Taking kids out of school?

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weregoingtodw said:
Correct - our district has specific teachers who 'float' just for such long-term absences.

Also correct. That's the bare minimum as required by our state. However, our district can - and does - pick the more qualified candidates for the substitute positions, because they realize how important it is for our district to continue to do well on our scores.

Of course I realized that - I researched this district thoroughly. If a teacher goes on maternity leave (or is out more than twenty days for any other reason), a long-term substitute teacher is employed from the first day of the primary teacher's absence. Long-term substitutes must either hold current state certification or be eligible for such certification. I've not seen them actually have to hire outside in our particular district, however, as the district has several accredited teachers who only do substitute work. We're fortunate in that 76% of our district's teachers are pursuing or have completed graduate level work; of those, 45% have at least a master's degree. Substitute positions are highly competitive around here, and teachers are allowed to request certain subs, so a teacher can find a sub who is the best fit for her particular class.

My DD's class substitute has a bachelor's degree in education and her master's in social work, and is eligible for full-time teaching in our district if she desired. However, she's a SAHM and happy to just do the part-time gigs, so she'll only sub in our elementary school - she doesn't go to other schools in the district.

Sounds great! I'm glad you are happy with your schools. We purposely moved here to be near this school campus. Houses sell within a day here because everyone wants in. I wouldn't trade it for the world. We are very satisfied. :flower:
 
Marseeya said:
Where we live, substitutes have to be certified in the specialty they are subbing in. From experience with my kids, I know the subs are doing a good job and can sometimes cover the material more thoroughly than the regular teacher.

So, I'd be comfortable with the teacher taking the time off. They don't just pull subs off the street here. After I get my masters (in education :) ) I plan on subbing until my youngest graduates.
I would still be upset if the teacher took off simply for vacation reasons. As a PP stated, teachers know going into their positions the expectations placed upon them. Fortunately, our district offers annual leave with stipulations that it should be taken so as not to interfere with the district schedule.

To me, switching teachers is very stressful for the class full of children, and, well, I remember some of the things that my class pulled on the sub when we were children :angel:. I can certainly understand the need to do so for medical reasons, but for recreational purposes? I just can't justify that.
 
Are your children good students? If they are I'd say go!
I have no problem taking my kids out of school. DS is only 5 so it is not an issue. DD is 9 and is at the top of her class so I do not worry. We are taking her out for a week to go to DL May 14. Testing is over and teacher doesn't mind. I believe that as much learning goes on during a trip as it does in a classsroom. We hope to go to Italy and England in a few years in the spring and we'll be gone two weeks. A few years ago we did a few 4-5 day trips around Christmas time. My kids still talk about those trips. Did they remember what they got for Christmas that year? Of course not. I think time spent with family is what really matters in the end.

Pir8girl pirate:
 
skiwee1 said:
At a high school I actually saw it on their sign out front last year. First it said Subs Wanted. 50 credit hours needed. A couple weeks later is said Sub Wanted High School degree required. Yet another week goes by and it says Sub Wanted GED required. They must be desperate! This is a high school in our county but not ours. This high school is notorious and apparently they have a hard time filling subs!
Holy cow! :earseek: Let me guess - you prefer NOT to substitute in that school? I certainly wouldn't want to!

And people wonder why children graduate high school unable to function in the real world... so sad.
 

weregoingtodw said:
I would still be upset if the teacher took off simply for vacation reasons. As a PP stated, teachers know going into their positions the expectations placed upon them. Fortunately, our district offers annual leave with stipulations that it should be taken so as not to interfere with the district schedule.

To me, switching teachers is very stressful for the class full of children, and, well, I remember some of the things that my class pulled on the sub when we were children :angel:. I can certainly understand the need to do so for medical reasons, but for recreational purposes? I just can't justify that.

I don't think anyone here has said that their teachers even do this. I believe it was a hypothetical question that was thrown in for some odd reason. I am around our school quite a bit and the only time I see anyone leave is for maternity. We have a lot of younger teachers that all seem to be getting pregnant lately. My point was that I wouldn't be upset if a teacher did decide to go on vacation for a couple of weeks. I sincerely doubt one would really do this as they probably knew the requirements going into it.
 
weregoingtodw said:
Holy cow! :earseek: Let me guess - you prefer NOT to substitute in that school? I certainly wouldn't want to!

And people wonder why children graduate high school unable to function in the real world... so sad.

Oh I wouldn't sub in any high school but especially THAT one! LOL! Not for all the money in the world!
 
ckoncurat said:
Teachers and students are not the same. The teacher RUNS the classroom. Thats the job. A students absense will not derail the class.

Student absence can derail the class - even in kindergarten. A teacher may have to slow down the class progress while the person who is out catches up. I have had students come back from extended vacations and I've had to catch them up w/missed tests, making sure they have an understanding of the concepts they missed out on. I can't pass the student off to an aide ... although I'm kindergarten, I do not have an aide. Yes, we test in kindergarten ... with every unit of math, phonics, language arts and reading. Not to mention other tests. So, having an absent student can put an entire classroom behind. I've had the class slowed down immensely b/c a student missed a core concept and I cannot progress the class until everyone is up to speed.

A sub can run the class as long as the teacher provides the materials, right? If a teacher pre-planned for her 2 week vacation w/all the materials, the class can still be taught. So, as long as I've prepared for the sub, is it ok for me to go away for 10+ days?

