Missing school, your thoughts

[CanadaFour]

I would very much like to hear your opinions on the appropriateness of taking children out of school to go on a cruise vacation. Is this OK? Educational? Important for family time? Good or bad role modeling? Does it matter where one is cruising or what you do with the time?

[cb at sea]

When they're in elementary school, and IF they're doing well, I see no reason not to take them out for a family vacation....educational???? Probably not, but it's a good family bonding time.

Once they hit high school, and grades become more important, and work comes fast and furious...I wouldn't do it....they will have too much to "catch up" on...and it puts them at a disadvantage.

[thinfool]

I would very much like to hear your opinions on the appropriateness of taking children out of school to go on a cruise vacation. Is this OK? Educational? Important for family time? Good or bad role modeling? Does it matter where one is cruising or what you do with the time?

 

Short answer is yes, take them along.

 

Details: Will their teachers cooperate by giving advanced work assignments so that they will not be behind when you return? (Mine did)

 

Taking our kids out for vacation usually resulted in the teacher asking for a summary or report about places seen and things learned. The rest of the class could benefit from a first-hand report. :)

[bus man]

There are two imperatives being considered here: your children's education, and family bonding time. Both are very, very important. In my opinion, the optimum thing to do is to have the kids in school when it is in session, and take your vacations when it's not.

 

However, we don't live in the optimum world, we live in the real world. And in the real world, there sometimes are reasons why a vacation during the school year might make sense. In our case, we will be pulling our son out of kindergarten for a week next spring so we can take a Disney cruise. We've long wanted to cruise Disney, but the price has been out of our reach. But for the particular sailing we're on, the price was sufficiently low enough that we could swing it. The choice came down to taking this particular cruise in the spring, or not cruising Disney at all, possibly ever. We've chosen to take it.

 

Others may have different views, and that's fine. Ultimately, you as the parent are responsible for your kids: their education, their upbringing, sharing their life as a part of a family unit. You do what's right for your family.

[chipmaster]

Almost can be as hotly debated as formal wear, chair hogs, jeans/shorts in dining room etc. etc.

 

You are asking this on a vacation oriented board, what do you expect :D

 

I'm probably a minority opinion here in that for vacations, NO. I don't care about the arguments about good grades, good experience, family vacations, stories of kids turning out okay, or how little is learned in school or all these kind of "excuses." IMHO, for me its about value and what you stand for. You back it up with action. If it is because crowds are less, its cheaper what does it say about your vacation priorities versus educational priority. If it is because of a wedding, special anniversary of grandparrents etc. etc. that is something different, but that is my view. There are what like two weeks at Christmas, Spring Break, and another 8-10 weeks of summer for vacation, and the rest for "school" I always get a chuckle for the reason why people can't schedule it with sacrifice around the 12 weeks of no school.

 

I guess I see it the other way, the more you stand for the values versus make excuse why you did don't you stand out even more for what your values are?

 

Duck and cover :D

 

I would very much like to hear your opinions on the appropriateness of taking children out of school to go on a cruise vacation. Is this OK? Educational? Important for family time? Good or bad role modeling? Does it matter where one is cruising or what you do with the time?

[Worm61]

My way of thinking is ...if the cruise your on is going when they should be at school it's tuff , my grandchild is going when they are back at school after the summer holls :eek: he's 15 & he won't be bothered

[6rugrats]

This has been discussed here, at great length, many times. You can use the search function to pull these threads up, if you're interested.

 

No, I no longer pull my kids out of school for a week. It's too hard, as they miss too much class. At our high school, you are only allowed a certain number of absences, even excused, and if you go above that number, you have to petition to get credit for your classes.

 

After my child was in the 4th or 5th grade I wouldn't consider it. I personally do not consider a Caribbean cruise a tremendously educational experience. And our family "bonds" just fine at home.

 

Ultimately, you shouldn't care what anyone thinks. Do what you think is right and what your school district allows.

[cyntil8ing]

FWIW, Chipmaster, I agree with you. My kids are little. DD will be in 3rd grade and DS will start K in the fall. We travel during school breaks. DD has had perfect attendance two years in a row and is quite proud of her accomplishment. We are too.

 

Yes, there are instances when people simply can't take vacation during summer break, but more often I think it's a money thing. It's easy to justify 'saving' money when the exact same itinerary on the exact same ship costs so much more in late June vs. May or October.

