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Original poster

Taking kids out of school before our holiday

40 replies

PrettyCherryBlossom · 27/06/2021 09:08

There’s a couple of covid cases in my children’s school and one year group is now isolating. School finishes for the summer on Friday and we’re due to go on holiday (in the UK) the following Saturday. I’m considering withdrawing them from school in the middle of next week, meaning they miss the last couple of days, in case they are told to isolate and the isolation period overlaps with our holiday. Am I over reacting or would you do the same?

OP posts:

Orangedaisy · 27/06/2021 09:10

I’d not thought of this, but heard someone at work discussing it. I’m sorely tempted to do the same, despite it being against all my principles and all the lost learning etc. One dd finishes school well before our holidays, the other (at a school preschool which isn’t the same as the school she starts in September) finishes two days before we go away…..

HelloMissus · 27/06/2021 09:14

I’m keeping my foster kids off the week before we take them away.
Already told their key worker.
TBH school is a damp squib now anyway as none of the usual summer term fun stuff is happening.

KatherineOfGaunt · 27/06/2021 09:17

I'd do it. I lost my whole half-term family holiday (parents and siblings as well as our families) due to a positive case in my class (I'm a teacher). The amount of teaching in the last few days will be small anyway.

Before this pandemic I would be frustrated by term-time holidays and lost learning. But now I feel that my mental health has really suffered by not being able to see people and socialise and get away from home and doubtless millions of others are suffering in the same way. We don't know what the future will bring - more lockdowns? A bad winter surge? A new variant?

Take your children and go while you can!

womaninatightspot · 27/06/2021 09:19

My kids are finished for the summer but the last week was essentially watching movies in class. There are people who are up on holiday who've pulled their kids out of school early in fear of being told to isolate. Honestly I'd keep them off they're not going to miss anything and I'm sure you all could do with a holiday.

TheKeatingFive · 27/06/2021 09:24

I’d do this in a heartbeat. No learning happens in the last few days anyway.

DumplingsAndStew · 27/06/2021 09:29

I love how during school closures, everyone was preaching about how school was about more than learning, it was about being with friends, seeing social skills etc. Now people want to go on holiday, it's okay to take kids out of school and keep them isolated for days.

Canigooutyet · 27/06/2021 09:29

Depends on the age of the child. I was going to do similar just a clash elsewhere pushed things back a bit which turned out to be needed as exams have been pushed back due to an outbreak.

Bobholll · 27/06/2021 09:32

Yep, do it.

We were due to go on holiday last Friday & my DD got a bad bout of tonsillitis the Monday of that week. She missed her days at nursery as really not so well. On Thursday evening at 8pm we got a call to say her room at nursery was closing due to a positive case & DD would have had to isolate but obviously didn’t have too as she wasn’t in 😱 We’d have literally had to cancel our holiday 12 hours before we set off. Doesn’t bare thinking about. My kids were so excited, the car was packed. Pet sitter paid. Food delivery organised to the lodge we were staying in. Grandparents halfway there as they did a stop over due to a long journey to get there 😬

Thankgod for the tonsillitis!

TheKeatingFive · 27/06/2021 09:35

Well our school’s head emailing us constantly to tell us we were our child’s first educators, while delivering a very substandard remote learning programme has changed my view a great deal, yes.

Bobholll · 27/06/2021 09:37

@DumplingsAndStew - you know entirely well this is completely different though. In the first wave, most kids missed school from March - September & this year Jan-March. Here we are talking about missing one week max.

& no-ones talking about isolating them. Just not having them in school where one case means 29 healthy children have 10 day isolation.

DumplingsAndStew · 27/06/2021 09:56

But no-one cares about the other aspects of school when it comes to a holiday, the sole argument is that 'no teaching is done over the last week'

Mindymomo · 27/06/2021 10:01

I would take children out, we are due to go on holiday on Friday in UK, and have cottage booked with cancellation policy which is good, but if I could keep us all at home beforehand I would, but we’re all adults.

ZingDramaQueenOfSheeba · 27/06/2021 10:07

parents at my kids' school did just that last year as cases were rising because of not wanting to be quarantined instead of going to work.
then lockdown happened anyway.

take them out, make your life easier.
I'm gonna keep some of mine home for one day before school year ends because it will make that day bearable.
I shouldn't, I should just be strong.
But I know I won't be and so I have to do what I can do to protect myself so I can cope on the day.
they will not miss out on anything by staying home for a day.

Backyard72 · 27/06/2021 10:24

My son sits 11+ exams September 11th. I will probably not send him back to school in the New school year to avoid the headache of what to do if he had to isolate over his exam day.

HelloMissus · 27/06/2021 10:28

Dumplings usually I’d say those last weeks of summer term are brilliant.
No academic work to speak of - just lists of lovely activities.
But this year there’s going to be bugger all at foster kids school cos they’re desperately trying for no bubbles to burst by curtailing virtually all social interactions. Don’t blame them at all. But it has coloured my view on the value of the kids being at school versus their first ever holiday.

MilkCereal · 27/06/2021 10:30

I would. I'm a teacher and wouldnt hesitate- the fun stuff is cancelled....

Alwats1stUp · 27/06/2021 10:30

I did it before Christmas.

0None0 · 27/06/2021 10:34

Too late for you but for anyone else planning a holiday, make sure you leave isolation time between school ending and holiday starting.

Also get covid insurance

Crunchymum · 27/06/2021 10:37

We considered it in order to make our half term holiday, but the 6yo had been off for 4 days the week before due to a cough / temperature (and being generally unwell but had a negative PCR test) so we bit the bullet and sent them all in.

We had a lovely week away. Was just what we all needed.

Our primary has had no cases but if we had a holiday booked for the first week of summer holidays, I'd be seriously considering keeping mine off.

CustardyCreams · 27/06/2021 10:38

Do it. School is rubbish, nothing fun, just hot and miserable at the moment

Clementine8 · 27/06/2021 10:54

With parents who are teachers i have had it ingrained in to me that you don’t pull kids out for holidays. We go away after they break up but i’m taking them out earlier and speaking to other parents i think a lot will do this

FflosFfantastig · 27/06/2021 12:15

I think I would do the same in your situation OP

BirthdayCakeBelly · 27/06/2021 12:16

I absolutely would.

CagneyNYPD · 27/06/2021 12:21

On this occasion, yes I would do it.

Delatron · 27/06/2021 12:29

I would do it. 10 days isolating versus a holiday that you probably really need. And will do the kids a lot of good after this last year..

Nothing happens in the last week anyway.

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