WDW not educational? BAH.

[C.Ann]

What if.....the school is IN the aquarium, what is that, a vacation or an education?? Our daughter goes to school at the Mystic Aquarium...according to them, the only accredited pre-school at an aquarium.

How awesome is that? I never knew that was available!

 

[torinsmom]

I am really going to stir the pot and ask....can you match up state standards to what you consider educational? I just know that once a child hits the state testing years, a lot can change when considering how much school is missed

I only teach K, but here goes: These are our core subjects.

Math:

Competenct Goal 1.02 Share equally (divide) between two people; explain.

Buy some Disney pins and have your kids divide them

up and explain why each child got however many.

Competency Goal 2.02 Recognize concepts of calendar time using appropriate vocabulary (days of the week, months of the year, seasons).

Use your Disney Countdown calendar, have your child help plan what to do what day, etc.

Language Arts

Competency Goal 1.05 Interact for at least 10 minutes daily with self-selected texts that are consistent with the student's independent reading level.

Self explanatory

Competency Goal 2.01 Demonstrate sense of story (e.g., beginning, middle, end, characters, details and setting).

Have your child draw pictures and write or dictate words for one of your park days. Discuss setting, beginning, middle, end and CHARACTERS, LOL

Social Studies

Competency Goal 3.02 Evaluate how the lives of individuals and families of the past are different from what they are today.

Carousel of Progress and Spaceship Earth and a discussion should cover this.

Competency Goal 6.01 Distinguish between wants and needs.

Done in the gift shop, LOL

Science

Competency Goal 1.01 Observe and describe the similarities and differences among animals including:

* Structure.
* Growth.
* Changes.
* Movement.

Competency Goal1.02 Observe how animals interact with their surroundings.

Competency Goal1.03 Observe the behaviors of several common animals.

Animal Kingdom Safari and trails and Living Seas aquarium

Competency Goal 2.04 Observe and determine the effects of weather on human activities.

Any park when it starts to rain.

 

[ratlenhum]

I went to Hawaii on an "education trip" with the school in 8th grade. We went to one thing a day that was educational, be it a museum, a volcano, a cultural center, whatever. The rest of the time we were at the beach, in the pool or getting drunk in our hotel room. Our tour guide was 19 and was easily bribed to buy us Southern Comfort.

That was a school run trip that was barely educational. How many different volcanos can you go to and still learn something new?

Next year when we pull our son from school I intend to submit the letter asking them not to hold the absences against him. There are educational components. And for my son, with autism, I also plan on throwing in the waiting in line, using his own money to pay for things to learn handling money and socializing (life skills), reading the map, learning to manage social anxieties and noise sensitivities in a real life setting.

In elementary school, look at how much time they actually spend learning. Take out time to unpack and repack backpacks, lunch, the time spent on the morning announcement, snack (if the still do it), gym, art or music, trips to the bathroom, recess, and all the time spent having 25 or so kids move from one activity to another. How much time is really spent learning each day? Two to three hours maybe??

I think if the parent takes the time to make some work out of it it can be deemed educational. Adding up receipts at the end of the day, writing a paragraph (or a page) on what you did, read a guide book and make an outline of what you want to do in each park, make a budget for souvenirs, stuff like that. Will most parents do that? No, but if they do they can turn it into an educational vacation.

 

[MushyMushy]

You thought wrong.

You do realize your daughter will probably never graduate and *may* (if she's lucky) be flipping burgers for a living after this little "educational" trip of yours, correct?

Oh snap! I need to start preparing her for that GED now!

 

[design_mom]

Our school has an "Alternate Learning Experience" form that has to be filled out. They're pretty lenient on exactly what they'll be learning on the trip. But, they encourage you to fill it out because apparently if you're on an "approved Alternate Learning Experience" they can count it as an excused absence. In addition to being able to make up missed work, it's my understanding that excused absences do not hurt schools' funding like unexcused absences do... so if you're going anyway, they'd prefer to call it educational.

