Pulling kids out of school for vacation - thoughts?

[Anonymous]

What are your thoughts and your family policy on this? I have a kindergartner and first grader and have to say I am stunned at the number of families that are pulling their kids out for days at a time (in one recent case, 2 weeks at a time) for family vacations. I am completely against pulling my kids out of school for anything other than sickness or a family emergency. Aren't the scheduled breaks the time that you should do family vacation? I feel like it's disrespectful to the teacher and also sends the wrong message to your child.

DH says I'm being a stick in the mud.

Just wanted to see if I'm alone here.

[Anonymous]

I don't give it a second thought. Taking my kids to South Africa and Berlin and to spend time with family are way more important than elementary school.

You can read to a kid about Ellis Island, or you can take a kid to Ellis Island, you know?

[Anonymous]

They're in elementary school- it's fine. I wouldn't do it all the time, but families might need to go based on when their parents can get vacations or don't have the excess means to pay the uncharges for vacation times. I strongly believe that strong family ties can teach children just as much as being in school for the extra couple of days.

[Anonymous]

We've done this several times, especially when the kids were young. Sometimes to go to family events out of town (weddings, etc) and sometimes when the kids had different breaks. It doesn't matter at this age.

[Anonymous]

Meh. We schedule family vacations during breaks when possible, but sometimes there is an opportunity that just doesn't line up with breaks. Or you have two kids in different schools and their spring breaks are different weeks. At the end of the day, I just think about what is going to impact the child's life more. In K or 1st, missing a week of school isn't a huge deal, and some vacations can be really meaningful.

[Anonymous]

I don't pull them out a lot, but there are occasions where it is fine. We always miss the Wednesday before thanksgiving. My then-2nd grader missed a week for a Disney cruise with extended family (turned out to be three days with snow days...). In a year like MoCo has now, I know a ton of people who took the entire week for spring break travel.


Your kids are young. If there is a trip that works and has some family benefit, then take it! They will grow up quickly and it won't be so simple.

[Anonymous]

We don’t, but you do you.

[Anonymous]

Ha ha. "Sometimes these vacations are more meaningful than school." No they're not -- kids barely remember vacations taken at that age. You're not taking your young kids on vacation and away from school for them, you're doing it for you and because it works better for you.

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it. But own what you're doing.

[Anonymous]

OP - so you reference an extreme case, and then want to know opinions?

Most people are more reasonable and just because they might, as a rare thing, doesn't mean they are cavalier about it.

[Anonymous]

Just please don’t come back and ask for special accommodations for memos or sign ups you missed, etc. I worked in a school and extending deadlines and backtracking because each person’s special circumstance needed to be worked around prevented me from finishing my tasks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We don’t, but you do you.

I don't know why but this expression reads like nails on a chalkboard to me. So annoying.

[Anonymous]

We do it at least once a year. Travel is more important to us.

[Anonymous]

You do you and let other people decide what works for them.

[Anonymous]

I'm more with OP, I don't have this lackadaisical attitude toward it. I get a couple days here and there or something really special that can't be done any other time (destination family wedding or something) but I would do my best to avoid taking them out of school.

I do think it sends a message to kids that school doesn't matter. I mean, if you are telling them that school is important and that it's important to try their best every day and to pay attention, this conflicts with that message, no?

And my kids are older now, so it's not like I'll realize later that elementary school wasn't that important. Actually the kids I knew whose parents used to take them out all the time (like for Disney trips, just because there were fewer crowds then) now are not all that serious about school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm more with OP, I don't have this lackadaisical attitude toward it. I get a couple days here and there or something really special that can't be done any other time (destination family wedding or something) but I would do my best to avoid taking them out of school.

I do think it sends a message to kids that school doesn't matter. I mean, if you are telling them that school is important and that it's important to try their best every day and to pay attention, this conflicts with that message, no?

And my kids are older now, so it's not like I'll realize later that elementary school wasn't that important. Actually the kids I knew whose parents used to take them out all the time (like for Disney trips, just because there were fewer crowds then) now are not all that serious about school.

I think it sends the message that there is more than one way to learn. School is one way. Traveling is another way.