Poll: Would you/do you take your kids out of school (yes, I know...) for vacation?

[Princess Peach]

Wolf's busy work season begins end of March, calms down 2nd wk of Sept.

 

If he's not working, he's on call.

 

No way could he take vacation when ps does.

 

Just one of the many reasons we'll continue to hs. If we have the opp to go on family vacation, we're going.

 

Plus, it strikes me as Borg like...owing our children's presence somewhere. *shudder*

 

Really? Any job DH and I have ever had required us to be at a certain place at a certain time. Was the same way for me in college. I don't see a difference.

[Audrey]

Oh yeah. I would. But, I'm already denying and financially punishing the school by homeschooling. I couldn't give a flying fig's fart if the school gets or loses money for my kid. Even if he were enrolled there I wouldn't care. I also don't care if that loss of $$ affects other kids there. The school is already a complete and utter joke, waste of space and IMO a sycophantic panderer to the lowest common denominator.

 

So, yeah... I'd yank my kid out for a week for a vacation. I'd yank my kid out to have a day of sleeping in, too, or a week of it, for that matter.

 

Because I'm a real ... well, see my sig. ;)

[Ibbygirl]

I couldn't give a flying fig's fart if the school gets or loses money for my kid.

 

:lol::lol::lol: You have such a way with words Audrey! hehehe

[Impish]

Really? Any job DH and I have ever had required us to be at a certain place at a certain time. Was the same way for me in college. I don't see a difference.

Difference is, adults vs children. Families vs government.

 

I believe that Wolf and I should be the authorities in our kids lives. Not the school. If we deem an absence necc, then it is...the idea of submitting a request to a school and waiting for *their* approval creeps me out. I've heard of other families, beyond the one mentioned here, who had a parent coming home for R&R from the armed forces, and schools threatening truancy charges if the kids were out while Daddy was home. Insanity.

 

Just one reason of many that we hs.

[*Michelle*]

Oh yeah. I would. But, I'm already denying and financially punishing the school by homeschooling. I couldn't give a flying fig's fart if the school gets or loses money for my kid. Even if he were enrolled there I wouldn't care. I also don't care if that loss of $$ affects other kids there. The school is already a complete and utter joke, waste of space and IMO a sycophantic panderer to the lowest common denominator.

 

But how do you really feel?

 

:D

[Ibbygirl]

But how do you really feel?

 

:D

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Too funny! :lol::lol::lol:

[Princess Peach]

Difference is, adults vs children. Families vs government.

 

I believe that Wolf and I should be the authorities in our kids lives. Not the school. If we deem an absence necc, then it is...the idea of submitting a request to a school and waiting for *their* approval creeps me out. I've heard of other families, beyond the one mentioned here, who had a parent coming home for R&R from the armed forces, and schools threatening truancy charges if the kids were out while Daddy was home. Insanity.

 

Just one reason of many that we hs.

 

Gotcha. Obviously I'm ok with our kids going to Ps. But I'm all for common sense. Parent coming home from deployment is a no-brainer to me and may cause me to buck the system if it wasn't allowed. I do, however, see a difference between that and deciding to wait a week for my kids to start school just because I wanted a longer summer vacation.

[swellmomma]

Okay so where was I....

 

Oh yes, vacations. Yes I would take my child out of ps to go on one. My youngers leave next Sunday for a week in Disneyland. School starts here the day after labour day. Kids get back Saturday. So if they were in ps they would miss the whole first week of their 3rd grade and K year. I would be just fine with that. This is their 1 shot at disney as kids. I don't care what people say about it *only* being Disney. The fact is for us it is a trip to a whole other country, as a special thing from uncle and aunty, for their birthdays. They did the same with my olders when oldest turned 10 and dd turned 9, they went that first week of school too.

 

As it is my ds turning 9 this week is in an online class and will miss the orientation day in order to take this Disney trip. It is well worth it to me to miss that day.

 

If my olders had a chance at a vacation I would snap it up even in high school. I think back to all the days from K-12 that were missed for class camping trip, ski trip, movie days, field trips, class parties etc. It is not like everyday of school was an actual academic day. We went out for crepes once for french class and missed the whole afternoon of school. Grade 6 camping trip was 3 days long. Outdoor ed camping trips we often missed at least 2 days of school that week while everyone else was in class still. Band trips, music festival for choir. I was on the school "reach for teh top team" and had competitions on tv that I missed classes for. The only trip I didn't do was the high school trip to another country, which would have resulted in missing a week of grade 12 classes.

