Taking kids out of school to go.

[rlu929s]

We are thinking of going in September when Crowds are low. This would mean taking our at the time second-grader out of school for almost a week and a half. What are your thoughts on this? The temps would also be much better in September which is also a plus.

 

[SEA333]

Do it.

50% of the answers you will get will be reasons why other people don't think you should, and what "could" happen if you take your child out, including scare tactics like truancy court, teachers yelling at you, principals going crazy, etc.

Unless you live somewhere really crazy, you will be perfectly fine. I took my kids out for a week in K, 2nd, and 6th grades, and they were fine. I took them out again this past Nov when they were in 8th, 4th, and 2nd, and they lived to tell this tale, too. As a matter of fact, all teachers were told ahead of time and warned that we were surprising the kids so we asked that they please help keep the secret, and all the teachers emailed me back asking if they could go with us!!

It seriously took about 3 days for my kids to catch up, even the 8th grader. And he is in advanced, high school level classes. On the other end of the spectrum, my 2nd grader is in reading improvement, and it didn't take more than a weekend of extra homework for him to catch up either, and he still got all M's or M+'s (Masters Material) on his report card a couple weeks later, with a S (satisfactory progress) in reading. DS13 and DD9 also got nearly straight A's. The trip didn't affect their studies in the least.

Don't overthink it...if you are a parent who partners with your child's teacher in education and is on top of things, your child will be fine.

 

[cmusschoot]

there are lots of posts about this same question.

IMHO - it depends on the kid...its 2nd grade. I am a teacher (now stay at home mom) and I take my kids out of school.

I know...I know...bad teacher....

but, the values of being with family and experiencing "life" are just as valuable (if not more) that school.

That being said, my kids are not struggling academically. If they were I am not sure if I would take them out.

I may be singing a different tune when my kids are older...jr high/high school...

But for me, for now...I do it.
Just my 2 cents...

 

[MSSANDRA]

Be aware of your district rules and be sure you are ok any consequence with breaking them and then go for it. We took oldest DS out K-8 many -most years and will continue with the little guy. Our rule for our self was one week but a couple more days may not be a huge deal. There is a thread going on now about the strict rules in Texas but most places are not too bad. We did insist that DS make up all work assigned to him and worked with the teacher to be sure he did. Only one year out of many did he had an insane amount of homework-make up work assigned and I admit to helping more than I should have!!
September is a great lower crowd month but it is still quite hot. Just an FYI.

 

[Dragonfly_34]

I think it depends on the child and if they'll be able to catch up quickly. Our very first trip to WDW, we took DS16 out of school (kindergarten) for a week. Our upcoming trip, he'll be missing a week of school again, and this time he'll be a senior. These are the only times he's missed school for a vacation. The school calendar for next year will be set at the end of this month so I'm going to verify that he won't miss anything important (standardized testing....etc) while we're gone and will adjust our dates accordingly if needed. DS4 will also be missing a week of school but he'll be in kindergarten and again I'm not too concerned about that.

 

[wdw4rfam]

Did it for years for ny daughter, now we homeschool. But we did 8 missed school days. The teachers were all good at giving us some work before and some after. Only one teacher gave me hassle, but.......yeah I won't go there about this teacher. Lets just say the next year we started homeschooling her.

 

[lmm2]

I say go for it. I am a teacher and my son is in 4th grade. We are going in 2 weeks . When we planned I just made sure that it did not interfere with testing dates. His teacher was very understanding and asked if we wanted work ahead of time or when we returned. Since we are not driving I opted for work when we return. No point in pretending that we will actually do it while we are gone. I did use the journal cards that I found on the Creative Disigns board and make him his own journal. He can show his teacher it when he returns.

 

[Disneylover99]

Also see how your child feels about it.

We pulled our kids (gr. 2 and gr. 5) out of school for two days for a surprise trip. They freaked out. They did not want to miss school and they were worried about what they were missing the whole time. I won't do that again.

 

[tina.tina]

Our school district allows 5 days for a family trip with pre-approval from the principal. I just emailed the principals from my kids' schools in October and told them the kids would be missing 1 day for a family trip (we took a long weekend to Pigeon Forge) and could they pre-approve it. We had no problems at all. You might want to check to see if your district has this.

DD was in 4th grade when we went and her teacher didn't give her any make up work. She is an average student. If DS is sick one day in 2nd grade this year, his teacher sends home an unbelievable amount of makeup work and he is the top student in his class.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

but, the values of being with family and experiencing "life" are just as valuable (if not more) that school.

So, experiencing things and being with family can only take place during the school year?

