Taking kids out of school
 

I would like to hear about how other families manage the homework issue when they take their kids out of school for a trip. Our 14-year-old high school freshman is especially homework-averse and we'll be gone for 16 days in the fall, three weeks after school starts. Trip is a week in London and a week in Paris, first time outside the country for kids and me. Our other kids are in sixth and second grade. We'll do travel journals and so on but there's still going to be a certain amount of algebra problems and multiplication tables to be got through. If you took kids out of school, did they have trouble catching up when they got back? How did you help them make the transition back into school? Any suggestions greatfully accepted.

This may sound silly but what about in the evenings your son doing his homework. Maybe the teacher would allow him to fax it to her, perhaps once a week or so. Hope this helps.

When we travel we TRY to minimize the amount of time our kids will miss school. Travel journals are a MUST. It is a great learning tool. I print out and tape in their journals alot of homeschool worksheets to help with the history of the places we are visiting. This math website http://www.schoolexpress.com/fws/online_math.htm is one of quite a few that produce math worksheets which I print out and tape into their travel journals. These are always a hit (if you can believe it) when waiting in lines at the airport, early mornings...<BR><BR>

I'm having a similar problem. I'm looking to go to rome this coming March, but my partner doesn't want me to take my kids out of school (8 & 10 years old). Meanwhile, the airfare is twice as high to go in April. My kids are much younger, but it's still a problem.

Frankly, I don't believe in taking kids out of school for vacation especially high school. They fall too far behind too quickly. If you are homeschooling that would be another matter. <BR><BR>My daughter absolutley refused to take any days off for vacation during the school year in high school. Just too difficult trying to catch up. Especially at the beginning of the year - your child is going to be behind before he even starts. <BR><BR>Saving money on airfare just isn't a good reason. <BR><BR>That's my opinion, you are entitled to yours.

Agree with rlr.<BR>I did take my son to Arizona for 1 week when he was in 3rd grade. I insisted his teacher send assignments with him and she did a great job of tailoring the assignments to our destination. For example, he had to write a paper on how the enviroment is different in AZ than in our home state. <BR>Traveling can be a great learning tool but that long with a child that already, by your admission, is struggling with academics may not be in his/her best interest.

Thank you rlr!! Teachers across the US will applaud you.<BR> Many times we gather up work for the 2-3 weeks (which takes hours to do ahead of time) and the student comes back to school with little or NONE of it done.<BR> Granted, travel is a great learning experience, but please try to travel on the 185 days that the kids aren't in school.

As enthusiastic as I am about taking kids to Europe (typically after age 10), this is a huge decision, and possibly a bad one. It would not have been the right decision for my family and our three daughters to miss two weeks in the first semester of freshman year. I'm fresh from those experiences (94, 96 amd 98).<BR><BR>If it were a "junior high" school (7-8-9), it might not be quite as bad.<BR><BR>I don't mean to make you feel bad, since it sounds like the trip is already set. I do think you need to make 5-10 hours each week strict school time, and even this won't really make up for it. I think that faxing does have some merit.<BR><BR>I would also suggest serious conferences with each and every one of the teachers in that first three weeks of school. Make a plan, and make it clear that you accept responsibility for following it.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

We did that last year; kids missed only 4 days of school; we had known about the chapters they would be studying while they were gone and we thought we'd prepared but a test the following week ended dismally giving my child a D which lowered his overlal grade to a B when it coudl have been an A. It's traumatic for all of su because we value our hard-earned grades (we parents do as much work as the kids). So I am inclined not to recommend it especialy for such a long spell...

I have a serious question. When I was a kid back in the dark ages (okay, in the 1960s) it was considered to be illegal truancy for a kid to skip school except for medical reasons. The kid could get in trouble, and so could the parent if the parent didn't do anything to stop it. Now I see kids taken out of school all the time to travel, and not just for "educational" travel, either, but to go skiing and stuff like that. Somehow I can't believe that this is okay with the schools, but I guess it must be. Can anyone explain?

I would advise against taking the high schooler; I had a freshman last year, and she had a great deal more homework and important stuff happening during class time. I think she would have really fallen behind, and she is a good student.<BR><BR>We are going on a trip soon and are not taking her.<BR><BR>We did take our kids out of school when they were younger (7 and 10) and it was no big deal, although they didn't like doing the homework, it got done.

I did this in 2000 with my then 12 yr old son about 7 weeks after school started. I began by informing them before school ever started and personally wrote notes to each of his teachers descibing our 2 week trip. I followed up w/ them every week or so because I never heard anything from them. I wanted to make sure that he either got all his assignments ahead of time or that they wanted to wait till he returned and would work with him on when the new due date was.<BR><BR>As it turned out, he was able to do the majority of the work before we left but several teachers wanted him to keep an extensive journal on sites, historical info and food. This journal then served as his work in those classes.