For what it's worth, when we took our kids out of school for WDW last January (3rd and kindergarten), I did try to keep up with the educational aspect. Not so much talking to CMs, etc. However, DS's class was studying map reading skills. He was in charge of the map and tasked with using the legend to find the nearest restrooms, navigate our way to the next attraction, etc. He was also studying multiplication. We asked him to figure out how much money we'd need to buy 4 mickey mouse ice cream bars, or how many seats were in 3 rows of the theater, etc.

As another poster says anything can be educational (even a trip to the grocery store) if you choose to make it so.

 

[ratlenhum]

As another poster says anything can be educational (even a trip to the grocery store) if you choose to make it so.

Yes it can. I guess since my son is different and learns differently it the educational component of WDW or anywhere we go would be different.

All day every day is learning for my son, it's our lifestyle. Learning new words, proper use of verbs, social skills, asking questions, even the simplest of life skills. Learning and education does not end for my son when the school day ends or on weekends. We carrying everything over throughout his entire day every day, and we could do it anywhere.

Thanks to being able to pause TV now even watching something like Phineas and Ferb is educational to my son. We pause every so often and ask him a question for comprehension and just to see if he's actually paying attention. If someone is crying we ask him why, if they are laughing, even if they are eating. He has to answer in full sentances, not grunts or single words (which is his usual form of communication). I can turn a 30 minute cartoon into an ELA lesson. If I can do that, I can make WDW educational!

 

[Monte Cristo]

Yes it can. I guess since my son is different and learns differently it the educational component of WDW or anywhere we go would be different.

All day every day is learning for my son, it's our lifestyle. Learning new words, proper use of verbs, social skills, asking questions, even the simplest of life skills. Learning and education does not end for my son when the school day ends or on weekends. We carrying everything over throughout his entire day every day, and we could do it anywhere.

Thanks to being able to pause TV now even watching something like Phineas and Ferb is educational to my son. We pause every so often and ask him a question for comprehension and just to see if he's actually paying attention. If someone is crying we ask him why, if they are laughing, even if they are eating. He has to answer in full sentances, not grunts or single words (which is his usual form of communication). I can turn a 30 minute cartoon into an ELA lesson. If I can do that, I can make WDW educational!

The REAL question is....how do you explain to your child as to why Candice always jussssssttttttt misses catching Phineas and Ferb in the act of their brainiac creations?? Please, educate me, because I still haven't figured that one out.

 

[ratlenhum]

The REAL question is....how do you explain to your child as to why Candice always jussssssttttttt misses catching Phineas and Ferb in the act of their brainiac creations?? Please, educate me, because I still haven't figured that one out.

We are no where near that level of comprehension yet. LOL A discussion crying goes like this

Why is he crying?

tears

Yes, he is crying and has tears. Why is he crying and have tears?

crying

Is he crying because he is happy or because he is sad?

sad

Okay, so why is the boy crying?

tears

We just keep doing it over and over and eventually it all clicks.


My personal opinion is that Candace has been cursed with incredibly bad timing, and Mr. Murphy ( Murphy's Law) hates her.

 

[NHdisneylover]

It is not educational. It is a vacation, plain and simple. Sure, kids can learn something there but it is still a vacation.

I had to fill out a request for DD for going to WDW in January and it never even crossed my mind to classify it as "educational". I put "vacation" as that is appropriate.

This

Oh please don't misunderstand me, this is TOTALLY a vacation! And I know for a fact that our school district has a very loose definition of what an educational trip is and I don't have to do anything to justify this trip other than fill out a form. What I object to is one surly middle school teacher telling the kids it's pathetic.

You can turn any trip into something educational even a trip around the block.



Preach it sistah!

Do you think it is possible that the teacher was saying that it is "pathetic" that parents try to pass of a trip to WDW as educational? That is different than saying WDW itself is pathetic (though I am sure some people feel that way--fine by me they can stay out of the park and leave me more space).

