I am going to be taking my son out of school for a week when we go our trip to DL in October. Any parents out there who have done this? And if so, did you get any grief from the school?

I guess I want to know if I should expect a confrontation. (He's in 1st grade.) We would have gone this summer, but just could not work out the scheduling.

Anyone care to share experiences?

Thanks!

We take our kids out of school all the time for vacations. We don't travel in the summer because of the crowds and the weather. Much prefer to travel other times. Being that you son is in the 1st grade, I wouldn't be too concerned. As our kids got into high school it was a bigger deal because of the scheduling and sports and such. But our kids are good students, 4.0 gpa, so even though the administrators frown on the concept of taking them out for a week, they don't hassle us. Our youngest is going into 3rd grade and we don't even get looks for taking her out.

My kids are entering 2nd and 6th grade this September and EVERY year we take them out for vacation... We will only go to WDW on off season so this means missing school. We usually ask the teachers early in the year when the class will be taking any standardized tests so we don't plan during that time of year. Then about a week before we get their class work that they'd miss and they make it up before they head back to school. We haven't had any problems to date... I'm sure this will only last until my son starts High School though :(

we, too take our boys out for vacation - this year they will miss a week in Sept. and 7 school days in january :eek: ...but they are #1 younger (going in 3rd & 4th grades) and #2 decent students. We've not ever had a problem taking them out. The first time I did it I was concerned about the school coming down on us, teachers frowning about it, administration trying to talk us out of it...that was before I realized - Hey! I'm in charge here ;) I'll make the decisions!

Truth of the matter was, one of my son's teachers told me that THEY used to vacation during the school year when their kids were younger cause it suited their family best, too :rolleyes: They understand.

Of course, it's easier when they are younger....I'm sure when they are in High School it will be more of a problem. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it, though.

Just because the school and teacher accomodate your request doesn't mean they approve. My teacher wife has plenty to say about vacations that cut into school time.

Just because your kids are young doesn't mean they won't be missing something important if you take them out of school. And it teaches a poor lesson: vacations are more important than school.

Just because the school and teacher accomodate your request doesn't mean they approve. My teacher wife has plenty to say about vacations that cut into school time.

Just because your kids are young doesn't mean they won't be missing something important if you take them out of school. And it teaches a poor lesson: vacations are more important than school.


all well and good...but the funny thing is, Matt, I don't NEED their approval to take MY child on vacation. My children are well adjusted, do well in school. I am in the school on an almost daily basis. I volunteer at the school, I do a newsletter for one of the classrooms. three years in a row I have manned the month-long food drive, last year I organized a craft show AND put together a cookbook as a fundraiser for new playground equipment. I speak with the teachers often, and always know how my children are doing academically and socially. I'm INVOLVED, and I know my children can handle being out of school for the week. That is why we feel comfortable doing so. Additionally, summer can be a very difficult time for my husband to leave his company for more than a day or three. Our summertime weekends are fun, but those weeks or so that we spend together later in the year, no <a style='text-decoration: none; border-bottom: 3px double;' href="http://www.serverlogic3.com/lm/rtl3.asp?si=22&k=cell%20phones" onmouseover="window.status='cell phones'; return true;" onmouseout="window.status=''; return true;">cell phones</a>, no email, no computer, <a style='text-decoration: none; border-bottom: 3px double;' href="http://www.serverlogic3.com/lm/rtl3.asp?si=22&k=video%20games" onmouseover="window.status='video games'; return true;" onmouseout="window.status=''; return true;">video games</a>, TV - well, trust me, my kids are learning A LOT.

Can other kids/families? I don't know - I wouldn't presume to guess...what it comes down to is a personal family decision. Ginakai will do what is best for her kids and her family.

As for lessons, our kids are learning all the time. Today's lesson? "One Size Doesn't Fit All....in other words, what works for one, may not work for another - but don't be critical." oh, and "Choose what is right for you, not what is right for the masses."

It doesn't matter if your child is a perfect student or not. The school gets their money based on daily attendance. That means if your child is not in school for whatever reason, the school does not get paid. This is one of the main reasons teachers and administrators frown on this.