It has become commonplace for parents in our school to take children out of school to accompany parents on their business or pleasure travel. They usually send a note or 'drop in' to ask that we provide their child's work BEFORE they leave. I always think to myself, "Are the parents able to do all of THEIR work before they leave???" Our curriculum is sequential and we adjust our teaching daily to meet the needs of the class. It is IMPOSSIBLE to do the work ahead of time!!!! My experience is that in most cases the work I Do send is done on the plane home, on the bus to school, or not at all. I usually get a note that they didn't have time to do it..... I always tell the parents that what they miss, they miss. I will do my best to help them make it up and I expect the parents to do their part, but if you take your children out of school you need to understand that they are missing what the other children are learning.

We have done this 3 times with our children. I cannot comment on the older children as ours are still in elementary school. But, our experience so far has been very positive. We let the teachers know exactly what is going on and they have always worked with us. Our kids have always done the travel journals, and those have turned into wonderful things to look back on. When our daughter missed 3 weeks in 4th grade she did not miss a thing at school. I was surprised, but as long as you make sure the child is on top of things before they go it can be fine. <BR><BR>Also, we have lived all over the country and have noticed that schools do have different opinions on whether they condone children being out of school. I am not talking about for going skiing and such though...more like the wonderful history opportunities that Europe and other places can provide. Our school and the teachers thought it was a wonderful idea. <BR><BR>Not everyone CAN take these vacations during the summers when kids are not in school. We are a military family and my husbands schedule is not always so accommodating. I know there are other careers that are similar. We all just have to do what is right for our family and realize that one answer will not be right for everyone.<BR><BR>

We travel lots with the kids. And sometimes, we have to pull them out of school. However, we try to limit the days missed to one or two days before or after a school break of some kind. <BR>What's more, we make sure the family takes the responsibility for the lessons missed, not the teacher.<BR><BR>We believe the teacher should not have to do extra work for the kids because our children are blessed to be able to travel, and their blessing should not be a burden on the teacher or their classmates. Instructors have other students who arrive on time and faithfully attend all classes--those are the kids who deserve the extra attention.<BR><BR>Beeper, I'm not castigating you at all. It sounds as though this trip was landed upon you. What seriously disturbs me as both a parent and a teacher is the timing. The kids and the teachers are just starting to get the ball rolling, and the trip interupts it. Later in the year, this interruption isn't so hard on everyone; early on, it breaks the momentum, particularly if you have a work-averse child.<BR><BR>Ironically, it's less of a problem if your child has poor teachers. The more the teacher cares, the more your child will miss and the more of an insult the absence becomes to the class and to the instructor.

Our children are likewise homework averse and were in grades 6 and 9 last year. Every time they missed any school last year, even for a few days for illness, it was a major effort to catch up. Next time, hire a sitter. All the suggestions here are good. I suggest you talk with your son so he understands that he will be expected to work on schoolwork when you return. Have him help develop a schedule that includes a few hours of homework catch-up time a night. Limit time on the computer game system, instant messaging, sports to after he finishes his daily work. Then, be sure you know all the assignments and can check off when they are turned in (and tests taken). Make sure he doesn't breeze through his assignments, doing poor quality work, just to say he's done. It's not punishment. It is a privelege to travel and he needs to understand that school comes first.

Dear MSA,<BR>Your child didn't go to school for 3 weeks and "did not miss a thing at school"?????!!! What kind of an awful school does your child attend that the class didn't do a thing for 3 weeks?! Somehow I'm guessing that if you asked her teacher you'd get a different story.

If you take your children out of school for a traveling vacation, you are telling them and showing them that travel and vacations are more important than education. Period.<BR><BR>Now, for some of you that might be true, and if you have curious, motivated thinkers for kids, it might all work out. Or if you have no particular desire to see your kids be above average academic "stars" and will be happy if they have middle-range jobs and travel as much as they can afford.<BR><BR>But if you bend their school calendar and the work calendar to fit your trip, it had better be the trip of a lifetime, because otherwise they are going to share your idea that what happens in school is secondary to other things.<BR><BR>One other personal comment: we NEVER took our son out of school to travel (except for a family funeral), although we tried to travel as much as we could afford during summer. During his senior year spring break in college he took himself to Scotland on money he had saved to go and had the time of his life -- it was a great reward he gave himself for working hard.