ETA -- the thing about teachers taking large sums of time off was a hypothetical question. Many people look at the student side and say it's ok to take extended vacations (10+ days) ... but I thought it would be interesting to see if we turned it around to see how many would think it kosher if it were the teachers taking all the time off.
 
skiwee1 said:
Sure. Have a nice trip! ;)

Thanks! But, I'm sure I'd come home to find myself unemployed! ;)
 
To the original poster.....Just do what is right for YOUR kids....only you know what that is......
 
Daxx said:
Thanks! But, I'm sure I'd come home to find myself unemployed! ;)



Well there is this nice high school in our county that is looking for some good subs...................... LOL!
 
SnowWhite said:
To the original poster.....Just do what is right for YOUR kids....only you know what that is......
]
Now why didn't we all think to say that? ;)
 
skiwee1 said:
Pregnancy is a choice as it a vacation.

No its not always a choice. Sometimes, even with birth control, suprises happen.

skiwee1 said:
I am taking DD who will be in first grade out of school for 3 WDW trips. Our October trip she will miss 6 days. Our December trip she will miss 6 days. Our newly planned May trip she will miss 8 days. So just in WDW alone she will miss 20 days. That doesn't count the 5 days she will miss when we go skiing in February. I warned the principal the other day about our plans and her words were Lucky you! I've always taken my kids out for vacation. At least in elementary school. I found that middle and high school was much harder to miss that many days so we did cut back then.

You dd is missing 25 school days out of the year? That is a ridiculous amount of time for a kid to miss school. A few days no problem but that's a huge chunk of time.
 
Just thought I'd throw in my two cents on subs where I teach...I believe the requirement is they must be breathing independently....

Seriously, though, as far as I know, NC has no state standards for substitutes. I know for my county, a sub just has to have a HS diploma (or equivalent) and go to some sort of substitute training that the system does every year.

There's no such thing as a long-term sub here. If a teacher is going to be out for maternity leave, they try to pin down a decent sub from the list. So it's entirely possible your child is being taught for six weeks or more by someone with absolutely no background on the topic.
 
Daxx said:
And, how would you feel if your child's teacher took 10 days off of school a month into the school year for vacation?

Nobody wants to respond to this! Why?

Sorry for the late response. It would honestly not bother me. I would trust that the school would have a suitable substitute to cover. Its been a while since I was in school but I do remember an English teacher of mine getting married and going on a 2 week honeymoon during the first semester. I dont remember there being a problem or anyone asking why she didnt get married during a scheduled school vacation. Im curious as to how you feel about teachers who try to assimilate themselves into the home life of students because they dont agree with the parents style of parenting. Im sure the vast majority of teachers are fine upstanding people(Im sure you are in this group) but as with all professions there will be a few bad apples. Anyone who ever attended school knows this to be true. I also have a DD16 who will be a junior at the time of our trip and I offered to have her go with us friday-monday missing 2 days(it may seem like a double standard but I dont think a high school student should miss 10 days)but her mother felt it would be too hard but once again it was a family decision. I bet if she was going she would have gotten 5 different responses from 5 different teachers regarding make up work.
 
skiwee1 said:
I am taking DD who will be in first grade out of school for 3 WDW trips. Our October trip she will miss 6 days. Our December trip she will miss 6 days. Our newly planned May trip she will miss 8 days. So just in WDW alone she will miss 20 days. That doesn't count the 5 days she will miss when we go skiing in February. I warned the principal the other day about our plans and her words were Lucky you! I've always taken my kids out for vacation. At least in elementary school. I found that middle and high school was much harder to miss that many days so we did cut back then.


Wow, I am surprised by your principal's reply! As a parent, I would never pull any of my children out of school 25 days for a vacation. As a teacher, that is a nightmare. It is extremely difficult to miss 25 days and not miss out. That is five weeks of school days! I think family/vacation time is extremely important, but in my opinion 25 days is too many days to miss.
 
KAG Mom said:
Wow, I am surprised by your principal's reply! As a parent, I would never pull any of my children out of school 25 days for a vacation. As a teacher, that is a nightmare. It is extremely difficult to miss 25 days and not miss out. That is five weeks of school days! I think family/vacation time is extremely important, but in my opinion 25 days is too many days to miss.

That's fine. It works for us. I don't think it is too much, especially for 1st grade. We plan to go to WDW as much as possible in the next year and can't wait! :banana:
 
skiwee1 said:
That's fine. It works for us. I don't think it is too much, especially for 1st grade. We plan to go to WDW as much as possible in the next year and can't wait! :banana:

What do you think is too much?

What happens if a new principal comes along that will not count that many days as excused?

I'm sure the parents at your school are happy to have a principal that will excuse the kids that are out for vacation. I'd assume most families request a reasonable amount of time off.

Requesting 20 or more days comes off as taking advantage of the principal's kindess and understanding. I can see these request causing the policy to change for everyone.
 
skiwee1 said:
That's fine. It works for us. I don't think it is too much, especially for 1st grade. We plan to go to WDW as much as possible in the next year and can't wait! :banana:


:confused3 You really think that all of that time at Disney is better for your kid than school? That is really warped. Esp. 1st grade when so many skills are established. I cannot imagine someone having such chaotic priorities. Perhaps it is time to not be selfish, which is the only term I can equate with this skewed view of life and the educational system.
 
meandtheguys2 said:
:confused3 You really think that all of that time at Disney is better for your kid than school? That is really warped. Esp. 1st grade when so many skills are established. I cannot imagine someone having such chaotic priorities. Perhaps it is time to not be selfish, which is the only term I can equate with this skewed view of life and the educational system.

Awesome post!!!
 
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