 

 

I think family vacations, even if just to Disney, are more important than many of the ridiculous things we spent classtime on (movies, parties, heads down on desks not making a sound for 30 minutes because teacher was in a bad mood etc). Even vacation without family on their own with others like my youngers are worth missing the week of intros and basic review. Nothing important is taught that first couple days of school anyway.

[Ibbygirl]

Okay so where was I....

 

Oh yes, vacations.

 

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: Welcome back Swellmoma! ;) :D

[catz]

I think family vacations, even if just to Disney, are more important than many of the ridiculous things we spent classtime on (movies, parties, heads down on desks not making a sound for 30 minutes because teacher was in a bad mood etc).

 

ROFL! I can still remember the smell of elementary school desks. :lol:

 

Welcome back! :D

[elegantlion]

:lol::lol::lol: You have such a way with words Audrey! hehehe

 

:iagree: I have a visual in my head now. :lol: I shall attempt to use this phrase at least once a day for the next week.

[Ibbygirl]

:iagree: I have a visual in my head now. :lol: I shall attempt to use this phrase at least once a day for the next week.

 

It's an excellent example of alliteration at any rate. :p

[Ibbygirl]

ROFL! I can still remember the smell of elementary school desks. :lol:

 

 

:lol::lol::lol: me too! :p

[swellmomma]

But how do you really feel?

 

:D

 

 

Oh it's good to be back :lol: :lol:

[PeacefulChaos]

Oh, please. WE DO THIS INTENTIONALLY!! This is an advantage of homeschooling, which you obviously don't do.

No offense, but this really has nothing to do with whether or not you would do it of your kids were in ps.

I intentionally go during the off season, too. But the question was geared the other way - obviously as homeschoolers we don't have a school calendar to follow, so who cares when we go on vacation? We could stay on vacation for months at a time if we wanted to! :)

Sounds like it's a massive problem and that they need to re-do their calendar since obviously it doesn't meet many of their families needs.

Well, my opinion on this has nothing to do with the whole vacation thing, but I honestly think these people should try to find another way to do it. It sounds a little like these people are just not sending them because 'back in the day you didn't go back to school til after labor day' and probably don't have good reasons for it. I may be way off, but I hear that sort of attitude a LOT around here (though I know no one who refuses to send their kids) and I think it's sort of weird. It's one thing if there is a good reason -- it's another if they are just keeping their kids out to stay at home and do the same thing they have been doing all summer in order for the parents to feel like they are making a statement.

That said, I also think a lot of the built in breaks are a waste of time at the wrong times (the length of time off at Christmas, for example, is 2-3 weeks here and begins like the 18-20th of December) not to mention I think the idea of a 3 month summer is outdated in most parts of the country because most people don't work on farms and need kids around for harvest time anymore.

Overall, the school schedule was never something that I preferred or felt worked best for our family. It was one of my biggest draws to homeschooling and why we do modified year round. I know that in all likelihood, schools will not be changing to a similar schedule anytime in the near future despite the fact that many people feel it makes more sense - and tbh, I'm selfishly ok with that - it means we, as homeschoolers, get to take advantage of a lot of times that other people don't. ;). I still say I think they should, though.

Our state passed a new law several years ago, stating that schools could not start back until after Labor Day. (Bill was introduced and supported by tourism industry.) But the state created a loophole - every district could ask for (and be granted) a waiver to start early.

The schools say they have to start now so the terms are evenly spaced around the holidays and exams taken prior to Christmas break. Pushing back the start of school puts semester exams the first week after Christmas, which everyone agreed was a bad idea. It ends up being a case of parents wanting it both ways -- they don't want their kids studying for exams over Christmas, they don't want them back in school before Labor Day. So they hold them out and cause the school to lose money.

 

I believe our state has a similar law. Around here, schools started the 8th/9th, with a couple of private schools lagging behind by a week and the latest one doesn't start til tomorrow.

I remember the semester ending in mid January as a kid and thinking it was the dumbest thing, that half the year should be before christmas and the other half after. When we moved to another state, though, we started at what I consider normal time - mid August - and it was. I never experienced finals or whatever after break as a middle or high schooler, but regardless of tests I still think Christmas is a natural halfway breaking point for the year - kids can come back and start new classes rather than have the old ones for a week or two and then switch. It just makes sense. I don't know if that is always how colleges have been, but it just seems like the schools saw the college model - halfway point at christmas - and realized that it made more sense in today's world.

