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Who pulls the kids out of school to cruise?


4olivers
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As long as you don’t go on vacation WITHOUT your kids. You’re fine. I hate when parents leave their youngsters at home and go vacation. One or two night getaway is fine but not a whole week or more.

 

 

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Why? My mom was a SAHM, my sister and I were left with friends or family while they took adult vacations, it was fun for us! We’ve left all five once for a 6 night anniversary cruise, and have left babies and toddlers with the grandparents while traveling with the older kids. My kids LOVED staying with the grandparents (who lived a half mile away).

 

What is the current obsession with never having experiences without the kids? I’ve been a SAHM for 21 years now, I don’t need to be attached to them 24/7. Heck, when they were little, we had our share of paid babysitters, plus grandma, and #4 and 5 went to daycare 2 mornings a week starting at age 1. No regrets!

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When kids were growing up we lived in NJ and always took the kids to Disney or other places in the beginning of November. All public schools in NJ are closed by Law in NJ either first or second week depending on the calendar on the Thursday and Friday of that week. Often , this falls during the week of Veterans Day and Election Day when most schools are also closed. Our school system actually closed the school for the week since it seemed counterproductive to go only the Wednesday of that week. It was funny in Disney because you would always run into someone you knew.

 

I am reminded of a post a few years ago on one of the boards where a woman found a way around the school giving her a hard time for taking the kids out of school. She unenrolled the kids from the school system, got transcripts and everything needed. When she got back from vacation just reenrolled the kids in the school. Don't think you could get away with this more than once but who knows.

Actually, all public schools are closed for 2 days for teachers convention either the first or second week of November.

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My kids are grown now, but we pulled them out of school when they were younger to go on a cruise. it was the only time that worked out for us and hubby was getting ready to move away for his job and it would be a year before the kids and I would be able to permanently move to where he was. OR to TX.

 

The cruise was the end of April/1st of May and they were in 3rd and 6th grades at the time. It was great. Their teachers all said to have a great time and they would catch them up on their schoolwork when they got back.

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As long as you don’t go on vacation WITHOUT your kids. You’re fine. I hate when parents leave their youngsters at home and go vacation. One or two night getaway is fine but not a whole week or more.

 

 

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Our first cruise was without our kids. They were 3 and 6 at the time. We went with 2 other couples for a 4 night kid-free getaway. This was the first time we'd gone out of town and left our kids. Actually, we had to take them 3 hours away to stay with their grandparents, but the kids had a great time, the grandparents had a great time and we had a great time. It was good for all of us.

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I don't have any children, so I'll acknowledge that it is not really for me to judge, however....I've often wondered why with all the fall, winter, spring, and long summer breaks that schools have, why not take children on cruises during those times?

 

The quoted post answer's my question best....it's the "bottom line" that I believe primarily motivates this decision by parents....;)

 

We don't get super long breaks. We get a few days at Thanksgiving, the 2 weeks around Christmas/New Years, and then a week in the spring (which changes every year). However, my husband's job doesn't allow him to take those times as his vacations every year. Yes, it would be great if he could be off for the holidays like others, but that doesn't happen. He has to pick his vacation every year in November, quite often the school calendar isn't even out by then for the following year.

 

 

And quite honestly, as I said before, our teachers have never had a problem since he does his work that he misses. They know that for some people, doing these things are important. Our family went through a lot over a few years, and we wanted to have some time away and with our son. It just happened that my husband had to take his vacation NOT during a regular holiday.

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See comment above..... big difference in Playing hooky and what we are doing.....

 

 

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Mmmmm.... not sure I agree with your sentiments. Say you take your kids out of school for a week for vacations several years, some years may be for more educational trips and some years more for fun in the sun. I’m not sure how you are able to teach kids that it’s ok for you, their parents, to allow them to miss school to have fun but it’s not ok for them to miss school on their own to have fun. Even if it includes the caveat that they have to keep up with their school work - I know a lot of people I went to high school with that skipped class on a regular basis because they were able to keep up with the course work so why going to class. Sorry, just my opinion that it sends mixed signals to take kids out of school for vacations. It’s also my opinion that teaching kids that it’s never ok to miss school unless they are sick builds work ethic.

