Does Anyone Think Pulling My Kids Out For 8 Days Is To Long?

[Kittybork]

As a teacher I can tell you that is unequivocally wrong. We teach the entire year - up to and including the last day sometimes. We have so much to get in that it would be ludicrous to think that we stop teaching just because testing or spring break is over. Many of us try to lighten up a bit the last couple of weeks in ways such as less or no homework, trying to make some of the final activities more fun, outdoors things but we are still teaching while doing some of these "fun" things.

 

You're right. It is ludicrous. Students at my school are complaining that teachers are piling so much on them at the end.

[vjmatty]

i believe the OP already stated she had changed her mind. but, had to address your post. what's your basis of fact for this statement? there are times where the kids are at a low, but there are usually kids on every sailing.

 

you have only cruised one time and you have made this statement. yet, if i am not mistaken, there are areas of the country whose school calendars are different. for example, i believe in fla school starts in august and ends in may. other areas of the country may also end b/4 the last week of june. thus, you cannot say w/ certainty that there wld not be other high school students on that trip.

 

I believe the OP said May 1, and even the kids ending school in May would have to actually end in April to be finished with school by May 1. However, I should not have said NO kids, perhaps FEWER kids would be more accurate. I sit corrected, but the fact is there would still be fewer kids for them to hang out with and they may have fewer organized kid activites as a result.

[CruiseNaked]

well, realizing that in the end you're going to do what you want to do, no matter what anyone else says, heres my easy answer....

We have always taught our kids that school is much more important than vacations. Thats just how we feel, and you have the right to feel whatever way you want.......HOWEVER, its silly when people say, "I think school is more important than vacations, BUT..." and then they take their kids out of school for vacations.

Do what you want, but theirs out take.

 

P.S.-We hope you and your kids enjoy your vacation.

[retcwby]

yes way to long!!

[**Bear**]

I agree that that close to the end of school just wait a few more weeks after graduation. That's what we are doing next week. My twin nieces are graduating on Thursday and we are leaving Saturday on the Triumph.

They had finals and papers due at the beginning of the month so it would have been toough taking them out of school.

 

Shan

[nrdsb4]

I know this is just slightly off topic...but to all you teachers reading and responding, GOD BLESS YOU. You guys put up with a whole lot of you know what, all for love of the kids, because I know for a fact you are NOT doing it for the money!!!

 

I hope you get more support from the parents you teach than I've seen here on this thread. You certainly deserve it.

 

Anyone writing that there is no instruction going on after Easter Break:

 

I'd take my kids on a cruise, too, and then I'd be raising Holy Hell with my school district about the crappy education they are offering my kids in spite of my hard earned tax dollars that are earmarked for education. Seriously, if nothing is going on after Easter, you guys are getting a very raw deal!!!

[cruisingeurope]

About missing 7 days of school---if the kids make advance arrangements with their teachers, if they are in good standing academically and with no major behavior issues, if finals are completed, then I might consider it. Will 7 days really make that much difference? :eek:

[PINEVIEW01]

I can't belive this thread is still going. The OP that started it started three thread on taking kid out of school and one about if her underage son could drink because he is big and looked older.:rolleyes: Boy has she got people going at each other:confused:

[leepep]

Obviously this is a family decision, however as a teacher, I need to let you know how incredibly difficult it is for us to help your children make up the work...as well as their struggle in doing so. I know at my school, we have many special days in May that I would hate for my children to miss. Use good judgement and maybe you could ask for a few assignments in advance and the kids can do some work in the car/plane, etc. Sorry to be a bubble popper...

[Kentucky Cruiser]

My opinion on this issue is starting to change. I used to believe that I would never allow my kids to miss school for a vacation, especially a cruise where I think the chances of much learning are fairly minimal. But in the last few years, the school systems in our area have shortened the summer break from 3 months to just about 2 months. I am sure that this helps the educational process because the kids don't lose as much over the longer summer break. Having said that, I am beginning to think it less a problem to "take back" one of my children's vacation weeks by taking a week cruise sometime during the year.

