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

Hey CC Good Afternoon, I'm interested in the 8 day carribbean cruise on the Carnival Miracle For May 1st,2008 i'm wondering do you think pulling my kids out of school for 8 days is too long? It's techinally 7 days out of school one is going to be a senior and ones going to be a junior it's going to be the seniors graduation gift and just thought it would be better because it's cheaper in may; as my daughter wants to bring 2 of her friends!!

Any opinions on the ship is greatly appericated also!

Thanks

So close to the end of the year....I don't think I would take my kiddos out...but I'm a mean momma. Finals and such so late in the year. That's just my opinion though...I'm sure other parents would allow it.

We are taking our oldest for her graduation cruise(5 days)...in Sept. She graduates in just 16 days but we are waiting for an "off season" price type thing. She is fine with that because saving on the cruise means we can spend more in port shopping!! My youngest(Jr at the time) will be out of school for just a few days possibly 4 and will be able to make the work up. As long as she doesn't get sick the rest of the semester, we will be just fine attendance wise. (Texas has strick attendance policies)

I understand what your going through t968. I will be pulling my kids out of school in October of 2007 for a week and I feel bad but, I couldn't afford all 5 of us to go during spring break the prices go way up..

I would say it doesnt matter what we think-- it will depend on your school.

I know when my kids were seniors there were not allowed to take off time.

Its a rough year-- you also want to make sure no exams will be taking place at that time either. You could lose a lot of moneyif you needed to cancel at the last minute.

Something else to consider-- how easy will it be for your kids to make up that time for school work. Some grades are especially hard to catch up on for that long period of time.

Have you considered looking at cheaper cruises?? I have one the end of August for cheap. (considering what carnival has the prices for- click the link below for pricing)

Okay, everyone can get their flamethrowers ready!!!!:)

IMHO, if you have to ask, you yourself are questioning your judgment. I think pulling kids out of school, if they are good students, for a week or so is okay, EXCEPT that this is very close to the end of the school year and so we are talking finishing term papers, lead up to finals, prom, all that stuff. Sorry - I wouldn't do it at that time of year. I would wait until after graduation and take them. (You might want to find out what the norm is at the school regarding senior week - right after graduation so as to not interfere with that as well.) I know the price is higher, but the end of the senior year is full of stuff they will want to do with their friends.

You might consider taking them during spring break. EEK! :eek:

Okay, got the asbestos on - ready for the flames.:p

Hey CC Good Afternoon, I'm interested in the 8 day carribbean cruise on the Carnival Miracle For May 1st,2008 i'm wondering do you think pulling my kids out of school for 8 days is too long? It's techinally 7 days out of school one is going to be a senior and ones going to be a junior it's going to be the seniors graduation gift and just thought it would be better because it's cheaper in may; as my daughter wants to bring 2 of her friends!!

 

Any opinions on the ship is greatly appericated also!

 

Thanks

Hey,

This is a big decision to make! You are speaking to a teacher of 20 years and a parent of 15 years...

A few questions:

1. Are required state tests completed? If not, are these tests "benchmark tests"...in other words, does the student need to pass this state test in order to graduate to the next grade level (or graduate HS)?

2. Are there any other required tests that the student will miss as a result of missing school?

3. How is their attendance record? Is this a general area of concern, or have they missed very few days of school?

4. I bet your kids are responsible to make up work...no problem here...

5. As a parent...what a beautiful gift to give your children:) However, I would wait until school is out...too many loose ends for me...

Good luck in your decision making,

Lisa

PS: We just returned from a funeral, out of state...my kids had to miss 4 school days...I will return tomorrow...

That seems like a lot of school to miss so close to the end of the school year, but you know more about your children's school than we do.

The Miracle is a great ship, by the way. We did the Western Caribbean route. Loved the ship ~ you can't go wrong with a cruise on the Miracle.

Hope it all works out for you! Happy cruising! :)

Hey CC Good Afternoon, I'm interested in the 8 day carribbean cruise on the Carnival Miracle For May 1st,2008 i'm wondering do you think pulling my kids out of school for 8 days is too long? It's techinally 7 days out of school one is going to be a senior and ones going to be a junior it's going to be the seniors graduation gift and just thought it would be better because it's cheaper in may; as my daughter wants to bring 2 of her friends!!

 

Any opinions on the ship is greatly appericated also!

 

Thanks

t968 - You are opening up a huge can of worms here. This was asked once before on this board and the person was hammered to death!!