 

However, just being able to take a cruise connotes a certain amount of disposable income. I have a hard time believing that an additional few hundred in up-front costs is the difference between being able to go at all or not.

 

But, we all do what works for us.

[bus man]

Yes, there are instances when people simply can't take vacation during summer break, but more often I think it's a money thing. It's easy to justify 'saving' money when the exact same itinerary on the exact same ship costs so much more in late June vs. May or October.

 

However, just being able to take a cruise connotes a certain amount of disposable income. I have a hard time believing that an additional few hundred in up-front costs is the difference between being able to go at all or not.

 

For us, yes, it's a money thing, no ifs and or buts about it. Our Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Disney Magic next April, for a family of 4, cost us a bit more than $3,000. (Apparently it's since gone up.) A July cruise on the Disney Fantasy, on the same itinerary, would cost somewhere around $11,000.

 

We can afford $3,000. We cannot afford $11,000. Our choice was, (1) DS misses a week of kindergarten and we cruise in April, or (2) we don't cruise Disney at all. I made my decision based on what I felt was the overall best thing to do for my family.

 

Everyone has to do what's right for them. You have made your choice, and I respect you for it. And in all seriousness, I admire and respect your daughter on her achievement of perfect attendance. But please, don't be so dismissive about the "money thing." Not everyone has vast amounts of disposable income, and for some, the price differential between summer and spring/fall is the difference between cruising and not cruising.

[Warm Breezes]

Almost can be as hotly debated as formal wear, chair hogs, jeans/shorts in dining room etc. etc.

 

You are asking this on a vacation oriented board, what do you expect :D

 

I'm probably a minority opinion here in that for vacations, NO. I don't care about the arguments about good grades, good experience, family vacations, stories of kids turning out okay, or how little is learned in school or all these kind of "excuses." IMHO, for me its about value and what you stand for. You back it up with action. If it is because crowds are less, its cheaper what does it say about your vacation priorities versus educational priority. If it is because of a wedding, special anniversary of grandparrents etc. etc. that is something different, but that is my view. There are what like two weeks at Christmas, Spring Break, and another 8-10 weeks of summer for vacation, and the rest for "school" I always get a chuckle for the reason why people can't schedule it with sacrifice around the 12 weeks of no school.

 

I guess I see it the other way, the more you stand for the values versus make excuse why you did don't you stand out even more for what your values are?

 

Duck and cover :D

 

I guess that depends on what you see as your "values". To me if (1) the school allows it, (2) the child is willing and (3) able to make up the work (with my help) then my "values" are being met. Why? Because (1) we are not breaking any rules by getting schools approval and cooperation (2) the child is showing responsibility in making up the work and (3) we are showing responsibility in not forcing the child to do anything he can't handle and helping him learn what was missed.

 

When my children were younger we took them out for week long vacation almost yearly. It was just easier on DH's and my work schedules, our school allows it and since they maintained A averages it worked for us (if their grades were not good or if I had found them suffering after a vacation this would have quickly ended...but that was not our case-not an "excuse" just a reason why we were able to do it). As they got older and into Junior High and High School, school became more difficult and sports schedules started interfering. DS requested that I limit as much as possible any vacations during the school year. I now try to schedule around the holidays they don't have sports and they usually end up missing a day or two around the holiday but it is always a day that they would have no problem missing.

 

I'm not making "excuses" and I'm not "justifying" to anyone. I will say that my "values" were met by following the school rules, the children making up their work and maintaining their high educational levels.

 

It is a very personal and individual decision and it needs to be made on a case by case situation based on your school, your kids, your schedules, your finances, and your "values". No one elses opinion really matters because it is based on their school, their kids, their schedules, their finances and their "values".

[Megsie1000]

We do it pretty much once a year and I have no issues with it because my kids have excellent attendance otherwise and are at the top of their game on academics. I have seen no negative consequences from doing it the last few years so we'll do it again this year.

 

We probably will discontinue the practice once our oldest hits middle school. It will just be too difficult at that point for her to miss school.

 

I do try and minimize the amount of school missed by making at least part of the vacation over a school break. For instance, this year we are sailing in the middle of January so that MLK day and a teacher in-service on Monday and Tuesday will mean she will not miss those two days. The cruise is still MUCH cheaper than it would be over the holidays, spring break or summer. I have done the same thing when we did Disneyworld.

