What do you tell the teacher??

[lindajo]

Hi Y'all,

Don't want to make this post into a should you /shouldn't you debate about taking the kids out of school to go to Disney. That could get heated, and I try to stay away from that kind of thread.
So, with that said, this goes out to the parents who DO take their kids out of school. What do you tell the teacher? So far, we have always taken our kids out of school, but they go to a private preschool (DS4) with a kindergarten program (DS6). Teachers at this grade level and this school don't seem to think twice when I tell them we are going to miss school for WDW, in fact, the K teacher said that a lot of kids miss school in October and November to go there. Next year, DS6 will be attending public school, and I was just curious as to how much to tell the teacher. Should I just give a written excuse a week or two before saying "Please excuse him for (dates) for a family vacation."? And let DS6 give it to her. Don't want to schedule a conference/make a big deal-it's only two days. I really don't think I am doing anything wrong, but I don't know what the perception of the school would be. Anyone else out there taking the kids out of school?

 

[yourtravelpro]

I guess I never really thought it was wrong when I took my daughter out of school, so I didn't even think about what I was going to say to the teachers because I was just so excited about our upcoming trip.

I just told them that she wouldn't be in school since I was taking her on a Disney cruise. The teacher's reaction was excitement for my daughter. What they did was have her do a journal of her trip which I guess they believe is education itself.

I wouldn't worry too much about it, I would just be upfront.

 

[JerseyJanice]

When I took my son out of private kindergarten for a Disney trip, I told the teacher straight out early in the school year (our trip was in early June).

She asked me to put my request in writing and give it to the principal. I did. It wasn't a problem at all. The principal sent a copy of my note back with "approved" written on it.

 

[gymnasticsmom68]

I usually tell the teacher at the beginning of the year that we take the kids to WDW every year in the winter and try to give her a tentative schedule. I've never had a problem, most encourage it.

 

[Mickey76]

My girlfriend and I are both teachers and we have debated this topic more than once. She doesn't see why parents take thier children out of school for a trip to WDW or anywhere else for that matter. She thinks they should wait until their is a vacation scheduled by the school, whether it be Spring Break or Summer Vacation. I, on the other hand, don't think it's a big deal. As a matter of fact, I would be excited for a student to go to WDW during school time. You never know when you might have another opportunity to go, so you might as well go when you can. However, as a teacher, the only negative to the situation is that I would not go out of my way to give a student all of the work he or she is missing before the trip. I would give it to them after the trip and they would be given a week to a week and a half to make it up. That's the consequences and it would be tough for me to budge from my stance on the issue.

Have a great time!

Mickey76

 

[CamColt]

We took DS out of 1st grade for 2 days this year in Dec. We told the teacher at the teacher meeting in November(after the first report cards). When we told her the dates which were right before vacations she almost laugh like it was not a big deal at all.
Now I have to worry about when the kids will be missing 4 days in October for our Disney Cruise,when they are in 3rd & K. I had hoped to do the cruise over the summer, but DCL has different plans than I do, LOL!

 

[Doesney]

I just tell them our plans. plain and simple I have never been given a hard time.

 

[oogieboogie]

We told the teacher and the principal a few months in advance, then a week before the trip, we write a note addressed to the principal and cc the teacher, just so both parties have it in writing.

I usually just write that my son, XXXX will not be attending school on the following dates .... due to a family vacation. And I usually ask if there are any school work that needs to be done in the meantime.

I've taken my DS (6) twice now and so far, his principal and teacher have been most accomodating.

 

[Trish Bessette]

We took out two daughters who were in Kindergarten and third grade out for a trip to WDW for a total of 8 school days.

I agree with the previous post, tell the teacher the beginning of the school year.

I had no problems but I do know there are only so many days a child is allowed to miss during a school year. I also had to write a quick note to the principal.

We are going back next year and my girls will be in 2nd & 5th grade. Believe me, this is one note I can't wait to write to their teachers

 

[Beastlover]

Same here, we tell them at the start of the school year. Family time is so valued....if the parks, weather, etc. are better in Oct. then that is it. For the money and family time together, it is worth the upset. Each year we show the school and teachers that our children can handle it. All on the honor roll....

