School excuse wording

[karigraphy]

Our family will be taking our middle school age daughters out of school for two half days before Thanksgiving to visit Disney and WW of HP. The school requires an educational trip permission form to be submitted and approved.

I know the children learn a lot at the Disney parks but I cannot think of how to put it into words.

Any ideas? What did you write on a request form if you were taking your children out of school?

(Normally I would not take them out of school but the 1/2 days before Thanksgiving aren't very productive school days in our district -- it is parent/teacher conference week and a lot of families leave early if they are traveling over Thanksgiving.)

Thanks for any ideas on how to express the Disney experience in educational terms.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

As a parent who works in the school district and used to do this herself.. try explaining that you will have them do a report on a Country.. and have them do it too.. and have them pick one from EPCOT.. they can take pictures of themselves there, bring back a snack from there (or pictures of the food) Maybe some sort of trinket from the Country??? My kids all took French in Middle school.. so they always did France! It was an educational trip... and they did work while they were there. If you explained this in the note, this would be an approved trip.. but they would be expected to be turning in that report...

 

[karigraphy]

That's a good idea. One of the girls is taking French and the other is studying Latin.

 

[Que_Sarah_Sarah]

What happens if you don't submit an educational request form? I mean, what does the school really do?

 

[softballmom3]

We are taking our 3 HS aged girls out of school two days of Thanksgiving break. I will be using parent excuses (our district allows 5 of those per year). I also teach so I will ask the principal if there is any way to get it excused educational but I'm not holding my breath. For us there is nothing they can do with parental excuses.

 

[DebbieB]

When I took my niece I typed up the note: Please excuse ***** from school from **dates**. She will be taking an educational trip to WDW with her Grandmother and Aunt.

The school did require her to take some of her books and complete assignments. She had to keep a journal, every night we had to make sure she wrote it up. Plus a project, I bought the Epcot passport and visited all the countries and got it signed.

 

[Wadecool]

As a parent who works in the school district and used to do this herself.. try explaining that you will have them do a report on a Country.. and have them do it too.. and have them pick one from EPCOT.. they can take pictures of themselves there, bring back a snack from there (or pictures of the food) Maybe some sort of trinket from the Country??? My kids all took French in Middle school.. so they always did France! It was an educational trip... and they did work while they were there. If you explained this in the note, this would be an approved trip.. but they would be expected to be turning in that report...

This is an excellent idea that I will be using someday! Thanks for sharing.

 

[larryz]

How about, "Dear School Administrators,
We are taking our kids out of school for ____ days from ___ (Month) to ____ (Month) so that the family can enjoy lower crowds and less expensive lodging at Walt Disney World, in Florida. The educational lessons of this family vacation will include:
1) economics - the importance of maximizing savings on family vacations
2) geography - the location, weather, and municipal infrastructure of Orlando, Florida
3) math - how quickly costs can add up for food, lodging and souvenirs
4) sociology - the diverse nature of people who attend theme parks
5) psychology - methods used by Disney to induce higher spending in their theme parks
6) English - grammatically correct signs and warnings on thrill rides
7) history - many Disney rides are based on myths and legends, and several are based on bona fide historical American artifacts and personalities
8) physics - actually experiencing positive and negative G-forces on several thrill rides
9) science - discovering the effects of dehydration and lack of sleep
10) foreign languages - hearing several languages in use by actual foreigners
11) biology - seeing, smelling, and possibly depositing stomach contents on the sidewalk after thrill rides
12) engineering - viewing and actually riding highly engineered thrill rides
13) astrology - examining and describing stars seen on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" in DHS
14) art - experiencing actual animation instruction and getting a back-lot view of motion picture production
15) phys ed - walking approximately seven miles per day.

I hope you agree that, based on this ___ week visit, my children should be awarded a bachelor's degree in General Studies from the nearest state college. If that is not possible, please provide instructions on how my children can complete any additional requirements of their regularly scheduled classes (as if their classes could possibly cover anything remotely as comprehensive as this vacation will expose them to!).