It's your business. You do what you think is right. We're taking my son for his graduation gift on the same ship April 08. He'll miss a few days too - oh well. Life's too short. As long as he's doing well (his school doesn't have finals) and hasn't missed any days that's good enough for me.

It's so nice to see so many opinions on this.

Thanks for asking the question and thanks to all that responded to it...helps me as well!!

Weeellllllll....... since you asked, I'll assume you actually want people's opinions and not just those that agree with you.

Children belong in school during the school year, not on a cruise. Children (most, anyway) have all summer long to do what they please. It's a built-in two month vacation. Missing school for illness, death in the family, things like that - that's one thing. But pulling kids out of school for a week at a time so they can go on a cruise is irresponsible and sends the wrong message to them about where your priorities lie.

I use to do it but not anymore. I try to cruise over Dec. and August now. As my kids got older it got harder for them to make up the work.

Well I am taking my DD out of school we leave on Friday for a 8 day cruise. She is a junior in High School, I have spoken with her guidence councilor, Prinicple and teachers. They all said the same thing, she is a good student hasn't missed more than a day or two and she is responable for all work. Plus with the way our school runs in blocks she is only missing 3 day of each class.

Weather its right or wrong, people will think what they want. I love her and want to spend what ever time I can with her before she goes off into a life of her own. Plus this is something she will remember the rest of her life. :) So I say go for it!

Sometimes life experinces are more presious than those taught in a school. They learn differnet cultures meet new friends and most importanly gets to spend time with their family wich in thease days are sometimes not as easy as it once was.

steph

when i graduated 3 years ago (holy cr&p!) May was SOOO BUSY - so much stuff to do with graduation, college admissions, prom, finals etc. etc...and does your senior get out earlier than your junior?? If you take her out May 1st, that might be her third- or second-to-last week of school!! Probably not the greatest time to miss...i know it would have been hard for me. And i would have missed out on one the last couple of weeks to hang out with my high school buddies...April and May of my senior year were the best months of high school!!!

just my opinion, she might have a completely different view on it, and if she doesn't have a ridiculously busy schedule than i'd say go for it. The price difference IS significant, and some people don't understand what a difference that kind of money can make. i'm missing two days of my senior year of college for my cruise, because the price difference for the week before is $500 - YIKES!! but i have no worries that i won't be missing anything significant.

Honestly, I think that by May, you will know if your kid is going to graduate or pass to the next grade. If I remember correctly, we spent the entire month of May winding down the school year. We never learned any new concepts.

I don't have children, but if I did I would definitely take them on a vacation as opposed to staying in school. I place more value on experiences than what's in a book.

My parents would often take me on vacations during the school year (and my mother is an educator). When I returned I learned that I did. not. miss. a. thing. :rolleyes:

But it is up to you. May is so close to June. Is it possible to postpone the trip until then?

Another thing...If your child is going to be a Senior, there is a possibility that your kid might miss a couple of Senior Class activities. For some reason, those were always important to me. Twenty years later, I wish I had gone on a cruise than participating in "Senior Hat Day." :rolleyes: Do you have the schedule of events?

Sometimes life experinces are more presious than those taught in a school. They learn differnet cultures meet new friends and most importanly gets to spend time with their family wich in thease days are sometimes not as easy as it once was.

 

steph

I agree if you can find that balance. Taking kids on a trip and showing them how others live and show them how lucky they are is a real eye opener. I drive them down to Florida for our August cruise and they get a nice history lesson about the old south on the way down.

Now, it's been 18 years since I graduated... but I do still remember most of my senior year :p That was a very busy time for me, and to be honest, I wouldn't have wanted to leave during that last month... it was a time of my life I will never forget... those last few weeks with the friends and faculty, my last month of high school... not to mention exams... no, I wouldn't have gone, plus, I doubt in NC I would have been allowed to... we have pretty strict attendance rules here, right up to graduation. If you didn't have a graduating senior, I think it would be different... even a junior, to take that much time at the end of the year would be tough, especially around exams... good luck in your decision, but I would talk to the counselors and teachers at the school, and your kids... also, what do the parents of the "friends" think???

You want to be sure that your Senior DD and her friends do not do/miss anything that will jeopardize their graduation. Missing requirements in some classes might result in penalties.