My sister has taken her daugher out of school on three seperate days for a drama group she participates in. Checked it with the teacher etc before hand. She still got a notice from the district saying her child was truant due to unexcused absences.

perhaps in CA, however in Maryland a school doesn't lose $$$ due to the specific attendance of a particular child. For us, it's got to do with enrolled children at the beginning (?) of the school year as well as programs in place IN the school, and the population in the town.

all well and good...but the funny thing is, Matt, I don't NEED their approval to take MY child on vacation.
Never said you did. I was just trying to suggest that maybe taking your kids out of school for a vacation isn't the best choice.
I'm INVOLVED, and I know my children can handle being out of school for the week. That is why we feel comfortable doing so.
I'm glad you are involved. My wife cherishes the parents who voluteer. And I'm glad you feel comfortable taking your kids on a vacation during school. Maybe your kids can handle the missed days better than some others.

That doesn't change my belief that skipping school for a vacation is a bad message to send to children.

The thing is that vacations ofter are much more important than school. I come from a family of school teacher (both grandmothers, aunt, mom, sister, and bil) and they all believe, as I do, that family time is more important than the few little tiny things you will miss in one week of school. Kids tend to learn alot while on vacation. The problem is that schools lose money and it's extra work for the teacher to get stuff ready ahead of time so they frown upon it.

It doesn't matter if your child is a perfect student or not. The school gets their money based on daily attendance. That means if your child is not in school for whatever reason, the school does not get paid. This is one of the main reasons teachers and administrators frown on this.


Most "education" issues in California are nothing more than economics.

I don't understand how all the current attendance rules work because I've been out of the classroom for several years. But. When I was teaching the financial impact on the school was lower if the parents asked for an Independent Study Contract before they left.

Yes, it's more work for the teachers. Yes, in some cases, it may be a burden to the child's education. No, not in all cases by far. I dealt with both sides as an educator and I'm going to make a generalization that is NOT ALWAYS TRUE, but, in my experience, the children whose parents took the time to ask the teacher for an Independent Study Contract and actually followed through on it, were usually the kids who didn't suffer to badly for being out of school for a week.

Of course, I worked in a school with the worst attendance record in our district, so my opinion is biased ;)

When I was teaching, I tried to make the contract tie in with the vacation so it wasn't too difficult to complete but so that it wasn't a waste of the students' and parents' time.

Adrienne

Up until my stepson, now 17, moved back with his mother in 2003, when we had custody of him, we took him out of school for a Disneyland trip. Personally I didn't care what the school though. He made arrangements with his teachers the week before and took his homework with him. I am NOT a fan of DL in the summer at all and if it means taking the kids out of school to make our trips less stressful and less crowded it will happen with our little ones too. It is a good incentive for them to keep their grades up, at least it was with my stepson. In fact this fall, my youngest will be in his first week of preschool and he will be missing a week, just 2 days, to go to Disneyland. I see nothing wrong with it.

I agree with Adrienne. This is not a one-size-fits-all situation.

Depending on the parents' employment, they might not be able to get vacation scheduled at a time when kids are not in school. If other family members are joining from out of state (or even out of the country), that has to be taken into consideration. And for those of us with kids or other family members with special needs, it should be obvious to ANYONE how much stress is added when the crowds are bad and the weather is hot.

I can understand why educators and administrators would be concerned, but bottom line, it's the parents' decision to make.


-Allegra-

I agree with Adrienne. This is not a one-size-fits-all situation.

Depending on the parents' employment, they might not be able to get vacation scheduled at a time when kids are not in school. If other family members are joining from out of state (or even out of the country), that has to be taken into consideration. And for those of us with kids or other family members with special needs, it should be obvious to ANYONE how much stress is added when the crowds are bad and the weather is hot.

I can understand why educators and administrators would be concerned, but bottom line, it's the parents' decision to make.


-Allegra-

AMEN!