[gigem85]

Will this be on the board until May, 2008 ?

[new2cruising2008]

1) Learning happens outside the classroom

2) Family time is valuable in children's development

3) It's all right that money is a consideration

4) Be sure it's not a state or federally-mandated testing day (some cannot be made up), but most are held before May

5) This late in the school year, be sure your children make their work up (if possible) before the trip. They'll be in vacation mode when they return and have such a short time to get back to business.

6) Limit the days off the rest of that school year

6) This is your personal choice; do not expect everyone will think this is a great idea.

7) Have a great time whenever you decide to go.

 

I take my kids out of school for a "big" vacation every couple of years. They miss very little school. They are great students and must make up the work beforehand (if possible; some teachers prefer to do make up work after the missed days). I choose a week where they have days off from school anyway. My kids will miss 4 days of school in Jan. 2008.

[momofmeg]

I think this is people's personal business. I will say this-some schools (and some individual teachers)are okay with it and some aren't. I know we took our daughter on a thanksgiving week cruise one year and we picked that week and paid MORE because she would only miss 2 days of school-she still had a teacher who conmsidered it an illegal absence and gave here a zero on a main test-(another let her make up a test) my daughter's normally A average in math was pulled down to a C because of that. That is why we never did it again.

[surrocruiser]

My daughter actually ended up failing one of her electives due to missing school for a vacation (my parents took her to Hawaii over Christmas and New Years). She only missed 3 days. Unfortunately, back in October, she was very sick and missed 6 days of school. There was no way we could have anticipated that happening. She is in junior high.

Those that do take your kids out, find out what the maximum amount of days they are able to miss.

[momofkaze]

The teachers at our schools have asked us not to take our children out for vacations. There are designated days of the year for that. It is just too hard on them. Also, some teachers are not textbook teachers. It is hard for them to give make up work on a lecture they have missed.

Hard call. Good luck to you!

[pms4104]

I teach high school and today I just found out that one of my students is missing the week of finals for a vacation and wants to take his early. What a pain in my behind! Exams are supposed to be after Memorial Day weekend - guess when I planned to write that exam? This student is going with his brother and girlfriend; each student has at least 7 teachers so 21 teachers (that's about 1/2 our staff) are put in the position of having to go out of our way to get these finals ready. Am I happy and understanding that family time comes first - in a word - no! I am one of those obnoxious teachers that teaches to the bitter end. We will have tests/projects/labs up until school ends. I don't take the last week off to kick back and wind down and I don't expect my students to either.

 

Kris

 

My question ... why would you and your colleagues jump thru so many hoops to prepare your final exams sooner than you'd planned. When the exams are handed out to the other students at school, fire off an email to the absentees with their exam attached ... put the onus on the students to complete the exam and email it back to you. Same should go for any other assignments or quizzes during the absence. If they don't complete and return the final exam, they get a goose-egg for it and you calculate your grades accordingly. Been a long time since I've been in school, but I recall the final being a decent percentage of the total grade for the term.

[nrdsb4]

My question ... why would you and your colleagues jump thru so many hoops to prepare your final exams sooner than you'd planned. When the exams are handed out to the other students at school, fire off an email to the absentees with their exam attached ... put the onus on the students to complete the exam and email it back to you. Same should go for any other assignments or quizzes during the absence. If they don't complete and return the final exam, they get a goose-egg for it and you calculate your grades accordingly. Been a long time since I've been in school, but I recall the final being a decent percentage of the total grade for the term.

 

That's all fine and good if it's an open book test, but if the rest of the class is taking a supervised, closed book test, that suggestion would be impractical.

[Sally Forth]

My kids have now finished first and second year university. If I had taken them out of school any time after Spring Break of their senior year, their school would have been very upset. Plus, they both had scholarship offers based on final marks and it was worth too much money to slough off even a week of school.

