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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To take our kids on a 3 week holidays in term time?

152 replies

pinkdinosaur · 20/12/2016 21:35

Evening all

We have Totally messed up and booked our holiday of a life time in term time!!

We have just found out the october holidays have moved next year and instead of the kids missing 2 weeks of school which we checked was ok with the council education dept (we will be fined) now the third week we have booked is not in the holidays as we thought!!

Panic

So wwyd?? Take them out (all at primary) and sod it its our american holiday of a life time and vow renewal!! Or change the dates?? Costing 3k more!!

Has anyone taken there children out of school for that Long???

OP posts:
Crispbutty · 21/12/2016 00:04

California is lovely in October. I do think missing the first week of a new school year if you change your dates would be worse though as the other kids will have settled in, made friends, and know their way around and yours will feel very out of it.

SuperRainbows · 21/12/2016 00:56

Go for it and stop feeling awful! What an experience for your dCs. Mine haven't been further than Wales and if I had the chance to do what you're doing, I wouldn't hesitate. Also, you made a genuine mistake with dates, so don't beat yourself up.

badhotfanny · 21/12/2016 06:16

Actually, teachers' holidays AREN'T paid. Long they might be, but we don't get paid for them.

emben12 · 21/12/2016 07:34

Piglet - teachers in our school get 15 weeks holiday per year. That is nearly 4 months! So I was factually correct! And yes they work hard but so do plenty of other people in important jobs. They get the downtime to compensate, most people don't. So it is always difficult to listen to them complaining about workload. Just that.

KERALA1 · 21/12/2016 07:35

Why can't you go in the summer holidays if it's California? We went last summer weather perfect and got great deal on flights.

PigletWasPoohsFriend · 21/12/2016 07:38

teachers in our school get 15 weeks holiday per year.

Through which they probably work a fair amount plus weekends, but hey ho. Every teacher I know does.

Plus as pp has said teachers don't get paid for holidays.

PberryT · 21/12/2016 07:39

Emben our holidays aren't paid. We are paid to work for 190 days per year, 32.5 hours per week.

natwebb79 · 21/12/2016 07:39

Oh ffs. Teachers get 12-13 weeks out of the school building, much of which is spent getting on with planning, marking, resource making and data. We are not technically paid for those weeks but our salary is paid over 12 months (unlike in the US where teachers often have to do summer work). How did even this thread go from 'We want to take our kids out of school for 3 weeks' to 'bloody teachers and their cushy holidays'??

KERALA1 · 21/12/2016 07:51

The "teachers have a lot of holidays" is a nonsense justification - anyway if teachers have lots of holidays so do kids which is when you take your "trip of a lifetime"

FranklyMeDeer · 21/12/2016 07:54

Never an opportunity missed for a bit of teacher bashing. Never mind that they aren't paid for their holidays (salary is paid over 12 months but is pro rata). . If it's so marvellous then why is there a shortage of teachers?

OP I think three weeks out is a bit excessive, I'd postpone and go next August.

bloodyteenagers · 21/12/2016 07:54

Wonder if it would be okay if teachers took their own children out of school for 3 weeks for a trip of a lifetime. Xmas Grin

Stillwishihadabs · 21/12/2016 08:00

TBH I wouldn't, especially for the year 6. As others have said what about secondary open days. Also how is it working with A/L if we took 3 weeks in term time we would be right royally screwed for the rest of the school year in terms of child care and also would be able to have any sort of a summer holiday in the 6 weeks before (which isn't good for academic achievement- Google "the summer slide"). Seriously pay the extra and go in August.

talkshowhost97 · 21/12/2016 08:01

We have just found out the october holidays have moved next year and instead of the kids missing 2 weeks of school which we checked was ok with the council education dept

I checked the dates at the time of booking in september of this year and they listed the holidays as they where this year these have now been confirmed and changed

Do you have any of this in writing? If you have proof that they changed the originally published draft holiday dates you might be in a better position.

Just don't hassle the teachers for work. As long as the rest of their attendance is good then it's a trip of a lifetime. Your kids aren't preparing for GCSEs.

Stillwishihadabs · 21/12/2016 08:02

Wouldn't be able to have a summer holiday. So dcs would have 6 weeks bored at home, followed by 3 weeks back at school then 3 weeks off, followed by another week at home ! I can't see that as good especially for the child with ASD.

TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross · 21/12/2016 08:05

Never mind the term-time holidays: can the previous oh-so well informed poster point me to all these cushy teaching jobs where teachers get paid for their holidays? Because as a normal teacher, I want me one of those jobs!

TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross · 21/12/2016 08:11

Oh, and I wouldn't expect the teachers to set work or help your DC catch up. In my experience, if students are off because they are unwell or injured, teachers are very responsible about setting work while the child is away and supporting them when they return, and absolutely see it as part of their job. But just because mummy and daddy fancied a cheaper holiday and/or didn't take the time to check the holiday dates? Not so much.

All we do if parents insist on taking kids out of school against the school's advice is warn them of the impact on the child's learning and of any drop in grades that is likely as a result. But this is a secondary school, so students do risk missing a huge chunk of the syllabus that won't be covered again.

WhoKn0wsWhereTheMistletoes · 21/12/2016 08:12

Round here the secondary schools all have taster days and open days in the summer term as well as October, most people have made their minds up long before October, just don't forget to make the application.

ShoeEatingMonster · 21/12/2016 08:13

Wonder if it would be okay if teachers took their own children out of school for 3 weeks for a trip of a lifetime.

Erm we can't! You do realise teachers can't take time off work outside of school holidays right?

jellyfrizz · 21/12/2016 08:20

Has anyone taken there children out of school for that Long???

Yes. My children have gone to school in 3 different countries. Because of his birthday my son completely missed year 4 when we moved back to England. He's now in secondary and doing really well.

There are many, many variables that affect a child's learning.

NavyandWhite · 21/12/2016 08:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

bloodyteenagers · 21/12/2016 08:26

Shoe, yes I am aware.
Just thought I would chuck it in. To see if it would be okay for the teacher to do the same. After all some are parents and would like to take their children on a trip of a life time to see some parks in another country. After all, not like the children would miss anything, so the teacher not there
Shouldn't be a problem Grin

PhilODox · 21/12/2016 08:36

Be careful about secondary application dates. Close of applications is end of October. If your eldest has additional needs and is statemented then their statement review to name secondary school may be in that period.
Also, an academy may remove them from roll after 21 days if oversubscribed. I don't think a maintained school (in England) can do so.

pklme · 21/12/2016 08:45

Some places you can't go without missing school- too far away, weather not suitable etc. We have found it a real bind trying to work round school hols.

Personally, if you think your DCs will cope with the change of routine and feeling a bit out of it when they get back, I would do it.

There is likely to be a fresh topic starting after half term, so that will be ok. They will need a couple of days to get over tiredness and time shift, so half term will help with that- they'd not have been good for much in school anyway.
They will miss whatever maths etc was covered while they were away. Ask teacher and a friend in same set if you can borrow their book for a week, so you can do the work with the Y2 Y6 children yourself.

WaitroseCoffeeCostaCup · 21/12/2016 08:53

2 weeks is ridiculous, 3 is taking the michael...sorry op I think you'd be nuts to do this.

bloodyteenagers · 21/12/2016 08:57

Borrowing books wouldn't be an option in most schools. The children have worksheets and these are stuck into their books. No way would I lend out my child's book even if it did come home, in case it was lost/damaged

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