 

 

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Why? My mom was a SAHM, my sister and I were left with friends or family while they took adult vacations, it was fun for us! We’ve left all five once for a 6 night anniversary cruise, and have left babies and toddlers with the grandparents while traveling with the older kids. My kids LOVED staying with the grandparents (who lived a half mile away).

 

What is the current obsession with never having experiences without the kids? I’ve been a SAHM for 21 years now, I don’t need to be attached to them 24/7. Heck, when they were little, we had our share of paid babysitters, plus grandma, and #4 and 5 went to daycare 2 mornings a week starting at age 1. No regrets!

 

Agree:)

 

We don't get super long breaks. We get a few days at Thanksgiving, the 2 weeks around Christmas/New Years, and then a week in the spring (which changes every year). However, my husband's job doesn't allow him to take those times as his vacations every year. Yes, it would be great if he could be off for the holidays like others, but that doesn't happen. He has to pick his vacation every year in November, quite often the school calendar isn't even out by then for the following year.

 

 

And quite honestly, as I said before, our teachers have never had a problem since he does his work that he misses. They know that for some people, doing these things are important. Our family went through a lot over a few years, and we wanted to have some time away and with our son. It just happened that my husband had to take his vacation NOT during a regular holiday.

 

Our kids do not get long extended vacations apart from summer. We do try to incorporate a family vacation then, and we spend Christmas with family who live 3 and 4 hours away, so we don't have time left then for a family vacation. My children are involved in enough activities with church and school that it is very hard to find times that work for them during the school year even if school itself wasn't an issue.

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Mmmmm.... not sure I agree with your sentiments. Say you take your kids out of school for a week for vacations several years, some years may be for more educational trips and some years more for fun in the sun. I’m not sure how you are able to teach kids that it’s ok for you, their parents, to allow them to miss school to have fun but it’s not ok for them to miss school on their own to have fun. Even if it includes the caveat that they have to keep up with their school work - I know a lot of people I went to high school with that skipped class on a regular basis because they were able to keep up with the course work so why going to class. Sorry, just my opinion that it sends mixed signals to take kids out of school for vacations. It’s also my opinion that teaching kids that it’s never ok to miss school unless they are sick builds work ethic.

 

 

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One year not several years.... big difference!

 

 

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As teachers we were unable to take our children out of school to benefit from less expensive holidays .

 

We felt it was discrepancy against those who work in schools.

(Although sometimes teaching assistants were allowed to take holidays without pay)

 

Sadly, in reality, we know it is all a question of supply and demand.

 

In recent days, schools in GB are far more aware of meeting attendance targets, even though there are strict rules regarding returning to school after stomach upsets.(48 hrs after last bout). Not applied in all areas.

 

Doctors would not necessarily appreciate the extra work but I like the idea of having Doctors' notes for absence.

 

I'm a teacher and I prefer to cruise during the school terms.

 

It's a question of supply and demand. Too few teachers are educated so if I should get "no" when I ask for vacation I could just quit and get another job. So no problem for me to cruise when I want.

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The people that I really feel for when parents pull kids out of school for things like vacations are the teachers. They are all over worked, and under paid, and all this selfish behavior does is causes them more work. Hopefully if you pull your kids from school you will remember ALL of their teachers and bring them expensive thank you gifts.

 

There are advantages to teaching at the college level. You get to set your own attendance policies, and a student who misses a week gets to spend the next semester with you again repeating the course.

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The people that I really feel for when parents pull kids out of school for things like vacations are the teachers. They are all over worked, and under paid, and all this selfish behavior does is causes them more work. Hopefully if you pull your kids from school you will remember ALL of their teachers and bring them expensive thank you gifts.

 

There are advantages to teaching at the college level. You get to set your own attendance policies, and a student who misses a week gets to spend the next semester with you again repeating the course.

 

 

 

This teacher (elementary level) has no problem with kids being pulled for vacation. As a parent, I recognize family time as priceless. Life is too short. When family members and friends start passing away or getting very ill, you can’t get those times back. Go and make fabulous memories while your kids are still willing to vacation with you. The time will come too soon that they won’t want to go.