[Haiku]

'back in the day you didn't go back to school til after labor day'

 

When I was little we started school after labor day and were out before Memorial Day. Now my oldest kid's school starts the second week of August, and they go into June (sometimes into the second week). When she was in 7th grade they tried to take away her spring break because they missed too many snow days. When she was either a freshman or a sophomore (I forget which) they tried to extend the school year district-wide by 8 days because they had missed too many days for heat days. School would have run into the last week of June, and family vacations/camps/any pre-arranged plans would not be excused absences. Parents revolted and they didn't do it.

 

I agree that the schools work for us and not the other way around. If what the schools are doing is not working for its constituent population, then they need to change. The days have passed when parents are in doe-eyed awe of schools and teachers as experts who know more about their children than the parents do. Public schools are losing huge amounts of students to private/charter/homeschools because the public schools are not meeting the needs of kids and their families. Our district has lost nearly 20% of its students in the past 10 years even as the population within the district has increased. Schools keep kids longer and educate them less. (I remember that when I was in school my day started at 8:30 and ran until 2:45. Now the local schools run for over 7 1/2 hours, and we are in an educational crisis.) They institute draconian crowd-control policies and fail to provide kids with a safe place. Unless public schools adapt and find a way to offer what families want, they will continue to hemorrhage students until they are left with only the families who are stuck there because they have no other option. No one will choose the public schools.

 

Tara

[RoundAbout]

The way I see it: if you're going to have to make special exceptions for dad's deployment, mom's breast cancer, Junior's 4-H show, and Missy's French Club trip to Paris, then maybe... just maybe... we're better off assuming that parents, not administrators, are the best judge of what is valuable for their child and give them ample leeway to fulfill their family's goals with a reasonable attendance policy.

[Haiku]

The way I see it: if you're going to have to make special exceptions for dad's deployment, mom's breast cancer, Junior's 4-H show, and Missy's French Club trip to Paris, then maybe... just maybe... we're better off assuming that parents, not administrators, are the best judge of what is valuable for their child and give them ample leeway to fulfill their family's goals with a reasonable attendance policy.

 

Hear, hear!!

 

Tara

[Word Nerd]

The way I see it: if you're going to have to make special exceptions for dad's deployment, mom's breast cancer, Junior's 4-H show, and Missy's French Club trip to Paris, then maybe... just maybe... we're better off assuming that parents, not administrators, are the best judge of what is valuable for their child and give them ample leeway to fulfill their family's goals with a reasonable attendance policy.

 

Well said.

[bolt.]

The OPs original scenario involved a family that decided to yank their children out of school to go to the beach for a week. I don't see how missing a week of school doesn't cause harm.

Just because you don’t see a no-harm scenario here does not mean other people don’t see it as a no-harm scenario. I personally can’t define any detrimental effect of that choice *if* the child successfully “keeps up” with the class. I do not consider it particularly challenging to ensure that my child would indeed keep up, so I don’t imagine any ‘harm’ resulting from the choice.

 

Are there scenarios where there are legitimate educational experiences, or family matters, or illnesses that necessitate absences? Sure.

I see that you consider the beach of little to no educational substance. I, on the other hand, consider the beach fascinating and vast in its scope for learning. Similarly, even a visit to Disney provides many experiences that educate a person. I’m not talking about doing physics projects or extravagant extra credit ‘let’s be educational about this’ sort of schemes. I’m talking about the regular world being *by its existence* an educational thing for children to be exposed to.

Are their ways to mitigate the harm? Yes. Does it place an extra work burden on teachers? You bet.

I’m going to say, “Not necessarily.” – Possibly a minor inconvenience to consult future lesson plans and compile a list of expectations. Maybe 10 to 20 minutes of his/her time?

Do teachers extend themselves when their are legitimate grounds for absence. One hopes so.

Yes, I would hope so too – but I don’t view it as terribly taxing, really.

 

But let's not pretend that students missing school doesn't cause problems for other people.

Bill

I’m not “pretending” – I’ve honestly assessed the situation and come to a logical conclusion that differs from your logical conclusion. We have different opinions about the degree of impact on others, so we think of the situation differently. This variety of assessment is normative when discussing hypothetical issues.

If we were working in single-case reality, one could simply ask the teacher in question how much of an impact it would have – then decide whether or not it would be “selfish” and/or if it has a strong potential to cause “chaos” in the classroom. Then we’d both have the data we needed to assess an actual situation.