To those taking their kids out of school....

[JadeDarkstar]

We homeschool now, which means we don't have to worry about the schools schedule. Or anyone breathing down our necks for missed time. We can plan vacations during any time of the year, and make up our work just the same! Not to mention he learns so much more then he ever did in regular school!

agree so much

 

[cats mom]

There is teaching that goes on in the classroom that cannot be replaced by worksheets, or other homework type assignments.

I am not saying those of you who take your kids out of school are wrong, but I do have to say I a bit unsure as to what "life experiences" are learned by going to Disneyland that would outweigh what they will learn in school.

(And, in the interest of full disclosure, no, I would not take my kids out of school to go on a vacation.)

But there is definitely educational value in travel that can't be taught in a classroom as well.

I wouldn't make a blanket statement one way or the other, since IMO there are a whole lot of factors to consider.

1. Grade level of the child
I've never quite understood parents who stress over a kindergartener missing a few days of school.
A high school student enrolled in IB, AP, or honors courses may be a whole different story; although by that point they should have a good handle on whether they can afford an absence or not.

2. Child's performance
If a child is already struggling to keep up then a vacation absence is probably not in anyone's best interest.
Honestly though, as much as I would love to believe there is learning taking place in every classroom every day that just can't be replicated any other way... I've been involved in classroom situations long enough to know that just isn't the case, even with the best of teachers.

3. Time of the year
I wouldn't even think about scheduling a vacation absence during state mandated testing weeks around here. Talk about giving the teachers and administration a coronary.
Along the same lines: coaches can kill travel plans in an instant. A girl on DD's team had to choose between a trip to Europe with her family (that had been planned for over a year and was scheduled during school vacation in the summer) and being a varsity athlete. She stayed with us for two weeks and cursed the coach every day.

4. Length of absence

5. Educational value of the trip
OK, I admit it, this is where you might get me on a strictly Disney trip. Most of us are there to have fun and spend time together as families, certainly valuable, maybe not so much educational.

6. Whether the trip could be scheduled during a school holiday
Sometimes that's possible, other times it's not.

I'm sure there are more, but those are some of the things we look at when deciding whether or not to miss school for travel.
Sometimes the answers we come up with are such that we have pulled the kids out of school, other times we have cancelled or rescheduled a planned trip because we felt being in school was more important.


BTW, to get back to the original question
I would definitely have your DD go to school for the two days that you will be in town.

 

[dizzyami]

I am so excited that your trip is so soon!!! It seems like you have been planning it for ever (probably even longer for you )

We are actually leaving the 10th of January for Disneyland!!! I will send the kids back to school the Mon-Wed after the break, and then they will be missing Thurs/Fri. I do not feel bad about pulling DD out - she is doing great - and as long as I communicate with her teacher he does not seem to have an issue with it!!!

 

[NVDisMom]

JadeStar- You sound like my DH. He has the same opinion...my kid, butt out! While I do feel the same way, I attempt to have more of a team effort stance. It makes things easier.

Tink208- Taking the kids to DL is not necessarily about life experiences. It is about quality family time. Where else can you trully share a moment in time on the same level as your 8 yo (or whatever age your children are)? That experience is priceless, and one they can pass on to their children. Walt trully created a magical place for families, young and old alike. I believe that more families need to spend more quality time together. Its simply not done enough and we are all paying the price. Schools only provide one aspect of a child's education and more often than not they are doing a very poor job of it. BTW- Do your children's teachers ever have substitutes cover for them? I'm sure they do. And that is fine by me. But that day with the substitute is a lost day of education. I have yet to see a substitute enter a classroom and compitently continue instruction. It is equal to an absence...for the entire class. My child missing a few days a year, especially to spend quality family time together, is not nearly as disruptive to their education as a teacher being absent. I have no problem with teachers taking a day off (for whatever reason), but the school should not be pointing the finger at me for missed days when their staff is responsible for just as many days, if not more, of lost instruction. Somewhere along the way public schools have lost what their mission is. Certain teachers, even the occasional administrater, actually get it. But far too many don't. So, when I want to take my child out of school I should have the right to do so, without state interference. It is my child afterall.