In general I think taking kids out for a long stretch is terribly unfair to the teachers. Although your kids are responsible for making up their own work, it is the teachers who must now jump through special hoops outside of their regular routine to assure that your kid is caught up before all the end of year grading is due (or exams, as the case may be). Teachers are incredibly busy at the end of the year. I think parents and kids have a responsibility to place the educational system before vacation. It's not that I don't think some kids can miss a special day or two but what really urks me is that some parents (not OP, I'm sure) expect the the system to accomodate.

Yes... 8 days is too long.

Sorry... school is way more important than a cruise.

We had to pull two of our kids out of HS at the end of the school year after plans were made and paid and then the school year was extended to make up for snow days.

It was bad.

They had to go in and take make up exams and then the exams were not graded properly and both their grades got all messed up.

It was a big mess.

If they weren't in HS, I would say go for it.

And with my son, it was touch and go right up until graduation.(Chemistry Spanish II) And it is hard to know now what their classes may be like next year.

We take ours out for a day or sometimes two days before Spring Break, but those aren't heavy instruction days and there's really nothing to miss.

I haven't taken ours out for a week, but if the situation arose I'd consider it. I wouldn't consider taking a senior out so near the end of school though because as has already been stated, that's a memorable time that will stick with her longer than a cruise would.

plus, I doubt in NC I would have been allowed to... we have pretty strict attendance rules here, right up to graduation......also, what do the parents of the "friends" think???

I can tell you in NC this would be a dangerous thing due to strict attendance laws so GoinCruisin you hit the nail on the head here!

My daughter whoses in 7th grade normally only misses a day or two a year but this year she missed 8 days due to a severe sinus infection...in Dec....than that turned into pink eye.....4 doctors appointments in less then two weeks & no wearing contacts for 5 days....thankfully 2 were the weekend.....part of one week & all of the next! So what I am trying to say is plan for an emergency to happen, cause it might! Now here she can miss 15 days being in middle school. High school is 20 & elementary is 12 days. You'd better have a note for each absence as well, precisely why she went to the docs...2 different ones for 4 appointments in just a short time. Schools, can, shall & will fail those who don't have evidence of a legit absence.

So I would caution you against an 8 day cruise due to emergencies during the rest of the school year. You don't want to pay for all these girls....what an awesome gift from you by the way! :D .....then have to cancel at the last moment because of to many absences & the risk someone may fail.

Now what I would suggest to you is go on a shorter cruise that would include the weekend. Remember that some times we suffer from cruise lag & we're to worn out to think for a day or two after & that makes us want to nap! I know we are taking ours on Nov 8th so the kids will get full days credit when we pull them out half a day on Wednesday after 11:20am for our school (long drive to FL from NC) miss Thursday & Friday....we return on Sunday & I planned it so that Monday is Veterans day holiday so they have that day to recover from their 3 day cruise. Plus if anyone does not feel good, 3 days is long enough for them to suffer!

So take them but shorten it out alittle bit to allow for an emergency! Make sure you have the end of the year schedule as well so they don't miss any senior days or exams!

Best of luck to you! And hats off for taking the girls! :D

Be blessed, be a blessing! :p

Being right out of school (I graduated two years ago) I would've loved a cruise right before grad. It's so stressful to be there and know there's only a few days left. If your kids are good students and won't be penalized (which I'm sure they'd have told you already if they would be) go for it.

When they're telling their kids about their lives and about their grandparents do you think they'll talk about that time they stayed at home and studied for finals for 8 days, or the cruise mom took them on and it was a blast?

School IS important to the government and to the many people out there who think the only way to measure success is by how many degrees you have and how much money you make, but if they want to go and you want to take them, I think they'll be richer with good memories

Here in our area its a non-issue... well unless parents lie (a parent must come TO the school and sign a form saying why the kids will be out of school) and that teaches a terrible lesson to your children.

My wife and I (who are about to have kids just talked this over) she was even more harsh than I. I personally think its just bad judgement, my wife was more of the "bad parent teaching bad lessons".

I won't be pulling my kids out of school... I missed 2 days my 4 years of High School... and those I was in hospital.

I think you are doing a disservice to your kids in all fairness. I loved my senior year and still think fondly of those last few days.

I know in California that the school gets screwed out of about $70 a day per child for unexcused absenses. Schools in California get per per pupil, per day of attendance. It has been this way in California since 1935.

So... a family of 3 kids missing 6 days of school would screw the school out of $1,200.

I find removing children from school to go on a cruise to be very irresponsible for a parent as it both screws the kids out of school time... and it screws the school out of money.