Very truly yours,
Mrs X"

That should get the ball rolling for you...

 

[WDWdreaming09]

I'm filling one out now. Not making excuses. I'm the parent and she will not be there. I am a very bad mom and even worse teacher as my DD will miss 1/2 days of school. Not everyone's schedule fits into June and July. I start school on July 31st and we planned during my break. June we have softball and 4-h plus I taught summer school until the first week in July. Also health reasons I do not tolerate heat and become very ill. The last two years they had conferences the weekend of Columbus Day and had a 5 day weekend. We booked a trip and when the schedule came out they moved conferences to November. .

My DD is an honor student who I told her she will be going to school every other day even if it is on a hospital bed! She most upset about missing 4 volleyball games and a softball tournament.

Any way she is in 7th grade and luckily in a technology advanced shook. All textbooks are online and most assignments. We are paying for the Internet and even taking a small printer with us. She will be expected to keep up with work while at Disney.

As a teacher it is more of an issue students who are absent A LOT! The ones that are sick often. These will probably be the only 7 days she will miss all year. Nobody looks back and says if only I hadnt missed that week of school...

 

[Glencora]

How about, "Dear School Administrators,
We are taking our kids out of school for ____ days from ___ (Month) to ____ (Month) so that the family can enjoy lower crowds and less expensive lodging at Walt Disney World, in Florida. The educational lessons of this family vacation will include:
1) economics - the importance of maximizing savings on family vacations
2) geography - the location, weather, and municipal infrastructure of Orlando, Florida
3) math - how quickly costs can add up for food, lodging and souvenirs
4) sociology - the diverse nature of people who attend theme parks
5) psychology - methods used by Disney to induce higher spending in their theme parks
6) English - grammatically correct signs and warnings on thrill rides
7) history - many Disney rides are based on myths and legends, and several are based on bona fide historical American artifacts and personalities
8) physics - actually experiencing positive and negative G-forces on several thrill rides
9) science - discovering the effects of dehydration and lack of sleep
10) foreign languages - hearing several languages in use by actual foreigners
11) biology - seeing, smelling, and possibly depositing stomach contents on the sidewalk after thrill rides
12) engineering - viewing and actually riding highly engineered thrill rides
13) astrology - examining and describing stars seen on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" in DHS
14) art - experiencing actual animation instruction and getting a back-lot view of motion picture production
15) phys ed - walking approximately seven miles per day.

I hope you agree that, based on this ___ week visit, my children should be awarded a bachelor's degree in General Studies from the nearest state college. If that is not possible, please provide instructions on how my children can complete any additional requirements of their regularly scheduled classes (as if their classes could possibly cover anything remotely as comprehensive as this vacation will expose them to!).

Very truly yours,
Mrs X"

That should get the ball rolling for you...

THIS

 

[moonpie85]

As a parent who works in the school district and used to do this herself.. try explaining that you will have them do a report on a Country.. and have them do it too.. and have them pick one from EPCOT.. they can take pictures of themselves there, bring back a snack from there (or pictures of the food) Maybe some sort of trinket from the Country??? My kids all took French in Middle school.. so they always did France! It was an educational trip... and they did work while they were there. If you explained this in the note, this would be an approved trip.. but they would be expected to be turning in that report...

Love this idea, thank you!

 

[LockShockBarrel]

I will just never understand this. Granted I'm not a teacher or a parent...but if and when I have kids, if I want to take them out of school, I will. Absolutely give them homework to complete while there, and give them consequences for it not being done. Will I show them things that I think are educational while I'm at Disney...sure I will but it won't be the focus of our trip! Kids have the right to a vacation too, and not during just "school approved" times. I could understand this moreso during finals time or in certain years but I'm sorry, a 5 year old is not going to be scarred for life because she missed story time, snack time, and a week long focus on "the letter B is our Buddy".

