Is it Ok to Miss 1 Week of School during December Holidays Break?
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Anonymous
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Hello parents. I am reaching out for advice. We are planning a trip to Africa in December to spend the Holidays with the family back home. My kids are in 5th and 2nd grades, and their school’s official holidays break is for two weeks from December 23rd to January 3rd. We are considering extending our trip by having them miss an additional week of school. Do you think this would be manageable for them, or is it too much, making it hard for them to catch up when they return?
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Anonymous
| I plan to do this with my kids (one year younger than yours). If you're missing the week before break, they won't miss anything. If it's the week after break, they might have a slightly harder transition back but they should bounce back. Communicate with the teachers and I'm sure they'll be fine with it too. These experiences with family back home are priceless and add a lot more education than the snowman coloring worksheets given out the last week of school before break. |
Anonymous
| Absolutely yes. Pull out any year up to HS. Make those memories, enjoy your family and vacation. It all ends too fast. |
Anonymous
| They can miss. What a great experience for them! They aren’t high school seniors. They can catch up. |
Anonymous
I would totally do it, as it might be your last chance. 6th grade and up, I would have more hesitation, but 2nd and 5th is fine. Ask teachers what they're missing and get it done before you go or on the trip. |
Anonymous
| Happened at our ES all the time and teachers seemed generally understanding, especially for kids who are otherwise doing well academically. |
Anonymous
| At your children's age, yes I would do this. However you should plan to work ahead rather than just catch up after your return. I would work with the teachers on a plan. |
Anonymous
| Definitely schedule before the break and get the kids to do the work they will miss beforehand if possible - then they won't be behind. |
Anonymous
| Many thanks for all the useful advice. I really appreciate it. |
Anonymous
A lot of teachers won’t have the time to print out one of each worksheet that your kid will miss for each subject for each day you will be gone. It will be more time efficient for the teacher to keep a folder of each assignment your kid will miss after they pass it out to the class. Just to be realistic…teachers have a lot on their plates right now. |
Anonymous
Agree. It’s definitely more work for the teacher to put together a packet ahead of time. Plus the few times I have made packets the students never completed them. Now I usually just tell the kids they can get caught up when they return. Ask the teacher what they prefer. -a teacher |
Anonymous
| No packet is a substitute for instruction. I think it's ok for elementary school but not for middle school and high school. |
Anonymous
| Yes, I think it is fine for elementary school. I would be iffy on middle school, but absolutely not for high school. |
Anonymous
| Depends on the student. I wish we had traveled more in ES school, but DS didn't have the executive functioning skills to do well after missing a week. We experienced covid remnants in middle school and had to miss a week here and there. It was not ideal and it took almost twice as long to catch up. Now in HS, we are limiting our travel to days when school is not in session. |
Anonymous
| YES!!!! Africa is a more educational experience, anyway. |