[Woodmnky]

This is a personal decision and I'm sure one that I will consider in the future. Things that I will take into account - age of child, performance in school, ability to catch up, and school policy. Even if it meant not taking a vacation, I would not pull out a child that was struggling academically. But if you think that your child will be no worse for the experience then by all means enjoy the time and find a way to create a learning experience.

[cyntil8ing]

We can afford $3,000. We cannot afford $11,000. Our choice was, (1) DS misses a week of kindergarten and we cruise in April, or (2) we don't cruise Disney at all. I made my decision based on what I felt was the overall best thing to do for my family.

 

Our family's decision is not to cruise Disney at all. Believe me, my children have brought up a Disney cruise often, even finding a brochure at the travel show we went to last winter. That brochure's pages are dog-eared! DD studied the deck plans online. But, it's simply out of our budget.

 

Every family considers different options besides total cost when picking a cruise -- line, itinerary, cabin type, dates, etc. That we throw out the option of cruising during the school year limits our choices. It's really no different than someone that says they won't cruise on Carnival, or in an inside cabin, go to Jamaica, or any of the other choices people make.

 

Obviously, there are many families that feel like we do or summer prices wouldn't be so much higher. :) And obviously, some of those families really want that Disney experience, or they wouldn't be able to charge such obscene prices! Let's blame everything on them. :D

[98Charlie]

I would very much like to hear your opinions on the appropriateness of taking children out of school to go on a cruise vacation. Is this OK? Educational? Important for family time? Good or bad role modeling? Does it matter where one is cruising or what you do with the time?

 

As parents, DH & I pulled our 3 children out of school at times for winter family vacations of a week to 9 days. We worked with their teachers beforehand to get homework assignments for the days they would miss and ensured that the children kept current with their studies.

 

A few decades have gone over and under the bridge since then as our children are now adults with their own brood to raise. If we had a chance to go back in time and change what we did back then ----- we wouldn't change one iota of those vacation times.

 

Each and every one of those vacations was an educational experience, sometimes intentionally, often, accidentally. Our family of 5 cherish every moment of those family jaunts and rehash them to the grandchildren these days.

 

There's a lot to be said about a ``book learn'n'' education but much more can be said about ``learning by doin'.''

 

And contrary to what one poster said about a Caribbean vacation not being considered ``educational,'' I have to disagree. A cruise to a few Caribbean islands can be a true eye-opening and educational experience for children. The cruise can be as educational as the parents want it to be.

 

If you allow children to be involved in the vacaton's planning stage. i.e. where are we going to go; what's at each stop that interests us; what do we need to know before we go, etc. and keep the children involved as you go along, then the trip, any trip, is more interesting and educational.

 

To me, a cruise ship and a cruise to diverse ports is a terrific learning experience about to happen. Where else can young children be exposed to so many different people representing so many different countries and cultures in such a short time?

 

Their room steward might be front the Phillipines, their dining room waiter from India and their favorite crew member in Kids Club from the United Kingdom. They can shake the hand of a ship captain who might be from Scandinavia, meet a few kids their own age from almost any state or country in the world in the kids club.

 

Instead of just heading for the beach in each port city for the day, take some time to take the children on a trip through the port city, even one section, and let the children experience life as it is there. Shop in a local market, learn about the currency used at that stop, compare prices to what they are in their own home country.

 

Let children know first hand by seeing the world that the world is not flat like they see in books but truly round, rounded by different cultures, different demographics and different spaces for all places.

 

That's something no kid is ever going to learn sittin' in a classroom when there's an entire world of learning possibilities just sitting outside those classroom windows waiting to be discovered and experienced.

 

Dianne

[RYMOMA]

As a single mom...last year. it was far less expensive for me to take my children out of school for the week

 

I am doing it again this year as well, and dragging the hubby along too

 

And even with four of us, it is still cheaper than planning it during a school vacation week

 

My DS is 16 and will be a sophmore. We let the school know and he brings his work with him and understands he needs to keep up while gone

My DD is 8 and will be in third grade, depending on the teacher she either will get work to bring, or will play catch up when she gets back

 

Either way, they are my children and i get to decide if i want to take them out.