Your kids are going to learn a whole lot more in witnessing where the history occurred than than they will by just reading from a dull history text and then regurgitating dates back to a teacher that may or may not even be motivated. (Some teachers are just poor, others may be good...luck of the draw!)<BR><BR>Work with the teachers, get the asignments and have them do the HW at night or on the plane.<BR><BR>If that doesn't work...do it anyway. They'll learn more in a day in London or Paris than a week in a typical public school!<BR><BR>US

KKM,<BR><BR>What a bunch of self serving, pat yourself on the back righteous balogna!<BR><BR><BR>US

This issue has never come up in our home. Our vacation time is limited but, I was just wondering how your 14 year old feels about this. I think travelling is a great experience for kids (and adults), but school is important too. My own daughter, who has been at camp for most of the summer, doesn't want to go away for a weekend before school starts just because she wants to make sure her summer homework is complete (most of it was finished before camp but she's a worrier with great work habits and wants to be safe). I think if I even suggested missing several days of school for a trip, she would protest.

Sam,<BR><BR>This is a good thread and very helpful. Please don't ruin it by insulting people and turning this into another thread that gets deleted.<BR><BR>I would appreciate your restraint.<BR><BR>Thank you.

I have never taken, and never will take, my kids out of school for travel. I don't think it would be fair to either the kids or the teachers. You can argue that travel is an educational experience, but as a practical matter, kids missing school is unfair to everyone involved. The kids have to struggle to catch up and the teachers have to go to special lengths to help them do that. Just my two sous.

Just a thought,<BR><BR>Sorry, I just gave an opinion, albeit a strong one.<BR><BR>US

Knew I would get blasted asap:) <BR><BR>Our school is one of the best in the state...but at the time our daughter was a full grade ahead academically and she took the tests when she returned and did great. I do realize that we are fortunate that she loves school and has always done well...that has definitely helped. Her teacher had no problem with us going...my husband had been gone for 6 months and it was our only time. Plus, she learned so much in Normandy that she was able to share with the class and that turned into another lesson for everyone.

We took our kids out of school for 3 weeks to go to Europe on a transatlantic cruise with both sets of grandparents. The kids were 12 and 8 years old at the time. It was our first trip abroad and I do not regret it for a minute. The time they spent with their grandparents can never be replaced. We let the school know in advance and they had plenty of schoolwork to do as well as keeping a journal. My advice is to go for it. In the grand scheme of things, when they look back, what will they remember, the 2 weeks in school, or a trip to Europe and all that they have seen. Also, just to let you know that they do really apppreciate it, on my son's 16th birthday, we asked him what has been a highlight so far in his 16 years and he replied "Seeing the David in Florence" as his first response! So go enjoy and the kids will adjust when they get home! It may require some more work and discipline when you return, but I think it will be well worth it!

Thanks to all who expressed opinions, and a special thank you to those who actually answered my questions. This post has been an education in itself. And I am indeed grateful (though not full of greatness.) :)

Wow, I never would have been allowed to miss school for a vacation (ok...our family couldn't afford trips like that anyway). And that's back in the dark ages (you know...20 years ago). With the amount of work my nieces and nephews bring home everyday, and the amount they have to struggle to make up one or two sick days (from middle school and high school), they would be miserable trying to make up 3 weeks. I'm with those who think it is unfair to teachers to have to do extra work so that your kid can go on vacation. One of my friends had no problem pulling her kid out of 7th grade to go on a trip... he almost flunked 8th grade! She learned her lesson the hard way.<BR><BR>Also, in my school district, your child would automatically fail for missing tha much school...no ifs, ands or buts... you don't show up, you fail. Not a bad lesson in life!!

ttt

I share the opinion of those who think it's inappropriate to take kids out of school for vacations. <BR><BR>My kids went to an elementary school where this became SO prevalent (especially to go to Disney World!) that the school actually had to set up a policy of NO leniency, special paperwork, etc. for unexcused absences. It was becoming so common and disruptive for the classes and an unfair burden for the teachers. It's an insult to the teachers to imply that a few hours of homework can make up for missing three weeks of school.

If your son is a fabulous student and very bright, or a really mediocre one it doesn't matter. The brilliant student will make it work and the awful student will not care a whit. But for the average kid this is a disaster in the making. Do you realize one D or incomplete in his freshman year could make the difference between getting into the college of his choice or being relegated to the local community college?

I have already expressed my opinion that a freshman should not miss two weeks of school, especially so early in the school year.<BR><BR>But this<BR><BR>&lt;&lt;one D or incomplete in his freshman year could make the difference between getting into the college of his choice or being relegated to the local community college&gt;&gt;<BR><BR>is simply not true.<BR>

Another approach to keeping current might be to arrange with a friend of your 14-year old to email, fax assignments - kids might be more willing to do this and teachers might take a slightly better stance about the absence if you kid takes some initiative in this - I know that will not be easy if he is homework-averse, but the lure of internet cafes might be helpful.<BR><BR>Our school also had to set a policy of vacation time as unexcused absence with no opportunity to make up tests, etc. While this may seem harsh, and some teachers are willing to bend the rules quite a bit, there were so many kids disappearing for a week at a time to go to places like Disney and then expecting instant tutoring upon return, that it was necessary.<BR><BR>Since it is 3 weeks after school starts, you will already have books and possibly course outline before you leave. Many 14-year olds respond well to bribes, so that may work to encourage him/her to do some work while away. <BR><BR>The other issue is general adjustment to high school (?and middle school for 6th grader?) - it may be tough to leave for 2 1/2 weeks just when he/she is starting to feel comfortable. I am not sure how to handle that. <BR><BR>Have a good trip. We have never taken our kids out of school but our vacation-time trips to Egypt, Washington, DC and several other US cities have proven to be at least as educational as what might have been accomplished during an equal length of time in school.