I always found that to be the saddest excuse ever. There are any number of reasons to do this from scheduling constraints to financial, to just plain selfishly wishing for the best possible weather and low crowds. Whatever your reason, please just own it and don't make lame excuses. Check with your school first though. It may or may not be a real issue.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I never gave much thought to it when my daughter was younger. We took her out for about 4 days when she was in Pre-K (public school). I remember giving the teacher a head's up and if looks could kill....I could tell she didn't appreciate it or like it. My daughter is now in second grade but a private school. In the handbook it does state specifically that the school does not like children to miss due to vacation and that's why there are scheduled vacations throughout the year and if a child does, the school is not required to give out the homework/school work missed. However, I noticed many families do. I think it's "easier" when the child is in a lower grade (kindergarten, first, etc.) and more difficult in the upper grades. My daughter missed two days of school being sick and she missed a lot in the classroom and homework. I believe teacher instruction in the classroom is invaluable, at least for my daughter. Talking about this with another Mom at my child's school, she replied "what are we teaching our kids if we take them out of school for a week or whatever to vacation? That school is not as important as vacation?" A friend of mine took her son out, at the public school mentioned above. He's been in that school for 4 years. She got a notice in the mail about truancy and how it's on his record now. She spoke with the school and their policies have changed but she wasn't aware of it.

 

[AnnaL]

In our school district, we have to have pre-approval and the trip must be considered educational in order for it to be an excused absence. We have taken DD out of school for 4 or 5 days in K, 1st and 2nd grade (and are planning on doing so in Sept for 3rd grade as well). Typically I talk to the teacher and they have no issues then I write a standard letter describing all of the educational things we will do at WDW (map reading, currency aka spending money, animals at AK, hall of presidents, Epcot -- WS) that is kept on file.

 

[Canooknic]

I think if your child is doing well in school and there are no restraints from the school itself then there shouldn't be a problem.

We are taking our boys out for 3 days from French immersion K.

We spoke to their teacher before booking and she is providing us with some worksheets that they can do on the plane (win-win situation because it will keep them busy during the flight & they won't miss anything their friends are learning). She has made us promise that they will practice speaking french at Epcot, and i promised to video them ordering napoleons!! She has also scheduled them in to do their show-and-tell on their first day back so they can tell everyone what we did. She is an amazing teacher!!

We won't take them out once they are in grade school unless its absolutely necessary though so we are making this trip an extra special one!

 

[rlu929s]

Thanks for the responses. We had already talked to our 1st grade teacher about pulling him out for a week at the end of the year as we were going to tag onto a work trip out to CA for Disneyland etc. Due to many snow days it seems that school is being delayed and we feel it's too long, so we're thinking of going back to Orlando.

Very good info though! We will for sure look at the best time for crowds and temps. I remember being there in February once and that was decent. Spring Break is an option, but that times seems nuts if you look at the crowd calendars.

 

[rlu929s]

Sorry for the double. Forums is acting weird tonight.

 

[yeheyprincex2]

In our school district, we have to have pre-approval and the trip must be considered educational in order for it to be an excused absence. We have taken DD out of school for 4 or 5 days in K, 1st and 2nd grade (and are planning on doing so in Sept for 3rd grade as well). Typically I talk to the teacher and they have no issues then I write a standard letter describing all of the educational things we will do at WDW (map reading, currency aka spending money, animals at AK, hall of presidents, Epcot -- WS) that is kept on file.

I like the educational things you describe. It's all true
My sister will be taking her girls out for a few days in April and I will pass on your lists just in case she needs it. Honestly I think its a personal choice and who care what others think. My boys are small now but when they are in school I probably will take them out of school for vacation.

 

[carissa1970]

I'm a teacher, and I would have no problem taking my son out for a trip. The only problem is that I can't get out!! Sad. We did take our son out Thanksgiving week 2 years ago to go to Aulani. I was on break the whole week and he wasn't. We took work with us and it was a nightmare. I decided then and there to never give work to a family on a break/trip unless they asked for it. Go on the vacation.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

We are thinking of going in September when Crowds are low. This would mean taking our at the time second-grader out of school for almost a week and a half. What are your thoughts on this? The temps would also be much better in September which is also a plus.

Missing school in September is something only you can decide.. it is as dependent on your child's personality & learning style as much as it is the academics involved. Some kids have no problem missing time, others never get fully caught up. For some, September sets the pace for the year ahead. For others it doesn't seem to make a difference at all.

The weather in September is still very hot & humid. We were at POR September 17 thru 24th 2012, it was in the low 90s with humidex values of high 90s & low 100s all but one day. It was so humid that it rained daily in the mid to late afternoon. It was enough to have us decide to skip September in the future & go in October or November.

The crowd levels were definitely low, no real line ups for most attractions, minimal for even the most popular rides like TSM, TT or Soarin'

 

[AnnaL]

I like the educational things you describe. It's all true
My sister will be taking her girls out for a few days in April and I will pass on your lists just in case she needs it. Honestly I think its a personal choice and who care what others think. My boys are small now but when they are in school I probably will take them out of school for vacation.

I agree, family trips are important and if they happen during the school year, so be it! If you need the actual letter I wrote, PM me and I will forward it along to you.

 

[1000HappyWishes]

Do it while they're young. As a elementary or middle schooler, being taken out of school wasn't an issue. As a high schooler, I would almost rather opt out of the trip than miss all my work.