[Onessa]

For us, traveling in the summer when my daughter has "off" school really is not an option. My work schedule and my husband's family obligations make travel in May through early September very difficult. My DD has summer work to do for classes including summer sessions for some of her classes and weekly required lessons/practices for band -- she could take less rigorous courses, but chooses not to. She has training sessions three mornings a week for cross-country. She volunteers at the local botanical garden three days a week, plays summer soccer, attends a foreign language camp for a week each summer, and attends curling camp.

 

Her school does not do a full week "spring break" (just two long weekends one to coincide with Western Rites Easter, the other is trimester break). We have traveled during her Christmas break, but it too tends to be rather short.

 

My "busy" season at work is May through at least late August. My DH's parents are both in their 90's and require some attention. His only other local brother and his wife run a business in a high summer tourist area (Door County) and thus 95% of responsibility to look in on/ help out his parents and some other elderly relatives falls to our family.

 

We attempt to minimize the amount of time DD needs to be out of school, but she does miss some days for most of our trips. We do arrange far in advance with her school and teachers to minimize the impact of the time she is off. She is expected to (and does) make up work. We can consider pulling her from school because she is self-disciplined and is willing and able to do make up work. If she were a different child, we might not be able to pull her.

[chrisc71]

I do not see the big issue if your kids can make up the work. My father took me out of school a few times to go see plays in NYC. And as others have posted there are plenty of opportunities to learn something no matter where you cruise.

[Onessa]

Is a family vacation “educational”? It depends upon your family!

 

Our family vacations (either land-based or cruises) do end up being educational. The three of us do enjoy visiting museums, national parks, and historical sites. And we all are the kind of people who pay attention to the stuff going on around us and tend to remember our experiences.

 

DD is 15.5yo and a sophomore in a public high school. She has traveled with her dad and I her entire life. Quick count – she’s visited 25 states, DC, 7 Provinces, and at least 12 foreign countries.

 

Of all of the specific “educational” moments that I can recall one that really shows how a student can “pull it all together” -- 4th grade – she put together a PowerPoint presentation for science class for volcanoes using pictures she took herself over the years – she’s been to Volcanoes National park, viewed lava pouring into the pacific, she’s been to Mt. St. Helens, Lassen, Crater Lake, Yellowstone. She’s hiked Etna, viewed Vesuvius from the ruins of Pompeii. We’ve anchored in the caldera at Santorini. Much of the text came from brochures we had collected or books we had purchased to prepare for trips.

 

She’s been to Rome, Athens, Olympia, Istanbul, Ephesus, etc. It helped her in her Ancient European history class last year. Those same trips will help her in her “modern” European history class this year – seeing the cities of the crusades (on Rhodes and Crete). Visiting Venice, Florence, Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, London, etc.

 

She’s viewed masters up close. She’s listened to professional musicians. She’s “worldly” having made friends she still regularly keeps in contact with who live in Miami, Toronto, Brussels, and London, and Kimberley, and other places. She has to figure out time zones, currency conversion, train time tables. She’s thrilled when she overhears conversations between other passengers or crew members in Spanish and she understands it.

 

All of her schools’ administrators and 98% of her teachers and coaches have been more than happy to encourage our trips.

 

Does a vacation need to be educational – of course not! And even if your vacation isn’t educational in a traditional sense, you are still demonstrating to your child that family is important and instilling a sense of responsibility – working within the school’s guidelines for time off, making up work, etc.

[russianmom]

My parents took my sister and I out of school to travel off peak times and we both turned out just fine and we both are college graduates!

 

I took my son out last year for a week in March and plan to do so as well next February.

 

No one in the school has said anything to me and I'm certainly not going to bring it to their attention.;)

 

He still talks about of of the great places he has been and all of the wonderful things he has seen/learned.

 

Do what is right for your family

[venusjems]

Ive taken my kids out of school for a cruise. Just know your school policy.

For my elementary daughter, i asked for permission from the principal before hand. She said no way, not excused. I said ok, im still going. I thought i was being nice by letting them know she was going to be out.

So she marked my daughter as having 5 consecutive days unexcused absences, which in turn provided me with a notice that i must attend truancy court. Which incidentally, i had to take my daughter to that as well, so she missed another day of school :rolleyes:.

 

I also make sure that i keep a copy of the previous years, state testing schedule and try to plan around that, plus we have weeks where i guess they get extra funding if they have above a certain percent of kids there.