 

 

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This teacher (elementary level) has no problem with kids being pulled for vacation. As a parent, I recognize family time as priceless. Life is too short. When family members and friends start passing away or getting very ill, you can’t get those times back. Go and make fabulous memories while your kids are still willing to vacation with you. The time will come too soon that they won’t want to go.

 

Exactly!!! My son's teachers have always supported us when he misses a few days. We try to minimize it by doing it when there are already a couple days off (report card pick up, Veteran's Day). But as I posted earlier in this thread, my husband doesn't always get a summer vacation, he has a job that's 24/7, so they all have to pick vacations and sometimes you don't get what you want.

 

 

And to be honest, we went through a major loss a few years ago. His teachers completely understood that we wanted to travel and do things (when my husband had his vacation time), so we could have those family memories. We didn't do it this year though, as his schedule for 8th grade (school and swimming) was much more intense. And we wouldn't do it in HS freshman year either, as that's a lot to deal with. But if the opportunity arose in his later HS career, and it didn't interfere with exams or major events/projects, we would do it again.

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As I said before, I worry about teachers that 'supposed' to stay late (according to parents) to tutor students that missed school time. The work was given to the student before they left, but none of it was done while on vacation. What does that say about the parent? So the teacher is supposed to step in when the parent failed to do what they said they would do....HORSE FEATHERS!

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As I said before, I worry about teachers that 'supposed' to stay late (according to parents) to tutor students that missed school time. The work was given to the student before they left, but none of it was done while on vacation. What does that say about the parent? So the teacher is supposed to step in when the parent failed to do what they said they would do....HORSE FEATHERS!

 

I try to give the students "homework" but I don't do a lots of extra work.

 

My favorite "homework" is to give them a traveldiary where they shall draw something they do and write some about it every day on the vacation. (My students are 7-10 years old.)

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As I said before, I worry about teachers that 'supposed' to stay late (according to parents) to tutor students that missed school time. The work was given to the student before they left, but none of it was done while on vacation. What does that say about the parent? So the teacher is supposed to step in when the parent failed to do what they said they would do....HORSE FEATHERS!

 

Nope, that doesn't happen here. Because of our timing, in November, it's usually right at the end of the quarter or start of the next one. That means things are either wrapped up or just starting. So if he's missed something, he catches up on his own. Now, he may ask the teacher a question in class, but that's no different than any other kid. None of the teachers have really given him work to do while he was gone, but if they did, it would get done. Again, I think it's just because of how we time it, in between the quarters.

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I've been on this board since its inception and the funniest thing is every child ever taken out of school is a straight A++++ student in every subject.

 

Nope, not an A++++ student in every thing. But mine is a good student. He's mostly A's, and usually a B or two. But missing 2-3 days of work usually doesn't make a huge difference. And I guess if your student is failing, does it matter if they're missing things!?! At that point, it's obvious the student and parent doesn't care to begin with.

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I guess back to the OP's original question.... Yes, plenty of people do it. It works for many people as well. Some people will judge you for it as well. But you know your kids, your school, the teachers, etc... Will it cause them serious educational harm? Is it over testing periods? Are they able to catch up when they miss a few days when they're sick? You need to do what's best for your family and however it works. Whatever you decide, don't worry about it, just go and have fun!

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We have friends who take their kids out of school so that they can get better prices on vacations/cruises. They believe that the kids don't miss anything because they have their books with them and are good students. We feel that a lot is missed by the kids not being part of in-class discussions and hearing different points of view on the subject matter.

 

We lived overseas during our son's school years and were not allowed to take vacations with him along during the school year. In the 80's, a large number of people in a certain industry abused the system by taking their kids out for vacations all over the region. As a result, the school tightened up its rules to do their best to make sure the kids got their best education.

 

Some vacations do offer a chance at alternative learning ... learning about other cultures is enlightening. However, laying on a beach, hanging out in a kids club on a ship or going to Disneyworld isn't quite the educational experience it is cracked up to be.

 

Technology has certainly changed the world but it doesn't replace class discussion and discourse among student ideas. To answer the OP's question ....... No, we did NOT take our son out of school for vacations.