We are a family of nerds so we seek out the educational stuff of just about every trip (and even when we are on just plain fun rides at Disney we are looking at crowd control, load speeds, how rides are set up, etc and analyzing it all--I TOLD you we are nerds)--and we travel a lot (and yes the kids have missed school to do it).I have felt many times that what the kids are learning and experiencing while travelling is much more valuable than what they would learn in the classroom in the same amount of time. However, our trips are still primarily intended to have fun and learning is a secondary benefit--thus I have never tried to tell the school I am pulling the kids for an "educational" trip

Oh, and if a typical middle schooler or high schooler still has much to learn from visiting World Showcase or the conservation station then her school is failing her miserably. As someone else said, this is the entry level, preschool or elementary version of learning about cultures and animals.

 

[Pigeon]

It's a vacation. Most experiences in life have some educational component to them, but that doesn't mean they are something you do in lieu of school.

I'd have no problem pulling my kids out (if it were possible, dh is a high school teacher, so we can't), but I wouldn't pretend it was anything but a vacation.

 

[allison443]

In elementary school, look at how much time they actually spend learning. Take out time to unpack and repack backpacks, lunch, the time spent on the morning announcement, snack (if the still do it), gym, art or music, trips to the bathroom, recess, and all the time spent having 25 or so kids move from one activity to another. How much time is really spent learning each day? Two to three hours maybe??

I think if the parent takes the time to make some work out of it it can be deemed educational. Adding up receipts at the end of the day, writing a paragraph (or a page) on what you did, read a guide book and make an outline of what you want to do in each park, make a budget for souvenirs, stuff like that. Will most parents do that? No, but if they do they can turn it into an educational vacation.

You don't consider art and music to be "learning" but adding up receipts at Disney and making a park plan counts as educational??
I don't know about your school, but my kids definitely spent more than two hours a day learning in school.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

I only teach K, but here goes: These are our core subjects.

Well done! I loved that list!



FWIW, WDW can be educational if one chooses to make it that way. There are LOADS to do down there that encompass several aspects of education - and chances are, they may stick better because the setting is a LOT more fun than a classroom.

However, I think it is correct in marking your trip as a vacation.

When I was in 4th grade, my mom pulled my brother and I out of school to go to Europe over Thanksgiving. My mom was a teacher, so she knew the drill. She asked repeatedly what I needed to do for homework while we were gone, and all my teacher made me do was keep a journal of what we did, the culture (food, museum, etc), and how we travelled that day. I thought it was a pretty cool assignment.

 

[NHdisneylover]

You don't consider art and music to be "learning" but adding up receipts at Disney and making a park plan counts as educational??
I don't know about your school, but my kids definitely spent more than two hours a day learning in school.

Oh I missed that but it is a very good point Art, music and gym are absolutely essential (in my book) to a good education--and much the learning that does go on at WDW is related to exposure to art and music.

 

[mdsoccermom]

Well done! I loved that list!



FWIW, WDW can be educational if one chooses to make it that way. There are LOADS to do down there that encompass several aspects of education - and chances are, they may stick better because the setting is a LOT more fun than a classroom.

However, I think it is correct in marking your trip as a vacation.

When I was in 4th grade, my mom pulled my brother and I out of school to go to Europe over Thanksgiving. My mom was a teacher, so she knew the drill. She asked repeatedly what I needed to do for homework while we were gone, and all my teacher made me do was keep a journal of what we did, the culture (food, museum, etc), and how we travelled that day. I thought it was a pretty cool assignment.

Huge difference than taking your kids to World Showcase for an afternoon and trying to pass that off as "learning about world cultures". We took our kids to Spain a few years ago. My daughter who was in first grade at the time had to keep a journal and then do a presentation on what she saw and learned when she got back to school. Trust me, what she did learned was far more comprehensive than visiting a caramel shop in the Germany pavilion.

 

[MushyMushy]

So, wait. What some of you are telling me is that YOU wouldn't fill out the form to have the absences excused when you know darn well the school will excuse it as an educational trip? You'd call it a vacation, even knowing the school considers it educational?

Sorry, but I have no qualms filling out this form.