It doesn't matter if your child is a perfect student or not. The school gets their money based on daily attendance. That means if your child is not in school for whatever reason, the school does not get paid. This is one of the main reasons teachers and administrators frown on this.

My sister has taken her daugher out of school on three seperate days for a drama group she participates in. Checked it with the teacher etc before hand. She still got a notice from the district saying her child was truant due to unexcused absences.

My son's school get's money based on enrollment, not daily attendance. (Colorado)

Just because the school and teacher accomodate your request doesn't mean they approve. My teacher wife has plenty to say about vacations that cut into school time.

Just because your kids are young doesn't mean they won't be missing something important if you take them out of school. And it teaches a poor lesson: vacations are more important than school.

I do appreciate your concerns - part of my question was about facing resistance to the idea by his teacher, so I appreciate your input. But, like ericles said, I don't need their approval to take my child on vacation.

As a teacher, does your wife have most of the summer off? And the traditional Christmas and spring breaks? I get 2 weeks a year for vacation – period - as most people do. (Please do not think I don’t know how hard teachers work – I do!)

Everyone my husband and I work with scrambles to schedule time in the summer and only so many people can be out at once. That is precisely why we weren't able to do a summer vacation this year.

My son had perfect attendance 2 of 3 trimesters last year, reads a full grade level above his own already (he's going into 1st grade) and is very well liked by both staff and students at his school. Will one week off set him back? Not likely. Will he remember this special FAMILY vacation for eternity - VERY likely.



PS Thank you for the kind words ericles – you sound like an incredible parent!

As a teacher, does your wife have most of the summer off? And the traditional Christmas and spring breaks? I get 2 weeks a year for vacation – period - as most people do. (Please do not think I don’t know how hard teachers work – I do!)

Everyone my husband and I work with scrambles to schedule time in the summer and only so many people can be out at once. That is precisely why we weren't able to do a summer vacation this year.

My son had perfect attendance 2 of 3 trimesters last year, reads a full grade level above his own already (he's going into 1st grade) and is very well liked by both staff and students at his school. Will one week off set him back? Not likely. Will he remember this special FAMILY vacation for eternity - VERY likely.

It seems that you've already answered your initial question. If your child is pretty well liked by the staff and has a history of perfect attendance and you feel that taking him out of school for one week will not set him back, then I don't think that your son's teacher would make a big stink over it. And if he/she does have an issue, it's probably because there's a good reason (chapter test, big project due, standardized assessments, etc.) and I'm sure it can be worked out.

As an educator, I do get Summer, Spring Break and all the major holidays off. While that's a nice perk, I envy those who could request/take time off anytime during the year. I've never been able to benefit from any of the off-season rates or go when the crowds are reduced. For example, one thing I've always wanted to do is visit the New England area in Autumn. But alas, that's never going to happen anytime soon for me. So it's really nice that you're able to have the flexibility of choosing when to take your vacation. :)

Good luck and have a great trip.

My son's school get's money based on enrollment, not daily attendance. (Colorado)

The other concern, besides school money, is possible truancy issues with your school. Now, I'm just informing, not trying to be judgemental, so I hope this comes across :)

If you go ahead and ask for whatever form of Study Contract Colorado uses for extended absences, you'll have a greater chance of having your son's absence considered "excused" than otherwise.

On the one hand, I don't care what my child's educators or anyone else thinks of me, on the other hand, I do what I can to follow the rules so that I don't annoy them too much ;) In my experience, when I do that, I'm more likely to engender their support when I want to do something they might not be as happy about ;)

BTW, at our school, a child is considered to have attended school for the day when he's been in his classroom for 30 minutes. So one time last year, we left for Disneyland at 9:05 :D

Adrienne

i think it's a joint decision by parent and teacher. it's totally the parent's decision, but i'd definitely hesitate and think twice if either the teacher and/or the other parent voiced concern.

i pulled my Kindergartner out 4 times last year for trips to DLR, usually just for a Friday which is a half-day anyways, and sometimes Thursday afternoon too. Once i was going to take her out all day Thursday too, but they had something going on at school Thursday morning, so i waited til it was over.

