Children in Lounges

[ekerr19]

Lisa-

 

Unfortunately, you may find that not everyone shares the same feeling about the Aft pool... we've been on several cruises where parents insisted on letting their kids swim there.

 

It is our personal preference to follow HAL's suggestion, but keep in mind there may be others who feel differently.

 

Not that long ago, on this board, one man insisted his son was the exception - he had a "very talented, exceptionally bright, well mannered child who was free to do whatever he chose" - the parents argued they paid for his passage and the child was "special". Mind you, not a special needs child, but a "brilliant" young 4-yr old who could "out converse" most adults... hee, hee - yeah right :) ... oh well, there are still those type of parents on every cruise, unfortunately. They feel there are no rules that appy to them - or their children...

[lddam]

KK & Apfra:

We will be going at the time of year (1-9-05 Westerdam), when I am not sure how many kids her age will be onboard.

 

This does not respond to the specifics of the original post, but as an old elementary school teacher, I must admit that I hope not many. Not because I think it inappropriate under parental supervision, but because of the timing of her cruise during the academic year.

 

If, however, I have been presumptive and your daughter and/or others "her age" will not be absent from class during that time, then I apologize for my rush to judgment, withdraw the above comment, and wish you and yours "Bon Voyage."

 

Dave of ...

[sea-n-me]

lddam:

I appreciate your concern over our daughter missing school and your point is well taken. Believe me, we would not be taking her out if she wasn't the straight A student that she is. Frankly, I view traveling as a part of her "education" in life as much as sitting in a classroom. This is not the first time we have taken her out of school and it won't be the last.

[the2ofus]

By all means, bring your "young lady" along on your HAL cruise. She sounds like a well-mannered pre-teen and it will be a wonderful experience for her.

 

We have been on two cruises when there were home-schooled children aboard. In each case, the families were using the travel opportunity to teach the pre-teen children lessons in geography, science, etc. These children were well behaved and interacted with the other pax with appropriate respect. They also spent a part of each day with the Club HAL staff and seemed to have a good time.

 

Perhaps it is because we cruise when school is in session, but we have rarely seen more than a dozen children on board and usually they were related to the officers or the entertainment/lecture staff. I have only witnessed one kid "melt-down" on one cruise. In that instance the parent quickly removed the child from the area.

[lddam]

lddam:

Believe me, we would not be taking her out if she wasn't the straight A student that she is. Frankly, I view traveling as a part of her "education" in life as much as sitting in a classroom. This is not the first time we have taken her out of school and it won't be the last.

 

Sea-N-Me, please believe me when I state that I am not attempting to incite defensive, knee-jerk reactions by hitting anyone's hot buttons. Education, formal and/or informal, is a lifelong process and I do not question the value of a cruise experience for children - especially well mannered ones. I don't know from which part of the country you hail, but here in New York, higher learning standards, increased measures in student and school district accountability, and more rigorous graduation requirements have placed a higher premium on classroom attendance and exposure to specific curriculum content. When I was still active in the classroom, children were expected to "make up" any work missed, and the parents and I, with the child present, would discuss and mutually agree upon a process whereby that could be accomplished.

 

It's obvious that you're making a rational decision regarding the value of "traveling as a part of her 'education' in life as much as sitting in a classroom," and I don't challenge that decision. You go on to state that this is not the first time you've taken her out of school and it won't be the last. With her being a straight A student, it's obvious that your daughter's academic standing has not suffered from the lack of classroom contact. I am genuinely interested in what measures are taken by you, your daughter and the schools to address the curriculum gap which is bound to occur. Perhaps your methods would be valuable to other students and parents who travel during times when schools are in session.

 

Dave

[sail7seas]

In our local schools, if a child is out of school for an "unauthorized vacation", he/she gets a zero for all work they missed while absent. No exceptions. It will be hard to "hide" the fact she was on vacation with you as she surely will come home with some signs of a suntan.

 

 

I do not personally have an opinion either way whether it is a good idea or not to take a child out of school in order to cruise.

 

Hope you have a great time.

[Vicar]

Its a tough call it does depend on the indvidual child.

 

My daughter has always been a good student, its comes very easily to her.

 

My soon to be step son is also a very good student , but he NEEDS to study and work at it.

 

Taking him out of school for a week or more would definately be detrimental to him.

[sea-n-me]

lldam:

We live in Ohio, in a suburb outside of Cleveland. Our school district is consistently rated one of the highest in the state. They do not consider a vacation as an "unauthorized absence" as long as they are notified ahead of time. They state, in fact, that they realize that a parent's vacation time does not always coincide with the academic schedule and take no issue if you have made the decision to take your child out of school for this reason.

 

We are very fortunate that our daughter is a good student. Like Vicar's daughter, it comes very easily to her. There are no specific measures that we take, and she makes up any work that she has missed during her absence with the full support of the school and her teachers.

 

I apologize if I came across with a "defensive, knee-jerk reaction". You certainly bring up some very important points and I respect that.