 

the 9th and 6th grader had no problem taking days off, getting homework ahead of time and making up tests.

[chrisc71]

Another note about travel.education. I always remember the scene in Good Will Hunting where Robin Williams and Matt Damon on talking on the bench and Robin's character talks about how Damon's character does not know what the Sistine Chapel is like inside. I agree with that sentiment that actually experiencing something is better than a book.

[Julienatul]

We are doing it too. DD will start Kindergarten this fall and we are pulling her out for a cruise in Nov. It was a family cruise booked a year ago without thought that she would be in school then (she's in pre-k now so we have been lucky to cruise whenever we wanted). We decided not to cancel and to try it. We will ask the teacher for make-up work to bring along. As she gets older Im sure we wont be able to pull her out but right now we have family membsr with terminal illnesses that likely wont be around in a few years and to me spending that time together as a family and creating those memories is much more important than missing a week of Kindergarten.

[B_Mc]

I say go for it! Especially when they are young! As a teacher, I would never hold it against a student/parent/family for missing school to participate in any type of family-oriented trip.

 

As I parent, it is unlikely I'll ever do it only because I can't "pull" myself out of school!

[98Charlie]

We are doing it too. DD will start Kindergarten this fall and we are pulling her out for a cruise in Nov. It was a family cruise booked a year ago without thought that she would be in school then (she's in pre-k now so we have been lucky to cruise whenever we wanted). We decided not to cancel and to try it. We will ask the teacher for make-up work to bring along. As she gets older Im sure we wont be able to pull her out but right now we have family membsr with terminal illnesses that likely wont be around in a few years and to me spending that time together as a family and creating those memories is much more important than missing a week of Kindergarten.

 

DD will be in K. Buy her a small, inexpensive travel journal that she can keep as her own. Take along some crayons, glue sticks and K approved scissors. Let her keep her own mini scrapbook of her experiences, gluing in any items along her journey she wants to keep.

 

Help her label pages if need be and encourage her to journal her trip.

 

I think you will be amazed at what she will come up with.

 

Our kids, now grown and adults, still have their travel journals from decades ago. Oldest daughter was infatuated with those paper sanitizer strips that were once put across toilets in motel rooms to ensure occupants that the toilet was safe to use.:D she once had about the largest collection of those sanitzer strips than any human would ever want to see in her collection!! but it was hers and her memories of our trips.

 

Some kids collect ticket stubs, some post cards. Our daughter collected paper strips from toilets.

 

Go figure. It was all fun and is a lasting memory for our family to this day.

 

Dianne

[croozymooner]

I WHOLEHEARTEDLY agree. My husband has a PhD. I have an MD. We have known each other since middle school and so are well aware of how our families have grown up and how we were each raised. Education was always always always the priority. I do not believe we would be where we are without that attitude instilled in us by our parents. There are only 180 school days a year in the US. That leaves half of the year to spend doing whatever else you want as a family.

 

Saving a few hundred bucks on a vacation or heck, even a thousand or two, is not worth missing school. Dealing with lower crowds is not worth missing school (travel lots before they're school age and then once they're in college when the academic year is shorter.) It's not even always an issue of if they can make the work up or not fall behind. I believe it just sends the wrong message. I strongly believe this is type of attitude why the average American student is falling further and further behind their international counterparts in many other countries.

 

We do have children though not of school age yet. We have already agreed that we will not be pulling them out of school for vacations.

 

 

Almost can be as hotly debated as formal wear, chair hogs, jeans/shorts in dining room etc. etc.

 

You are asking this on a vacation oriented board, what do you expect :D

 

I'm probably a minority opinion here in that for vacations, NO. I don't care about the arguments about good grades, good experience, family vacations, stories of kids turning out okay, or how little is learned in school or all these kind of "excuses." IMHO, for me its about value and what you stand for. You back it up with action. If it is because crowds are less, its cheaper what does it say about your vacation priorities versus educational priority. If it is because of a wedding, special anniversary of grandparrents etc. etc. that is something different, but that is my view. There are what like two weeks at Christmas, Spring Break, and another 8-10 weeks of summer for vacation, and the rest for "school" I always get a chuckle for the reason why people can't schedule it with sacrifice around the 12 weeks of no school.

 

I guess I see it the other way, the more you stand for the values versus make excuse why you did don't you stand out even more for what your values are?

 

Duck and cover :D