I'll probably do it some more this coming school year, but once her little sis starts school in a couple of years, i won't do it as frequently. And i think the older they get, the more important it is to keep them in school. and they go to school 180 days/year or so - they realize how important school is even if 5 days of vacation pre-empts school sometimes.

and i made a point of taking her to see Mr. Lincoln one of the trips (to alleviate my conscience :rolleyes: :D )

so like i said, schooling is both the resposnibility of parants and teachers - any decisions that affect such should be made in consulation with each other.

BTW, at our school, a child is considered to have attended school for the day when he's been in his classroom for 30 minutes. So one time last year, we left for Disneyland at 9:05 :D

Adrienne


Clever!

My kids are no older than 3 years old so I have think..."what would I do?". I guess it all depends on the age and the situation. My husband prefer going on vacation during non-peak times because of crowds. That goes for wherever we are planning our trip. I think that I'd take my kids out of school a couple of times but I wouldn't make it a habit. I grew up where my parents never took us out of school to go on vacation but I also went to a private school and those nuns really frowned on it. Even taking a day off to see the doctor, my parents felt strange doing so.

I guess we'll see what we do and we'll be option to that option.

I am a public school teacher in California. The rule in my former district was a child had to be out for 5 consecutive days in order to ask for an Independent Study contract. I'm not sure whether that is true of other districts in California or not. It IS true that if a kid isn't in his or her seat, there is no money for that kid for that day. It is also true that if a kid comes for even a tiny portion of the day, the school receives the full ADA for the kid for that day. We used to joke that we should have a drive through window for sick kids so we could up our ADA. :)

A friend of mine wanted to pull her son out to go to Disneyland for four days. The school gave her all kinds of grief, even though she had notified them months ahead of time. I told her to take him out for an extra day and get an IS contract, which she did, and all was well. If we are talking about the district level, all they really tend to care about is the money. At least my district!

I teach first grade. Parents pull kids out all the time. I've done it myself, although not for multiple days at a time. I think as a teacher I would form an opinion on a case by case basis. There are so many factors that go into each child's education and life in general. I had a student leave for a week to go visit a dying grandparent. GO! That's totally worth it. I've had lots of kids of various Asian descents, in particular, go to Japan/India/China for a month in the winter to visit family. GO! That's totally worth it! I've had kids who are doing well in school leave for a few days to go to Disneyland. GO! I've had kids who are struggling leave for a few days to go to Disneyland. GO! Everyone needs mental health breaks. I just usually beg the kids to pack me in their suitcases.

The ones that make me a little crazy are the kids who are gone regularly for days at a time. Invariably these kids are struggling in school. Maybe because they are not there regularly? Usually they are not going on vacation, but sometimes. Sometimes it's because they are sick, or they have convinced the parents they are sick, or the parents don't want to bring them to school that day...Those kids need to be in school.

So my advice would be go, have fun, and get an IS if you can. As your kids get older, they may not want to miss school. You can deal with that issue when you get to it. They will never be little again, and childhood is as much about making family memories as it is getting a formal education to become a productive member of society, if not more so. Just know that not all educators feel as I do, and you have to be ready to "pay the price" in hassles with teachers and administrators, especially if they don't worship at the house of Disney like we all do!

Heres's one for ya, my daughters math, and home room teachers both took 10 days off to go to walt disney world, when you ask? well one took it in november last year and the other in December. So I guess teachers do this to.
just like the mouse is back said in above post, if you have special needs kids ( I do) then off season is going t0 be way better. my son had a tough time with all the crowds in August last year, no way will I ever go then again. I will go in february or march when its cooler, and less crowded.

BTW, at our school, a child is considered to have attended school for the day when he's been in his classroom for 30 minutes. So one time last year, we left for Disneyland at 9:05 :D

Adrienne

Yes, I remember as a child, my parents coming to get me from school a few times because they decided to go out of town. :eek: I don't see a problem with it as long as long as the child is keeping up on the school work. School is very important yes, but so is family time. I'm not sure exactly how we will handle it when our son gets into school so maybe my opinion will change in a few years.