Once in a lifetime trip - 3 weeks off school

[XMissPlacedX]

My daughter has always wanted to go to Disney world Florida, but due to funds I've not been able to afford it. She is 14.

Her aunty who is quite well off and has a daughter the same age (my dd's cousin ) goes to Disney world Florida every 2 years and has offered to take my dd next year for 3 weeks.

The problem is it's the first 3 weeks of the school term ( September 2024). I've asked her if there was anyway of going in the summer holidays and she said it would double their cost and it would be cheaper for them to pay the school fine .

What do I do ? Do I say yes or no ? I would love for my dd to go but am not sure how much the fine would be and what impact missing that amount of school would cause.

I'm really torn

Poor kid. Such a great example to set of the importance of education..........

To be honest I would let her go, and if I felt very guilty pay for a few tutoring sessions to catch her up.

I think thats a good idea, just disney then home and back to school. She doesn't need to do the rest of the travelling as Disney is what she has wanted for ages.

Probably best to do it right at the start of the school year anyway as then she knows she has to catch up as soon as she is back but will know exactly what she has missed

I've always took my kids out of school for holidays. 4 of them holidays to Disney. My daughter is just in the process of applying for Uni so no major harm done.
However, I do think 3 weeks is a bit much.

If the second part is about visiting different places, I would let her do the whole thing. Travelling is learning.

Maybe she can do some revising and reading before going?

Yeah, a week to ten days is fine and then have her travel back alone if the flight is direct.

Say No - next time Yes.

She should be concentrating on getting the best GCSE results she can and eventually a good job so a trip to Florida (or wherever) isn’t a once a lifetime opportunity.

Three weeks is too long, can’t she do 10 days or 2 weeks. Three weeks of Disney is also a bit ridiculous, doesn’t it get boring?
i think you are potentially sending a poor message here, Disney js more important than school. The parks will be still be around next year or the year after, it’s not the trip of a lifetime.

3 weeks in Yr 11 is taking the p.

Sorry just saw the update that she will fly back after 10 days. Still think the message here is that Disney js more important than education.

So immediately after a 6 week holiday from school she'll be off for a further 3 weeks! Mental. They often do small tests at the start of term & tons of homework. She'll be playing catch-up all term plus may well be off at other times during year 10 due to illness. Her attendance record will be shocking & school will be sending letters home to her parents about it.Can't believe the people saying go for it. Madness. They get enough holidays during the school year. Wait til shes finished her GCSEs & will have a very long summer break. Plenty of time for a cheap holiday then imo!

Let her go it’s a one in a life time opportunity and she’s not getting any younger she’s still only 14!! 2 years time she will be 16 and be older life is to short let her live her childhood and go for 3 weeks and have the best time ever!!!!

and F*CK the school far to many bank holidays , strike days , off all the time for COVID and moan at us for taking OUR own children on holiday no don’t think so! She can catch up on when she’s home! 😊😊

Definitely let her go.

If you wait until after GCSEs then she’ll be starting college and you don’t want her to miss that!

Some things are more important than school.

Let her go for the entire time but have an agreement with her that she’ll do extra revision and to try and keep her attendance up.

Never feel guilty for giving your child such an amazing experience.
If the worst was to happen and they passed away or became terminally ill, you would be glad that they got to experience such great things.

Just be aware that you will be at risk of getting a fine and that she’s going to miss the beginning weeks of her KS4 topics.
But you could find out the scheme of learning and get her to revise the first topics, so she’s not too far behind her classmates.

P.s I’m an ex teacher too!

Let her go on the condition that she attends every single study group that school offers. Unless she wants to be a brain surgeon or has ridiculously high hopes for academia or studying something incredibly complex, GCSEs won't matter a fig in the long run. Especially not if she's determined to succeed at whatever she sets her mind to. This is a trip she will remember forever.

Hmmmm strange coincidence they are discussing this very topic on the radio this morning.

Hell yes. What a treat. Hope she has a fabulous time.

I missed about a month of the start of my second-year A-levels due to illness. I caught up perfectly fine (including a fair amount of coursework) and got excellent grades. I would say let her go.

She can't because it's the start of term. So the week before she'll still be on school holidays.
Me personally wouldn't do it, not year 11. It's stressful enough without missing the first 3 weeks which are pretty bloody important for setting the store for the rest of the year. Also, Disney these days is not a 'once in a lifetime opportunity'. I know more people who've been than I can count. Maybe one day she'll be an adult and able to take herself.

Her cousin must be at the same point in her schooling - any chance they could go in August for a shorter time? I know it's £££.

This is bollocks. Otherwise every single kid with a long term health condition would do badly in their exams. The simple truth is that a kid that is off for 4-6 weeks with two broken legs in year 10 won't fail their exams , off they have studied well previously and do extra homework to catch up. Our schooling system is based on consolidation and building on existing knowledge and if they haven't got a very firm foundation by the age of year ten/eleven then that's more concerning than a one off trip for 3 weeks.

GCSEs also don't determine academic success in later life. I didn't get a single one as I dropped out due to sexual abuse but I still went to university as a mature student and achieved a degree and a masters.

There are fairly uneducated parents at my children's school who already know their children own whole properties in their names or are likely to in the near future... Is it any wonder they whip them out for holidays whenever they feel like it.....

You can't own property, as in land or buildings, until you turn 18. It must be held in trust for minors.

Your point about inherited wealth is solid.

I’m leader of a school and honestly I’d say go. Life only happens once and often what is learnt outside of school prepares us more than school does. I would have the agreement with her that she has to do pre work etc. ask the teachers for information on what they will be covering etc in any exam subjects.

Check their policy. Some schools will off-roll a pupil after two weeks, it’s less common now but check

People make me laugh...they don't recommend 3 weeks when she's in y11 because she's doing GCSEs ...even though she's perfectly able to self-study and catch up the missing work. Yet people are willing to miss chunks of Foundation Stage and Y1 when they are literally learning fundamental new things everyday from scratch so if they miss it, they miss that learning completely. I'd say she'll be completely fine. Let her go but find out what she's missing and male.her catch up.