 

[mudnuri]

"Dear teacher"

DD will be out of school on April 16th and April 26th -April 30th, as we will be in Florida. Please let me know if there is any homework she needs to complete while we are gone. She will be reading nightly as she does at home, and will also be keeping a travel journal that I will send into school upon our return. She will be back in school on May 3rd pending any unforseen circumstances, should any arrise, I will contact the school as soon as I can. She would like to bring back a small trinket to her classmates, I was thinking either Mickey Mouse pencils or eraser tops, please let me know if this is okay"...

thanks- DD's Mom

Now the reply I got from 4 different teachers were

"is there room in your suitcase"

"what a nice idea, she sure can bring back a small trinket"

"I look forward to seeing her travel journal"

"let me know if you need a tutor to come, I'll start packing now!"

They came home with there homework yesterday, it's the same homework they do while in school. DD7 has 4 pages of Math, and read and respond for Mon-Thurs of the week, and DD6 has only the Read and Respond.

they are in 1st and 2nd grade

Brandy

 

[CamColt]

Oh I like the idea of offering to bring something back. How can they get mad then?

 

[DSNY FN]

We just tell the teacher and the school that we are going to Disney World and that is about all we say never really thought about it actualy. Our daughters teacher was extatic when Paige brought in shells from the beach and a small info book about the different areas from the coast that we went to visit on our weeend excursion. She thought it was a great learning tool for the kids at schol.

 

[DwarfMaster]

DS7 is in 1st grade ~ I told the teacher earlier in the year and followed up with a reminder note about 2 weeks prior to our trip. No Questions were ever asked.

DS just got his report card and boy was I suprised to see he had 6 EXCUSED days off. I was sure that vacation days were unexcused abesnces, but apparently not this time.

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

I try and take my kids out in conjunction with other days off. For instance, our next visit to WDW is scheduled in October during a week they are already off on Thurs. & Fri. I will submit a note to the office as soon as school starts in September requesting an excused absence for three days while the kids are on a "family trip". I usually don't specify where we are going. I will also request a homework packet if the teacher has time to prepare one. If not, I assure them the missed work will be made up upon our return. I have never had a problem with this procedure. Of course, I'm sure it probably helps that I volunteer many hours at the school in the classrooms and through the PTA...a little sugar goes a long way!

 

[shortbun]

Our school system just asks for a note to the principal
prior to being out for other than sickness. Teachers discretion
about make up assignments. They do request that 4th, 6th
and 8th graders are not taken out prior to or during proficiency
testing. I understand that request and would honor it as
state funding is based on it. Also, there is a week where attendance is mandatory unless contagious that is related to
funding as well. DS always learns while we're away. Our teachers
pass out a syllabus re what is being done each 6 wks at the beginning of the period and we keep up with it.

 

[FranP]

Took DS out of school the first week of May when he was in 3rd grade (he's now in college). His teachers and the principal were so excited for him and told him how lucky he was!!! Also, when I asked about missed schoolwork, his teacher said he was such a good student, and it was such a special vacation, that he should just have a good time and not worry about anything. He did have a little bit of makeup work when he came back, but nothing he couldn't handle and the teacher was wonderful in letting him not have to worry during the trip!!!

Having a good relationship with the teacher and the school does help with asking for "special" considerations - I mean an open and cordial exchange of information among the parents, teachers and adminisration.

 

[Jeafl]

When the kids are young, I don't think it's a big deal at all.

However, my oldest daughter is a freshman and we pulled her out of school 3 days Thanksgiving week for a cruise/family reunion. You would have thought the world was coming to an end! She is in mostly honors classes and the teachers ALL let me know in no uncertain terms that there were certain things (mostly biology labs and things like that) that she simply could not make up. They also were notified at the beginning of the school year, and reminded a couple of times of what days she would be missing. None of them would give her any work ahead of time, so she spent a month (and I am not exaggerating!) trying to catch up with the rest of the class. She became very behind in her accelerated geometry and had a hard time catching up when we returned. She was even assigned TWO term papers by the gym teacher because she missed gym class.

The moral of this story is: Enjoy it when they are young. The older they get the harder it is to pull your kids out. My daughter made me promise we'd never pull her out again.

 

[peg2001]

I wrote a note simply stating the dates my child would be absent. I did not include a reason and I did not ask permission.

Of course the teacher asked DD where we were going. When we picked up DD at school right before our trip, the teacher stuck her head into our van and wished us a great trip and expressed envy that she couldn't go too.

Peggy

 

[Blueeyes101817]

ive pretty much had the same experiences as FranP....I was always told not to worry about my hw..and then maybe got a few things when i got back..i never had a problem...and im now a freshman in college--i dont think i would miss college for vacation..but i did up till junior year in high school and was never a problem...