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In some states in public schools the kids will be reported for truancy even if the school gives permission for the kids to go and the parents may be fined or even charged with a misdemeanor, so it is best to find out what you could be faced with before you do this. If your kids are in private schools things may be different.

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We have friends who take their kids out of school so that they can get better prices on vacations/cruises. They believe that the kids don't miss anything because they have their books with them and are good students. We feel that a lot is missed by the kids not being part of in-class discussions and hearing different points of view on the subject matter.

 

We lived overseas during our son's school years and were not allowed to take vacations with him along during the school year. In the 80's, a large number of people in a certain industry abused the system by taking their kids out for vacations all over the region. As a result, the school tightened up its rules to do their best to make sure the kids got their best education.

 

Some vacations do offer a chance at alternative learning ... learning about other cultures is enlightening. However, laying on a beach, hanging out in a kids club on a ship or going to Disneyworld isn't quite the educational experience it is cracked up to be.

 

Technology has certainly changed the world but it doesn't replace class discussion and discourse among student ideas. To answer the OP's question ....... No, we did NOT take our son out of school for vacations.

 

 

Kinda off topic but on topic.

If my son missed any class time, he wouldn't miss anything. He's in a new technology program here that is project based learning. Basically someone with some sense looked at the current education system and said "why are kids having to sit behind a desk for 8 hours listening to a teacher preach from a book that was written 30 years ago, about a topic they will never need to know about. In 2018 if kids want to know something, they Google it and do research to learn about it. This is a new age, and technology is at the forefront of it.

 

So the school did away with the traditional classrooms, teachers at the front, books, etc. Each week the teacher assigns the students a project and they break into small groups to do the project. This week they did some molecule project, then at the end of the week they must present their project and are graded on it. Everything is intertwined in the project such as English, Math and Science. The teacher doesn't stand at the front of the room and lecture them, they have to do their own research on everything. They don't sit in front of a traditional desk all day, they get up, move around, basically a lab-type setting. The teacher is only there for guidance and make sure things stay in order. There are no books, each kid has their own Chromebook. This is the New Tech program that started in California and is quickly catching on across the country. If my son is home, he can simply login to the dashboard and see the assignments and converse with his group that way and get things done.

 

Now as I mentioned, he only misses the last week of school, but I figured I'd share this new concept that's catching on since so many don't have children in schools, they may not know about this. In a few years this will probably be the norm and pulling kids out of schools more frequently for vacations will become more normal as well.

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Kinda off topic but on topic.

 

If my son missed any class time, he wouldn't miss anything. He's in a new technology program here that is project based learning. Basically someone with some sense looked at the current education system and said "why are kids having to sit behind a desk for 8 hours listening to a teacher preach from a book that was written 30 years ago, about a topic they will never need to know about. In 2018 if kids want to know something, they Google it and do research to learn about it. This is a new age, and technology is at the forefront of it.

 

 

 

So the school did away with the traditional classrooms, teachers at the front, books, etc. Each week the teacher assigns the students a project and they break into small groups to do the project. This week they did some molecule project, then at the end of the week they must present their project and are graded on it. Everything is intertwined in the project such as English, Math and Science. The teacher doesn't stand at the front of the room and lecture them, they have to do their own research on everything. They don't sit in front of a traditional desk all day, they get up, move around, basically a lab-type setting. The teacher is only there for guidance and make sure things stay in order. There are no books, each kid has their own Chromebook. This is the New Tech program that started in California and is quickly catching on across the country. If my son is home, he can simply login to the dashboard and see the assignments and converse with his group that way and get things done.

 

 

 

Now as I mentioned, he only misses the last week of school, but I figured I'd share this new concept that's catching on since so many don't have children in schools, they may not know about this. In a few years this will probably be the norm and pulling kids out of schools more frequently for vacations will become more normal as well.

 

 

 

Here students can miss up to 10 days unexcused then you get a letter that you need to make sure future absences are excused....my boys even with missing 5 days for the trip, will not be at 10 Unexcused and these 5 may be granted as excused based on our educational activities at the ports! (Kennedy space Center, Mayan Ruins, snorkeling....)

 

I’m amused at some of the comments.

 

 

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