public School district.

Charter schools are public schools. They operate independently of the district in which they reside. Roughly 70% of any state money allotted to a child in the district follows that child to the charter school. Each state has its own rules and regulations around the opeartion of charter schools. Some are run by large for profit corporations, others are their own invidual 501(c)(3) entities. Our school is the latter. Ours is called Urban Choice Charter School in Rochester, NY. It has its own Board of Trustees. I also believe the schools run by for profit companies each have their own board but "corporate" manages the school (I'm not really familiar with this model, so feel free to jump in)

Generally charter schools operate in underperforming districts and tend to be most prevelant in Urban and rural areas. Charters generally need to out perform the school within their district or they can be shut down. And I'm going with what I know in New York State which tends to have more rigorous rules. NYS has only had Charters since 1999. Here in Rochester we did have 2 schools shut down in 2005 as they were not meeting their goals. There are arguments all over the place for and against charters. We're at the charter as it is the best for my children now.

Okay, back to topic

Thanks for the explaination. Guess I was totally off the mark.

 

[princessmom29]

Funny thing is she actually stated that she DOES take her kids out of school for vacations. If you notice she only wants to argue. It's tiring. I think missingthejob summed it up perfectly earlier....a waste of time.

I hear ya. Sometimes, I just can't help myself. It's like watching a train wreck.

I figured out awhile ago, some threads are more enjoyable when you use the ignore feature

I find all of this really ironic. According to all of you, I'm the one qho wants to argue, and yet you are willing to gang up on the attack. Pot meet kettle. There is adifference between having adiscussion and an argument. It is also stunning to me that no one gets upset until someone dares to have an opinion that differs form thiers and dares to ask the hard questions. As long as the opinons agree with yours then it is fine, but the minute someone disagrees, they "just want to argue" I have seen this group do the same thing to other posters on this board, but the hypocrisy never ceases to amaze.

 

[C&G'sMama]

Thanks for the explaination. Guess I was totally off the mark.

A lot of people misunderstand charter schools. And there are many that totally misunderstand how they are funded and who is eligible to attend. and then it goes into Charters siphon off the best and the brightest and leave the most needy behind. Not true IMHO. My son and many of the children I know have IEP's. Our school has the same demographic, both socially economically (85% of our kids get free and reduced price lunch) and ethnic make up. Our school is roughly 10% caucasian, 15% Hispanc and 75% African American. These numbers represent are district. Most (not all) charter schools don't have Union representation. (Though some do). There is a misconception that Charter Schools can throw out childen at will. They can't. Admittedly it is probably easier to expel a student but at our school anyway that is very rare. Again Charter Schools are bound by their own charters and the regulations of that states in which they operate.

I know you all are getting more than you asked for (okay you didn't really ask) but I'm very passionate about this subject and therr are a lot of rumblings in our district on this right now.

 

[imthatgirl]

I figured out awhile ago, some threads are more enjoyable when you use the ignore feature

Wait, what? you can out people on ignore? I need to figure this out.

 

[princessmom29]

Wait, what? you can out people on ignore? I need to figure this out.

It doesn't allow you to kick someone off a thread. If you "ignore" a poster, you don't see thier posts, but they are still allowed to post. You will see them when they are quoted by others, however.

 

[mtsarnacki]

Feel no guilt pulling them out. Sounds like they have no issues catching up and the family bonding is well worth it.

 

[Leajess99]

Well...they weren't 30 days in a row so I guess that probably makes a difference...although that was just junior year. I think it was 26 my soph year and only 10 or so my freshman year. I was taking AP classes as a junior and tested into advanced classes even as a freshman that met requirements for math courses and such. After junior year I only had two required courses that I hadn't taken yet: government and consumer ed. I took those the summer between jr and what would have been my senior year. Straight A's help...and I got permission to take additional english courses instead of gym my sophmore and junior year because of my health. I rarely had to do actual homework to understand the material so between tests and papers I got great grades. Some people need that personal instruction with an instructor to understand stuff...I never did. I could read a text book and just get it. I also read a lot as a child and MANY of the books we had to read in high school I had already read before so that worked in my favor as well.

Okay, sorry for misunderstanding. I thought you meant you missed 30 days in a row so that was my mistake. Cool that you were able to get all the classes done so you could get graduated early.