And many of you are still missing the point of the thread. I'm going to take my tongue out of my cheek and stick it out at the rest of you now. Actually, I kind of prefer this guy

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

So, wait. What some of you are telling me is that YOU wouldn't fill out the form to have the absences excused when you know darn well the school will excuse it as an educational trip? You'd call it a vacation, even knowing the school considers it educational?

Sorry, but I have no qualms filling out this form.

And many of you are still missing the point of the thread. I'm going to take my tongue out of my cheek and stick it out at the rest of you now. Actually, I kind of prefer this guy

More power to you if you can make it work in your favor. Trust me, I've got teachers all around me and I'm darn sure we could devise a curriculum suitable for making at trip to WDW educational - for all grade levels. To channel Tim Gunn at this early hour, "It's make it work time."

 

[Mimi1965]

In elementary school, look at how much time they actually spend learning. Take out time to unpack and repack backpacks, lunch, the time spent on the morning announcement, snack (if the still do it), gym, art or music, trips to the bathroom, recess, and all the time spent having 25 or so kids move from one activity to another. How much time is really spent learning each day? Two to three hours maybe??

.

Guess what-it was seeing my kid's art work back in grammar school that made me realize he had a special talent and is now in an Arts/computer major in college-and one of the top students in that major

I'm sure there are similar stories for kids in Sports and Music.

These are not a waste of time

 

[allison443]

We're headed to WDW for a short trip in December and I told my daughter to bring home a request form for an educational trip. She said she didn't want to let them know we're going to WDW because one of her former middle school teachers had told the kids numerous times that claiming WDW is educational is pathetic.

Pathetic!? Oh no he didn't! That fool has obviously never spent time in Epcot or speaking with the numerous cast members from around the world. He's apparently never walked through Animal Kingdom and/or seen the Conservation Station.

(okay, I freely admit that I am being a hypocrite now, because I have long said I don't really agree with taking kids out of school for WDW trips... yeah, I'm a jerk)

Were you serious in your second paragraph when you cited these things as educational? Because now you're saying your playing the game and just calling it educational (which I understand doing.)

Also, am I the only person who doesn't have deep, culturally revealing conversations with cast members in Disney?


edited to add, I don't have a problem with people taking their kids out of school for vacation. Personally I wouldn't take a high schooler, my kids are good students but they would miss too much work as they are in honors/AP classes. They wouldn't want to miss, it would be way too much to catch up on. If your dd is fine with it, and her work won't suffer, then go ahead.

 

[NHdisneylover]

So, wait. What some of you are telling me is that YOU wouldn't fill out the form to have the absences excused when you know darn well the school will excuse it as an educational trip? You'd call it a vacation, even knowing the school considers it educational?

Sorry, but I have no qualms filling out this form.

And many of you are still missing the point of the thread. I'm going to take my tongue out of my cheek and stick it out at the rest of you now. Actually, I kind of prefer this guy

Under those circumstances I would probably "play the game" yes. However, if I posted about it at all it would be vent that i had to fabricate such a letter just to take my kids on vacation without them being penalized--I wouldn't post acting like I thought it WAS an educational trip--which is how your OP read to me. Apparently I missed something in the tone, sorry.
FWIW I am not opposed to pulling a good student out of school at any level for vacation--if the student wants to go and is up to the challenge of finding out what work they missed (I believe it should be the student's responsibility to find out--from other student's what they missed or to arrange for other student's to keep an extra copy of worksheets, etc NOT the teacher's burden; at least not after 4th grade or so).

 

[Mimi1965]

claiming WDW is educational is pathetic.

Pathetic!? Oh no he didn't! That fool has obviously never spent time in Epcot or speaking with the numerous cast members from around the world.

I've never had a meaningful conversation with a foreign CM -and even if a kid did so-how is that educationla?




He's apparently never walked through Animal Kingdom )

Much as I love AK-it is pretty much a glorified Zoo-taking your kid out of school to go to the Zoo would be frowned upon also.


OP=I think your DD is embaressed that you want to claim a WDW is educational-and knows the teachers will think so also. Although the school will accept your claim-you will become "one of those parents"-KWIM?