To think children shouldn't be taken out of school for holidays?

[MidiMitch]

Just that really. An article today says four million school days a year are being lost by parents removing children for holidays. I am a teacher so probably rather biased on this but I think it's dreadful that children are taken out of school because of a cheap holiday. I definitely think that more needs to be done to stop the hiking up of prices in holiday time but I don't think the answer is to disrupt a child's education.

I took my kids out of their state primary school for a couple of weeks holiday every year. As a hospital doctor, whose colleagues also had school age kids, we couldn't all get leave during the school hols. The headmistress used to laugh and say it might give the other kids a chance to catch up! My girls got straight A's at secondary school, and good degrees (one in Maths and one in Business Studies) from Durham and Edinburgh uni's. They learned a lot on holidays - we visited many historic sites all over Europe, and thankfully never went near a theme park. Elder daughter hated them as she has Asperger syndrome and dislikes noise and crowds.
I feel sorry for modern parents facing fines for just trying to have a holiday. If kids can catch up the work after being off with an illness, why are they thought unable to catch up after a holiday? Most of the primary syllabus when my kids were young was stuff I'd already taught them pre school anyway, ie reading, writing and basic arithmetic.

Depends on what you teach, I haven't seen insidious so wouldn't know.

Buck you should get work for your dc if off sick for some time, of course you should.
It's not the same as handing over class work though. My class may well have a worksheet but to answer it thy need to have seen the PowerPoint/watched the video/heard me explain it to them. So to send a worksheet home I need to somehow note all that stuff down so it makes sense. With group activities it's even harder.

Buck3t

Surely if you are creating (photocopying, printing) worksheets for the kids staying in school, you can provide the same to the child going away or sick.

I have two subjects, one I can point you in the direction of work to do, the other I couldn't send any work home that would be worth anything. But I don't do worksheets unless absolutely pushed to do them.

The headmistress used to laugh and say it might give the other kids a chance to catch up!

How unprofessional of her.

Punishing the children for things the parents do

Is there a child on the planet who's going to feel "punished" for not being given worksheets to complete whilst they're on holiday?

If you, as a parent, don't give a monkey's about your child missing school for a holiday, can you tell me why their teacher should?

I think people should decide for themselves, it’s not he schoo or states Business, as long as it’s not more than 14 days a year really

If they’re asking for work, clearly they think education is important. And just because a child doesn’t feel punished doesn’t mean they are not being punished.

Buck3t,it isn’t that simple. Resourced lessons do require some teacher input! Besides, I rarely plan two —days— weeks in advance, so asking me for two weeks worth of work all at once wouldn’t work.

I'm doing it. DCs are in primary, neither of them at end of a key stage (but anyway it's after test weeks - they go on forever). I won't be asking for any extra effort from their teachers - if there's any catch up to be done when they get back I'll help them with it. It's that or no holiday on my shit public sector wage and I want a break.

It depends a trip to Rome will be far more beneficial than some school lessons. A trip to benidorm watching your parents getting pissed by the pool not so much.

Such snobbery about the type of holiday. Rome is ok but Spain not.

I've taken my kids out to go to Greece, Florida, Spain, St Lucia, a cruise round the Carribean. It doesn't need to be educational to be worthwhile as a family. And yes, I have used kids clubs!

I just don't understand why it can't be at the head's discretion- if the child is doing well, has generally good attendance, learning supported at home etc then why not if it's a one off or a particularly extenuating circumstance? My school was about 20% Jewish and most of them took most if not all Jewish holidays off school every single year except around major exams and they have all done extremely well for themselves. If you miss a day does it make it more valid if you're sitting in Shul on Yom Kippur rather than on a beach in Spain?

Dolphincrossing and if you say that, rather than “well if you really cared about your kid’s education you wouldn’t be gallivanting away from school for a week or two” you’ll have my sympathies and I’ll say thanks and never bother you about it. Otherwise you’re just getting a person’s back up with attitude.

I actually don’t even agree with taking kids out of school cos I’m a them’s the rules kind of person. It has to be a very special occasion. But each to their own. But the attitude of many teachers...

I mean I have worked for many dick head lawyers, but I don’t tar them all with the same brush. I like to give them the opportunity to prove that they’re dickheads before treating them as such. I don’t get that vibe from a lot of teachers on MN. Just my observations from a few posts.

Except I didn’t say it! I said on this thread at the start I was happy for kids to go away in term time.

If a child said they were going away in term time, I’d smile and say go and have a great time, and mean it too. Just don’t make your holiday create extra work for me! That’s not fair, is it?

I actually cannot stand this attitude, because many teachers let this roll over into genuine sickness. Still waiting for the promised work for my sick child (so these comments hit home).

That is very poor of the school, but it is a separate issue.

If they’re asking for work, clearly they think education is important.

And yet they are still taking their child out of school, so the holiday, for whatever reason is more important to them at that point.

@Dolphincrossing. I never said YOU said that. But that is the attitude displayed by others on the thread.

@Kaitlinktm or you could say equally important hence why they’ve asked for work.

Well, not wanting to nitpick, but you did say that!

@Dolohincrossing
Absolutely certain I wasn’t talking about you. You responded after I responded to someone else’s post. I then responded to your reasonable post saying if you say that instead of - exaggerated example of what was said by others -, then I would have no issue. So definitely not referring to you. It can get confusing who is talking to whom but in no way was I saying you were one of those teachers

@Dolphincrossing

Buck3t

My attitude is that your holiday shouldn't be causing teachers extra work.

Sickness is different and should be provided for.

However, having being taken to task by parents for their child not turning up to extra lessons that I had provided for him, I now just tell the parents what we are doing and how they can help catch up.

@Boney that is fair. If you explain it that way. But a few teachers on this thread have not expressed their attitude in that way. That’s what I find distasteful given that I have to hand my child to teachers who could definitely have this attitude about any subject matter not just taking kids out of school.

And for the record I don’t see anything wrong with telling parents what they’re doing and how to catch up. Especially if it’s one of those subjects where giving a worksheet won’t help.

There is some snobbery on this thread . If you can afford to take your kids long haul it is somehow more educational than Spain . We did a volcano tour in lanzarote , my son read the series of books based on berwilderwood after visiting .
I also think while there are obviously different opinions on his thread the presumption that your opinion is right for every family in the whole of the country is absolutely bizarre .

If kids get taken out of school on a holiday, I just give the parent a list of topics we're covering if they ask - some don't. They can use the topic list to read up on curriculum expectations and cover areas they miss themselves.

I'm not going to go making up packs of work and creating extra work for myself. I adapt my lessons depending on progress over the previous days/topics of interest, so I don't have a bank of premade worksheets - and I don't teach solely using worksheets. That doesn't apply to children sick or attending funerals etc.

Never went to a theme park maybe you should go to one and then you will realise they are not bad places!!
My dd has been to plenty of historical and important places as well as beaches and theme parks and she too is straight a student!!