 

[spacemountainmom]

Since this was post was directed at me I will be kind enough to answer it. My DD is a competitive swimmer. She would like to be in the Olympics some day. I do not push her. Believe it or not, this is her choice, her dream, so I support it. Practice is not every night. It is 3 nights a week right now. As she gets older the practices will increase. This is all she does, until soccer season then she adds that in. Again, her choice. She has no trouble keeping up with her studies at all and consistently receives straight A's so I do not think it is "over" scheduling her at all. My point was that, although not detrimental to take her out, she did have to spend a lot of extra time doing the make up work. Having said that, I will repeat that I have taken her out for 1 week in each grade thus far (K,1, and 2). It is a parent's choice and as long as the school guidelines are followed I see no problem with it.

I am sorry, that still just seems excessive to me. When does she have time to play? I'm sure I am in the minority, but in grade school my kids were allowed one activity and church. I did not want them to be scheduled every minute outside of their school day.

and I'll guess I'll be eating my words when she is an Olympic champion some day.

 

[Micka Mouse]

I didn't read the entire thread, but as a second grade teacher, I say GO FOR IT! This year alone, one of my student's parents was offered a last minute trip to San Diego over Thanksgiving; another student went to India for 7 weeks, and I have a student leaving for Portugal next week where she will miss 2 weeks of school. The experience they get while on vacation is an education in itself (for most), and it's FAMILY time, which is extremely important.

Is it hard to "catch a student up"? Sure, sometimes it is........that part stinks . But, in my experiences, the parents have been very hands on, and have worked with their child to keep them up to speed. I know every situation is different, though ! Have a great time!!!

I only wish I could take a trip to WDW during the "off season" of Sept or Oct, but I'm not a fan of losing my job !!!

 

[ccgirl]

I am sorry, that still just seems excessive to me. When does she have time to play? I'm sure I am in the minority, but in grade school my kids were allowed one activity and church. I did not want them to be scheduled every minute outside of their school day.

and I'll guess I'll be eating my words when she is an Olympic champion some day.

Right now practices are on M/W/F so she has all night Tuesday, Thursday as well as all weekend Saturday and Sunday. Again, her choice, she loves it and is great at it and absolutely adores it. Michael Phelps probably didn't just start swimming when he was 16, KWIM? She goes to a Parochial school so church is pretty much covered too. She would actually rather be in the pool than "playing". The minute she doesn't want to do it any more we are done. I don't want to squash her dream. Plus, when she is older if she is in the pool she can't really be out getting into trouble. When she is playing, the kids are in front of wii or playing barbies anyway. She does consider this (swimming) playing and is getting great exercise too.

 

[spacemountainmom]

I find all of this really ironic. According to all of you, I'm the one qho wants to argue, and yet you are willing to gang up on the attack. Pot meet kettle. There is adifference between having adiscussion and an argument. It is also stunning to me that no one gets upset until someone dares to have an opinion that differs form thiers and dares to ask the hard questions. As long as the opinons agree with yours then it is fine, but the minute someone disagrees, they "just want to argue" I have seen this group do the same thing to other posters on this board, but the hypocrisy never ceases to amaze.

Yeah, I'll bite again.

I don't agree with you, but I do take exception to the fact that you consistently get on people who make the choice to pull their kids from school. You think you are discussing, but your tone is quite often condescending...you project "I'm a teacher and I know more than you". I admit it, it gets my dander up because you don't know me, you don't know my children and you know nothing about the schools and their policies in my district or anyone elses. You may speak to what happens in the school you work at and the one your child attends which we all now know are the best schools in the entire country. Quite obviously, any other school is completely lacking in academic competency.

I really don't care that you don't agree with my opinion, the lack of respect for it is what I object to.

 

[livndisney]

Wait, what? you can out people on ignore? I need to figure this out.

Yes, you can put people on your ignore list. Go to "Your notifications" then on the left is "Edit your ignore list".

The ignore feature comes in handy from time to time.

 

[roscoepc1]

Let me put it this way. I have three children, one of whom died two years ago. The fondest memories my other two children and I have of him are from family trips, where, yes, we pulled them out of school at various ages (last one about 2 years before my son died).

Life is short. God, then family, then everything else. Go.

When you lose a child, you NEVER say "I wish he'd spent more time at school..."

 

[Micka Mouse]

Let me put it this way. I have three children, one of whom died two years ago. The fondest memories my other two children and I have of him are from family trips, where, yes, we pulled them out of school at various ages (last one about 2 years before my son died).

Life is short. God, then family, then everything else. Go.

When you lose a child, you NEVER say "I wish he'd spent more time at school..."

Well said!