 

[jdkdorn]

We are taking our children, Dd17, Ddbf 17 & Ds 9, out of school for 7 days. Family vacation and family time are just as important as school time. We sent pre-excused absence forms to school stating we are going on a family vavation and to please provide homework. My son's teacher thought it was great and he can keep a journal. My Dd & her Bf got hassled but they are seniors and if they don't have it down by now they never will. Both are AP & honor students and will take homework. Our jobs make it impossible to do summer travel so this is my only option. I feel that I am the parent and have the right to take them out as long as they still perform in school.

Good luck,

Judy

 

[JessiLynn015]

How about, "Dear School Administrators,
We are taking our kids out of school for ____ days from ___ (Month) to ____ (Month) so that the family can enjoy lower crowds and less expensive lodging at Walt Disney World, in Florida. The educational lessons of this family vacation will include:
1) economics - the importance of maximizing savings on family vacations
2) geography - the location, weather, and municipal infrastructure of Orlando, Florida
3) math - how quickly costs can add up for food, lodging and souvenirs
4) sociology - the diverse nature of people who attend theme parks
5) psychology - methods used by Disney to induce higher spending in their theme parks
6) English - grammatically correct signs and warnings on thrill rides
7) history - many Disney rides are based on myths and legends, and several are based on bona fide historical American artifacts and personalities
8) physics - actually experiencing positive and negative G-forces on several thrill rides
9) science - discovering the effects of dehydration and lack of sleep
10) foreign languages - hearing several languages in use by actual foreigners
11) biology - seeing, smelling, and possibly depositing stomach contents on the sidewalk after thrill rides
12) engineering - viewing and actually riding highly engineered thrill rides
13) astrology - examining and describing stars seen on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" in DHS
14) art - experiencing actual animation instruction and getting a back-lot view of motion picture production
15) phys ed - walking approximately seven miles per day.

I hope you agree that, based on this ___ week visit, my children should be awarded a bachelor's degree in General Studies from the nearest state college. If that is not possible, please provide instructions on how my children can complete any additional requirements of their regularly scheduled classes (as if their classes could possibly cover anything remotely as comprehensive as this vacation will expose them to!).

Very truly yours,
Mrs X"

That should get the ball rolling for you...

This is perfect!

 

[Schmeck]

We are taking our children, Dd17, Ddbf 17 & Ds 9, out of school for 7 days. Family vacation and family time are just as important as school time. We sent pre-excused absence forms to school stating we are going on a family vavation and to please provide homework. My son's teacher thought it was great and he can keep a journal. My Dd & her Bf got hassled but they are seniors and if they don't have it down by now they never will. Both are AP & honor students and will take homework. Our jobs make it impossible to do summer travel so this is my only option. I feel that I am the parent and have the right to take them out as long as they still perform in school.

Good luck,

Judy

AP classes in our area have strict attendance policies - missing 7 days would mean they would not get credit for the class. Also, in our district, missing more than 5 days a quarter puts you on a probationary list, and the dean of students has to give permission for the child to continue in honors/AP classes.

Have you checked to make sure that all graduation requirements will be met if the seniors do not get credit for the AP and honors classes? If they do not meet graduation requirements (or if colleges get notified about absences) they might really regret that vacation...

 

[jdkdorn]

In our district kids can miss up to 17 days per year without issue, they prefer you do not travel during class time but that cannot be helped. I am in WI and have the utmost respect for education and good teachers but last spring we had teachers that took a 2-3 week sick out in protest so they don't have much to say about a week if she stays up on her work. She is taking homework and the asst principal signed off.

Judy

 

[seashoreCM]

We are taking our children, Dd17, Ddbf 17 & Ds 9, out of school for 7 days. Family vacation and family time are just as important as school time. We sent pre-excused absence forms to school stating we are going on a family vavation and to please provide homework.

While family time is important, the children have to do the school work. Some kids can't read or do close work in a car or airplane and it may be necessary for them to do the work during the day at the resort.

