Missing school in 3rd grade AAP due to vacations... ...

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:Op - wiat and see. Talk to the teacher and the principal.

My parents took us out for trips all the way through school and those are some of the best experiences and memories of my life. Additionally it didn't impact me academically. A trip to NZ is a far more enriching experience that has more meaning in life than 5 days of grade 3.


I could not agree more. How wonderful for your children. And I am a poster who could never afford these types of trips.
Anonymous
I don't see this as a problem, but my kids hate to miss school. Your DC will take SOLs this year, so make sure you're not gone during that window in May.

I would NOT ask the teacher for work in advance...not fair to create extra work for him or her. When you get back, make sure your DC is rested and on schedule before sending him or her back to school.

You will see that taking out for vacations will be less and less acceptable. Major family events would be more acceptable to a teacher/principal.

Don't expect any special treatment if you're not going to operate on the school schedule
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Op - wiat and see. Talk to the teacher and the principal.

My parents took us out for trips all the way through school and those are some of the best experiences and memories of my life. Additionally it didn't impact me academically. A trip to NZ is a far more enriching experience that has more meaning in life than 5 days of grade 3.


I could not agree more. How wonderful for your children. And I am a poster who could never afford these types of trips.


It's bull shit trust me, I lived all over the world. There is nothing really enriching about these trips except to the parents. I could see once a year over the summer break but during school age your want your children studying and preparing. No wonder the asians have steam rolled over the whites in education.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Op - wiat and see. Talk to the teacher and the principal.

My parents took us out for trips all the way through school and those are some of the best experiences and memories of my life. Additionally it didn't impact me academically. A trip to NZ is a far more enriching experience that has more meaning in life than 5 days of grade 3.


I could not agree more. How wonderful for your children. And I am a poster who could never afford these types of trips.


It's bull shit trust me, I lived all over the world. There is nothing really enriching about these trips except to the parents. I could see once a year over the summer break but during school age your want your children studying and preparing. No wonder the asians have steam rolled over the whites in education.


troll attempt: 1/10
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Op - wiat and see. Talk to the teacher and the principal.

My parents took us out for trips all the way through school and those are some of the best experiences and memories of my life. Additionally it didn't impact me academically. A trip to NZ is a far more enriching experience that has more meaning in life than 5 days of grade 3.


I could not agree more. How wonderful for your children. And I am a poster who could never afford these types of trips.


It's bull shit trust me, I lived all over the world. There is nothing really enriching about these trips except to the parents. I could see once a year over the summer break but during school age your want your children studying and preparing. No wonder the asians have steam rolled over the whites in education.


troll attempt: 1/10


Sorry no, I have lived all over the world and I stand by my statement.
Anonymous
Ok Let's throw this into the mix, what if you kid get's sick and is out another 7 days (very likely over the course of a year).

You have shaved off 2 weeks her education. Try that in college where you pay out of pocket.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Op - wiat and see. Talk to the teacher and the principal.

My parents took us out for trips all the way through school and those are some of the best experiences and memories of my life. Additionally it didn't impact me academically. A trip to NZ is a far more enriching experience that has more meaning in life than 5 days of grade 3.


I could not agree more. How wonderful for your children. And I am a poster who could never afford these types of trips.


It's bull shit trust me, I lived all over the world. There is nothing really enriching about these trips except to the parents. I could see once a year over the summer break but during school age your want your children studying and preparing. No wonder the asians have steam rolled over the whites in education.


troll attempt: 1/10


Some people, like the PP (and children), don't appreciate international travel. Is what it is. Introverted people would rather stay home than go out. Too much stress.

Sorry no, I have lived all over the world and I stand by my statement.
Anonymous
It's a great idea. Kids will learn a lot more seeing the world than reading about it. Heck, I bet the majority of kids & parents couldn't find Belize on a map if they had to. Your kid will get that question right. 3 days off is no less academically problematic than missing 3 days for the flu. Just catch up, like you would if they got sick. School around here is not very intense and missing a few days is fine.

Anonymous
why would you take a vacation when school is in session?
Anonymous
Let me guess, the parent's are white?
Anonymous
Parent of a 3rd grade AAP DS. We did this for Thanksgiving week this year, and yes, it was an educational trip - didn't matter to the school. BTW, this was a trip that had been planned before we moved to Fairfax county. Only one teacher of the group gave us work ahead of time, the others did NOT and did not allow the work to be made up. It's 3rd grade so I didn't care as much whether it affected his grade - and yes, at this age, a lot of the grade is based on the "homework" not test grades. A disadvantage for the boys, but it is what it is.

Luckily, our trip only consisted of 3 days out of school, but we were told on several occasions we would get a truancy letter and if we had 5 days in the school year, there is a mandatory call/visit by the truancy officer for Fairfax county schools now. This is a new legislative/mandatory requirement I am told. I'm told our school is normally lenient about this, but they have no control over the new reporting requirement (or the new enforcement of the reporting requirement I should say).

He had no problem being caught up, but it did take a little extra work (which he usually doesn't have to do). Would I do it again? Probably not unless it was something VERY special. We've lived all over the world (including DS), so we also don't feel the need to have to take him there right now. Fourth grade might still be OK, but they do move pretty quickly, so if you kid is not a self-starter, be prepared to push to get things caught up. I'd say by 5th grade AAP, I would not take them out and just suck it up until school vacation time. I would not, even now, take any vacation in May though due to the SOLs. Unfortunately, this is the bread and butter of the schools right now and you will really get on the schools bad side for missing this. Best not to go there.

This is not to say we have stopped or will stop taking vacations, esp. to historical sites which we love. We do 4 or 5 a year. We'll just NOT do them during school, or take one day here or one day there if needed. Just my two cents for someone who has been there, done that.
Anonymous
http://www.greatschools.org/parenting/teaching-values/481-parenting-students-to-the-top.gs

While American children are dividing their time between a thousand different extracurricular activities in addition to household chores, Asian students are concentrating more on their schoolwork. The role of Asian children in the family is clear-cut and two-fold:
Respect your elders and obey your parents.
Study hard and do well in school to secure a bright future.
Our parents firmly believed in roles, and they ensured that each member of the family carried out his or her role to the best of his or her ability. Our father was the breadwinner during the day and an educator at night. Our mother kept the house and finances in order during the day and also became an educator at night. Our role during the day was to obey our teachers and do our best in the classroom; our role at night was to obey our parents and focus on our continued studies at home (which included homework, review of previously learned material and any additional assignments our parents gave us). Of course, we also cleaned our rooms, set the table, did the dishes and played outdoors, but we didn't have the multitude of distractions that many non-Asian children faced once school ended.

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:education is very important, more important then the parent's dream vacation. Why don't you wait until retirement to see the world.


+1. Really. I've done a lot of traveling and really, seeing the sights is great and all and educational, but really not worth taking a child out of school for. It's a vacation for crying out loud. That said, if you were going on a humanitarian mission and needed an extra 3 or 4 days, that's a real learning experience for a child and worth it. But skiing in the Alps? Not so much. Besides, it instills from and early age that "privilege and opportunity" make your child more special and he/she doesn't have to do what everyone else does. Bad template for life.
Anonymous
we did this really no problem do it now before hs
Anonymous
Early grades are not a problem. We typically took the week in Jan whith the in service days. This year, DD is in 6, and the work load is significantly more than DD has previously had, so this years vacation will involve only one missed day of school.
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