 

[MagicalMomAZ]

Wow. This thread went a different dierction I think.

Not that it's necessary that I clarify but we had our reasons for going during school. Mostly financial. DD is 9 & fully capable of doing 3 days of school work in 14 hours of driving. We're not flying, we're driving there.

From the ideas, experience & advice given I will put her in those 2 days & I will talk w/ the teacher before the party.

And ctamama - Good job!!

 

[NostalgicDad]

Wow. This thread went a different dierction I think.

Not that it's necessary that I clarify but we had our reasons for going during school. Mostly financial. DD is 9 & fully capable of doing 3 days of school work in 14 hours of driving. We're not flying, we're driving there.

From the ideas, experience & advice given I will put her in those 2 days & I will talk w/ the teacher before the party.

And ctamama - Good job!!

Just what I was going suggest as well. Have a great time!

JadeStar- You sound like my DH. He has the same opinion...my kid, butt out! While I do feel the same way, I attempt to have more of a team effort stance. It makes things easier.

Tink208- Taking the kids to DL is not necessarily about life experiences. It is about quality family time. Where else can you trully share a moment in time on the same level as your 8 yo (or whatever age your children are)? That experience is priceless, and one they can pass on to their children. Walt trully created a magical place for families, young and old alike. I believe that more families need to spend more quality time together. Its simply not done enough and we are all paying the price. Schools only provide one aspect of a child's education and more often than not they are doing a very poor job of it. BTW- Do your children's teachers ever have substitutes cover for them? I'm sure they do. And that is fine by me. But that day with the substitute is a lost day of education. I have yet to see a substitute enter a classroom and compitently continue instruction. It is equal to an absence...for the entire class. My child missing a few days a year, especially to spend quality family time together, is not nearly as disruptive to their education as a teacher being absent. I have no problem with teachers taking a day off (for whatever reason), but the school should not be pointing the finger at me for missed days when their staff is responsible for just as many days, if not more, of lost instruction. Somewhere along the way public schools have lost what their mission is. Certain teachers, even the occasional administrater, actually get it. But far too many don't. So, when I want to take my child out of school I should have the right to do so, without state interference. It is my child afterall.

Very well stated. Creating family memories that will last a lifetime are far more valuable to our children than those couple of days missed out of a school year. We're catching our flight in one week!

 

[kylieh]

I let her go to school for the 2 days - if only to keep her up to date with the classroom, see friends, etc.

My daughter starts formal school after Christmas. Where she is attending, it's encouraged within reason that they can be absent from school for world travel, same with most other schools I know - I'm not sure if they would have the same attitude if was just to the beach for a week!!!

 

[NVDisMom]

Nostalgic Dad...we will be there the exact same dates. Crossing my fingers for good weather and quiet parks. Can't wait. See you there!

 

[samkj]

JadeStar- You sound like my DH. He has the same opinion...my kid, butt out! While I do feel the same way, I attempt to have more of a team effort stance. It makes things easier.

Tink208- Taking the kids to DL is not necessarily about life experiences. It is about quality family time. Where else can you trully share a moment in time on the same level as your 8 yo (or whatever age your children are)? That experience is priceless, and one they can pass on to their children. Walt trully created a magical place for families, young and old alike. I believe that more families need to spend more quality time together. Its simply not done enough and we are all paying the price. Schools only provide one aspect of a child's education and more often than not they are doing a very poor job of it. BTW- Do your children's teachers ever have substitutes cover for them? I'm sure they do. And that is fine by me. But that day with the substitute is a lost day of education. I have yet to see a substitute enter a classroom and compitently continue instruction. It is equal to an absence...for the entire class. My child missing a few days a year, especially to spend quality family time together, is not nearly as disruptive to their education as a teacher being absent. I have no problem with teachers taking a day off (for whatever reason), but the school should not be pointing the finger at me for missed days when their staff is responsible for just as many days, if not more, of lost instruction. Somewhere along the way public schools have lost what their mission is. Certain teachers, even the occasional administrater, actually get it. But far too many don't. So, when I want to take my child out of school I should have the right to do so, without state interference. It is my child afterall.