 

Viv

[pms4104]

That's all fine and good if it's an open book test, but if the rest of the class is taking a supervised, closed book test, that suggestion would be impractical.

 

So, here's another alternative ... teachers can give the absentee students an Incomplete for the course and, if/when the teachers are back from their own vacation at whatever point during the summer or fall, they can schedule the absentee students for the final exam they missed. Depending on the class, guessing this could hold up student entrance into some classes in the fall ... but he who plays must pay.

 

I think this whole thread is about learning to take responsibility for one's actions ... and learning that there are consequences to one's decisions.

[familyofd]

Every other year we take our kids out of school for a cruise next year the same, they have done well so far and I will have senior next year as this

year progressed I had her ask her senior friends what exactly they are doing

the time of the year we are going and its report card time so I am ok with

all of that, our school doesnt get any spring break or anything like that

maybe if we did Id plan for our cruise then.

 

Meanwhile my niece who is in a different school away from us her band is going for 7 days to disney world during school.

[ctr1258]

I understand your dilemma. It is much cheaper to cruise when school is on. I could not believe the difference between the weeks before and during school vacation weeks. Almost $1,000 higher on vacation weeks (This was on Disney in 2002). We have actually been on two cruises both times in February and I pulled my boys out the week before February vacation each time (so they got two weeks). I figured they could make up any work the week of their actual school vacation.

 

The first time was no problem for them as my youngest was only 10, and really did not have much to make up, and my oldest, 15 at the time, was (and still is) very conscientious and a "perfectionist". Two years later, however, was a big difference--only for my youngest. He struggles as it is and really did not try to make up his work, although I reminded him time and time again before we went. His marks dropped badly.

 

Since then, I said I would never pull him out of school again. That is why I am now looking into a cruise for July of 2008, much to the chagrin of my oldest!

 

All in all, I think it depends on the age, if they are conscientious, and if they will really make up the work. Don't forget, life is too short--if you trust them, a week out of school is worth a lifetime of memories.

[mbmommy]

Another thought -- we used to homeschool, so it didn't matter when we vacationed. BUT when we did go during the school year, there were very, very few other kids on board. That can be good, of course, but it also meant that my kids did not enjoy any of the youth activities because there was no one there. That may not be a problem if colleges are out, but if your teens want to meet and hang out with other teens, there may not be any around.

[GORDONCHICK]

We will be taking our DS out for nine school days in September (8 1/2 technically). However, he will only be in 1st grade. This is the time of year we (the parents can vacation, plus we learned when DH's mom died that life is short. There were many things she wished she had done, but couldn't by the time she was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

 

We will plan ahead with DS's teacher, and we always plan learning adventures to incorporate our vacation destinations. At six, he can identify all 43 Presidents in photos and statues (verified in DC when he was just shy of 4yo). He understands directions (better than many adults), and is learning how to read maps. Some think he won't/doesn't remember these vacations, but he vividly recalls his first cruise at 3 1/2, meeting the captain and going through the Panama Canal. And he's becoming a geography whiz. He now takes his own photos and we prepared them to be shown to his kindergarten class and he told about what he had seen and learned, which always included trying new foods! not only is he a bottomless pit, he loves the dining room and dressing for formal nights.

 

I know at some age, we will either slow or stop the vacations during the school year, but we haven't yet determined when that will be at this time.

[DiannaInVA]

Back in my day--1991, my parents took my brother and I out of school for a week to go to Disney. I was in 9th grade, my brother a senior.

 

We both graduated high school. We both went to college (I was on the 4 year plan...my brother on the SEVEN year plan :eek: ).

 

We both now make over $70,000 a year.

 

Was I affected by that one week vacation?

 

No.

 

However, I suppose I could say it was because I had really good grades and had no problem making up the work. But I can say my bother was the opposite, and in the end, we are both in the same place in life.