Let me jump in here with my experience. I took my daughter to Europe during the spring of her Freshman year. She is and has always been an excellent student and high achiever. She got a C in her advanced math class that quarter (I know, I know but devastating to her). In just a few weeks she'll be off to a fine university with many scholarships and grants. BUT, I often hear, "If you didn't pull me out of school my freshman year, I would have had all A's". Mind you, she loved the European culture and is now majoring in Art History/French minor. So, did it hurt her?..no. Would I do it again?..no.

Oh please, who is in charge of your child...you or the teacher and the school!<BR><BR>You pay their salaries, you provide for your child, you have the responsibility to raise them as you see fit...the school is there to provide an educational opportunity for your child...at your expense. <BR><BR>And if you believe as many, that most public schools are run by teachers unions and beaurocrats, you probably are paying twice, once for an unproductive public school and once for the private shcool that is required in order to provide your child with a quality education.<BR><BR>You make the decion and you live with it...you know what is best for your child, not some "profesional educator"!<BR><BR>US

We took our son out of school for 7 days when he was in 4th grade. Of course, he didn't miss much. And he enjoyed Paris alot.<BR><BR>We'll be taking him out of school this fall for about the same length of time, but he'll be in 8th grade this time. Although this didn't go over too well with someone here who responded, we'll give the school notice ahead of time and hope that he can do some make-up work for the lost time.<BR><BR>I really didn't want to pull him out of school, but the fares that are offered in fall as compared to summertime made it better financially. When he enters high school I doubt that we'll take him out of school. We're going back to France this time so when he's in high school we'll look for another destination for summertime only-maybe the Caribbean. High school is pretty crucial-I'm not saying jr. high isn't that important, but there is still some time that can be spared.

I'm curious about those old 60's truancy laws too. Anyone familiar with their state's laws about this? We were always told by school administrators that the school lost state funding whenever children were absent without being ill -- fact or fiction?

Interesting, if typically blustery, observation, Uncle Sam. But my kids do go to private schools, and even if I thought it was a good idea to take them out of school on vacations, I wouldn't because the school's policy is to suspend and even expell students whose parents do that. It's happened a few times in the years my kids have been at the school, and I'm all for it. Nor will the school bend over backwards in any way to provide catch-up assistance or allow faxing of assignments, or any other workaround, to parents who choose to violate the policy. I'm all for that too. I don't want my kids' teachers' time taken up with coddling parents who can't abide by the stated policy. I want my kids' teachers to be teaching.<BR><BR>I personally think that there are too many instances of this kind of behavior in our society - people who never stop to think about the communities they belong to (in this case a school) and how their own choices, and in some cases vanities, make it harder for those communities to function to the benefit of all involved. If all parents at a school did this, the school community would self-destruct. My views on this are probably colored by the fact that my father was a teacher and headmaster and I know how hard it is to administer a school, even a very good one.<BR><BR>Since you seem to be a loud critic of public education, consider that perhaps one reason it's poor (and you said it, not me)is because it doesn't require students to go to school, or at least doesn't penalize families who take their kids out of school for what many would consider to be frivolous reasons.<BR><BR>It's not that hard to plan a family vacation when school's out. We've been doing it for 15 years and the issue of missing school has never come up. <BR><BR>

I've been a teacher for 35 years (grades 6,7,8); it makes me feel good to hear how most of you don't think it appropriate to take your children out of school, especially as they advance into the higher grades. Yes, of course travelling is an education in itself and they will see and do marvellous things. I have provided work for families who requested it but you are limited in the types of things you can send with the student. The science teacher can't send the experiment they're doing in the lab, the English teacher can't send the class discussion or debate. And as an earlier response indicated, although I know the general direction I'm going in the next month it still gets modified to meet the needs of the classes as we go through. As a parent myself (husband an educator too) we have never allowed our son to miss school unless he was ill. Even though it's more expensive to travel in the summer, Christmas or March Break, that's one of the sacrifices you make when you have kids; you have a responsibility to see that they attend school.

I never took my children out of school for a trip but if the opportunity had come up I would have done so.<BR><BR>There is a difference between schooling and learning. They will learn much more in two weeks in Europe than they will sitting in their seats at school.<BR><BR>Don't let bureaucrats take away a wonderful opportunity for your children.