Good post, but what I fail to see you mention is that it is just as possible to have "QUALITY FAMILY TIME" during school breaks. True, most kids will not be hurt missing a few days of school, but the "family time" arguement doesn't hold weight with me. Family vacations can happen just as easily during breaks. We vacation on average 4 weeks out of the year, and yet my daughter has only missed one day of school in 3 years and that was due to a high fever. Your post implied that this would not be possible without pulling your child out of school. Teaching responsibility and honoring your commitments in regards to school/work are important as well.

 

[ctamama]

And ctamama - Good job!!

Why, Thank You!!

This topic has taken on it's own little life eh??

 

[JenDisneylandlver]

Good post, but what I fail to see you mention is that it is just as possible to have "QUALITY FAMILY TIME" during school breaks. True, most kids will not be hurt missing a few days of school, but the "family time" arguement doesn't hold weight with me. Family vacations can happen just as easily during breaks. We vacation on average 4 weeks out of the year, and yet my daughter has only missed one day of school in 3 years and that was due to a high fever. Your post implied that this would not be possible without pulling your child out of school. Teaching responsibility and honoring your commitments in regards to school/work are important as well.

Sometimes it's due to a parent's committment to THEIR work that they can only take vacations while their kids are in school. Not everyone has jobs that go along with the school's calendar! So yes for some it is impossible.

To me it's also not a very good quality time when were fighting huge crowds. We make a point to never go to DL during the peak summer, spring break, or holidays! Going to DL is costly for most families, they should be able to pick when they want to go and enjoy their vacations. It really needs to be left up to the parents either way.

 

[samkj]

I have no problem with you taking your children out of school. It is simply the "family time" arguement I don't agree with. Work issues and disliking crowds are much more plausible reasons for why it must be done during school.

 

[Tink208]

Sometimes it's due to a parent's committment to THEIR work that they can only take vacations while their kids are in school. Not everyone has jobs that go along with the school's calendar! So yes for some it is impossible.

To me it's also not a very good quality time when were fighting huge crowds. We make a point to never go to DL during the peak summer, spring break, or holidays! Going to DL is costly for most families, they should be able to pick when they want to go and enjoy their vacations. It really needs to be left up to the parents either way.

My kids are in school 180 days a year, which leaves 185 days a year that they aren't in school. Honestly, I find it hard to believe that parents absolutely cannot find a way to take vacation when their children are on vacation.

I also have to say that we just took our family to Disneyland last month, during Thanksgiving break and we had a wonderful time, crowds and all. I wish I could show you the picture of pure, unadulterated joy that is my younger son's face on the Space Mountain ride...

But, yes, you are right, it is up to the parents. Just don't make it sound like those of us who choose to not pull our children out of school are depriving them of this life altering experience that is vastly superior to anything they could be learning in the classroom instead.

 

[disneychrista]

Just an FYI a family vacation is NOT considered an excused absense. Excused absenses are for illness and other simular things. That said I pulled my kids out for 11 days when we went to WDW. They went on independent study for that time, got all missed work ahead of time. Only down side was all work had to be completed upon return to school.

 

[JenDisneylandlver]

My kids are in school 180 days a year, which leaves 185 days a year that they aren't in school. Honestly, I find it hard to believe that parents absolutely cannot find a way to take vacation when their children are on vacation.

I also have to say that we just took our family to Disneyland last month, during Thanksgiving break and we had a wonderful time, crowds and all. I wish I could show you the picture of pure, unadulterated joy that is my younger son's face on the Space Mountain ride...