The teacher might not have lesson plans made up that far in advance and prefer that you telephone classmates each day for the classwork and homework and fax some items back and forth.

Meanwhile, children, even teens, should not be left home alone. If grandparents or other adults are not available to help then the children will have to go with you whether or not the forms are ratified.

 

[Alesia]

I'm sorry, a 5 year old is not going to be scarred for life because she missed story time, snack time, and a week long focus on "the letter B is our Buddy".

Kindergarten hasn't been that way in a long time. These days most kids are reading and writing in kindergarten. What you described was a typical day in my 2-and 3 year old preschool class. Even my pre-k kids were beyond that.

In any case, it isn't just because of the effects on the child who's missing school, but the effect it has on the other students as well. Teachers who are spending time catching up children who have been absent are slighting the other students who have been there.

There are also financial issues involved. Schools receive funding based on attendance during a specific period of time - usually the first weeks of school. Funding is a very real and important consideration for schools. If people are taking their kids out of school for a week in September, schools can loose a significant amount of money.

Don't get me wrong, It isn't that I think parents should never take their kids out of school, but there are a lot of factors that need to be considered. I'm just not a fan of the "They're my kids and I'll take them out of school whenever I please" attitude. Parents and teachers need to work together to give their kids the best possible start in life and such a divisive attitude makes that all but impossible.

 

[figmentswife]

Here is the letter from The Mouse for Less - A lot like the letter already seen

School Excuse Sample Letter

DATE:

TO: [school official]

FROM:

RE: [students name and vacation dates]

Please be advised that [student] will be out of school during the week of [date]. We ask that his absences be excused.

The reason for [student]'s absence is that our family will be out of the state during this week. While we are gone, we will be visiting Walt Disney World. We believe that [student] will be learning many things during this trip and that his education will continue in his absence from school.

Some things [student] will learn about:

* Different cultures of the world, including architecture, language, diet, and dress, by visiting the different countries in the Epcot World Showcase (Japan, China, Germany, Mexico, Norway, Canada, France, etc.) [student] will have the chance to explore the exhibits for each country and speak with natives from each country who work as cast members.

* American history by viewing the Hall of Presidents presentation in the Magic Kingdom and the American Adventure show in Epcot.

* Nature and conservation at Animal Kingdom.

* Science by exploring the Mission:Space ride in Epcot where he will have a chance to see and feel what it would be like to travel by rocket to Mars and by experiencing the Universe of Energy exhibit which teaches about fossil fuels, energy, and conservation.

* Economics by managing his own spending money and making budget decisions on how to spend his money.

[student] will also be learning about map reading by navigating in and to the different theme parks, as well as the resorts and water parks via the Disney bus system, sociological aspects of crowds including patterns and behavior, physics of the different rides, breakthroughs in technology at the Innoventions computer lab in Epcot, art and animation and the history of film, and mathematics.

We believe this will be a wonderful and educational experience for [student] and hope you agree not to charge him with unexcused absences as a result. If it is possible for [student] to take any assignments with him to be turned in when we return or to turn in before we leave any work that will be due while he is gone, please let us know as soon as possible.

Thank you for your attention to this. If you have any questions or need any further information, please feel free to contact me.

[Parent's Signture]

I just sent this letter for my child even though I don't think the Principal will do it - she is MEAN!!!

 

[Mrsjvb]

Don't get me wrong, It isn't that I think parents should never take their kids out of school, but there are a lot of factors that need to be considered. I'm just not a fan of the "They're my kids and I'll take them out of school whenever I please" attitude. Parents and teachers need to work together to give their kids the best possible start in life and such a divisive attitude makes that all but impossible.

This..and my other issue: this whole PR spin of "Disney is Educational! Really! they go to Epcot and learn about countries! "

Call it what is is.. a vacation. it is NOT a class field trip and can never substitute for solid learning about a culture. even Field trips are merely expanding on what was learned from the classroom/text.