But, yes, you are right, it is up to the parents. Just don't make it sound like those of us who choose to not pull our children out of school are depriving them of this life altering experience that is vastly superior to anything they could be learning in the classroom instead.

There are a lot of people who can't take time off during the summer months. People who work construction comes to mind. For some people at work their busy times are during the holidays. Not everyone is as lucky as those who work for the schools, to get all that time off!

DL is always fun, but for us it is so much better when it's not crowded. We've been there when it's crowded, so we can compare! That is a personal preference. I'm not saying anyone is depriving their kids of anything, not at all. But kids aren't going to be deprived of an education for missing a few days (or a week) due to a vacation. While DL is not the most educational vacation, I can think of MANY vacations that would be vastly superior then what is being taught in most public schools.

 

[DangerMouse]

I can think of MANY vacations that would be vastly superior then what is being taught in most public schools.

I couldn't agree with this more.

Reading threads such as these just reaffirm my choice to homeschool.

 

[samkj]

Thanks for the debate, but I give up. I didn't mean to turn into a homeschool/public school debate. Homeschooling is great when done properly just like public schools are great with the right teachers and parental involvement (which many people seem to forget). I was just very annoyed that the reason people were saying they take their kids out of school is for "quality family time" when in reality it is mainly due to price for the off seasons and crowd size. Yes you have lots of great family time on vacation, but that in and of itself doesn't justify taking kids out of school.

 

[NVDisMom]

Cost can certainly justify taking a child out of school. When a vacation is budgeted for (time and money) one must look at the best time to do it. If someone could only afford to go during offseason, then they should be given the freedom to do so. The school should not interfere. For some it is a matter of cost, others its about time off, and others still it is convenience. The entire point I was trying to make is this...Parents should ultimately be making the decisions regarding their children, not the school. I always have my children's best interest at heart. Their health, happiness, and education are all of paramount importance. I, and I alone know what is best for them. The freedom to take them on vacation when it is best for our family, whatever the reasons, should not be hampered by a beaucratic school system. The choice to leave them in school, pay the higher prices and fight the crowds is your choice to make as well. I'm pleased so many families choose not to buck the system. It makes our off week vacation so much more pleasant, less costly and certainly not as crowded.

Side note here. My children are in public schools. So to classify this as a public vs homeschool debate is inaccurate.

 

[JenDisneylandlver]

Thanks for the debate, but I give up. I didn't mean to turn into a homeschool/public school debate. Homeschooling is great when done properly just like public schools are great with the right teachers and parental involvement (which many people seem to forget). I was just very annoyed that the reason people were saying they take their kids out of school is for "quality family time" when in reality it is mainly due to price for the off seasons and crowd size. Yes you have lots of great family time on vacation, but that in and of itself doesn't justify taking kids out of school.

I don't think this has turned in to a homeschool/public school debate. A few of us mentioned homeschooling, since that is our schooling choice, and maybe how much we like it. I don't think anyone is debating that though. I really do believe there are educational things kids can learn on vacation, that is better then any classroom. Even when we went to DL we talked about the farms and crops that we saw growing (we drive). We went over the map and where we were, where we were going. We went over elevation (which he was learning about). How high up we were compared to sea level. He bought things at DL, where he added up his own total, paid and got the change. Everything can be a learning experience, and "involved" parents can make it interesting and fun! A trip to San Fran we once took had a lot of history and seeing things he'd never learn about in a classroom. Seeing it, and experiencing it is better then reading about it. That was part of my point. Yes, I have many issues with our public school systems, but this isn't the place for that debate.

That's fine if you think quality time isn't a good enough reason to miss school. My only point was for some people that's the only time they can take off from work. I also think costs and crowds are good reasons to miss school, as it really will not effect their education for just missing a few days.

 

[TripHHH]

As parents, we are all given the responsibility to choose what is best for our children and families. Honestly, nobody should argue that their way is best...unless it is a discussion within their own family.

I choose a week off of school for our vacation....others choose school break time. Either way, our children are very lucky to have parents who love taking them to Disneyland!!!