Parents disagree with 6 months travel with kids...neep advice.

[Plummonkey88]

We plan to take our kids 9&6 out of school for 5/6 months to travel.

There will the the summer holidays, Easter and other bank holidays within this time and it woulda put about 45 days they will miss.

We are not at the stage to tell my parents, but I know when the time comes they will disagree.

We are a close family and they help alot with our kids, but they are also old school and won't understand.

I know it should just be a case of me saying this is what we're doing, but I just feel that they are going to put a real damper on it and say it's wrong and we shouldn't be doing it.

Any advice from any parents who's kids have done this, or how you would feel if your kids done it would be much appreciated.

Also, to mention my kids are doing great at school and I would look to do bits and bobs with them during the time away.

Are you expecting the teachers to help your children catch up with everything they've missed, whilst also teaching the rest of the class?

@ResidentPorker no.

Yes to this!!! I wish I could give my kids more experiences, and the opportunity to fully learn and thrive in different countries through 'proper' schooling, but we don't have careers that would allow us to.
I'm so glad to hear it had that massive positive impact on you ❤️

No advice on how to deal with your parents but just to say I’ve done and am doing similar at the moment. I didn’t have to deregister my children, it’s down as unauthorised absence. Our last term is very busy with outings and sports so I don’t think they are missing a huge amount of learning so I’m not worried about them having to catch up.

@WhereDoBrokenHeartsGo thanks so much for sharing! I'm 100% with you on this.. that's why I'm planning for those particular months and from the start of the school year.
I hope yous are having the time of your life! Are you documenting your time publicly? I love following travelling families .

Don't underestimate the social impact on your 9yo (the 6yo will be fine). I know three families that did similar at the same age. In two cases, even with digital connections, the 9/10yos ended up a bit friendless when they came back. Out of sight...they just didn't get included in physical connections anymore.

This is such a wonderful opportunity! For you, for your kids, for you all together. I have traveled a lot around the world and have met families doing similar adventures and have always really admired them. Your kids will miss a few months of traditional schooling but they will learn so many other skills from “life” and will grow in confidence and independence.

Regarding your parents, you haven’t actually told them, so you are worrying in anticipation. Either train yourself to not worry until it’s needed, or just tell them now.

Start from a place of confidence and acceptance - be confident that you are doing the right thing, and accept some people won’t agree with you. As you say your parents spend a lot of time with you, it would be fair to tell them as soon as possible so that they have time to get used to the idea. Some of their resistance will probably come from the fact that they will miss you, so have explanations ready of how you want to keep in touch.

Ultimately, they don’t need to agree with your ideas. But if you are clear that you believe in yourself and believe you are doing the right thing, then you can say to them that you understand they have concerns but you want them to trust and support you anyway.

Apologies I didn't realise you were in Scotland which is completely different- with England you would obviously be risking fines/prosecution if it went down as unauthorized for that amount of time

Are you doing this primarily for you and your DH? We started travelling each year when my dc were 8 and 10 for month long trips and now in their late teens they tell me they don't really remember them. Snippets, but I wonder if they would have got that from a 2 week holiday. So make sure its because its what you want.

Buy the phonics books the school would be using for your 6 year old over that period and the same for your 9 year old. I wouldn't worry about much else but id really keep on top of the reading and keep their logs updated - that's the hardest thing to catch up on.

We home educated our kids. My in laws nearly had heart attacks. We did it anyway. Best decision ever. Six months is nothing in terms of education but will be amazing for you as a family. Go for it!

We did similar, I’d 100% recommend it.

And I’m sorry but it’s got nothing to do with your parents 🤦‍♀️.

Time spent travelling or experiencing different cultures/places is always worth it.

@Mudlickets Me and my husband travelled pre kids, and continued to do so when we had them.
We also do month holidays.. this year we are going to Singapore, Sumatra and Malaysia... We don't take it slow on these trips lol
It's interesting to hear your kids don't remember a huge amount and you questioning the normal 2 week holiday.... We had our kids in srilanka, Thailand and Vietnam and then we thought are we being selfish traveling to suit us, so we booked a 2 week holiday in Croatia with kids clubs etc... none of us enjoyed that groundhog day type holiday and we ended up hiring a car and driving to Bosnia, booking air bnbs along the way and we all had a much better time.
So, I think we want to do this for us all as a family, albeit we already had a lovely for travel before the kids! And even if they don't remember them fully, if they enjoyed it all at the time then that's the main thing!
I will definitely ask the school what they use, I understand they arent obliged to give me specific work for them, but we can hopefully work along the same lines.
Thanks so much for you reply... I hope you are still enjoying some travelling, even though your kids are up now!

@ThisIsMyYearToFindMyself love hearing of people that have already done it!! Did you all slot back into 'normal' life ok? And did you documen your travels anywhere?
You're 100% right about my parents, some of these replys have been really useful... I think it's just me having the right way with words and presenting it to them in the right way. I understand they will have worries etc so hopefully laying them all our will ease their minds and they will accept this what we want for us!

We are off to Japan soon!

@Mudlickets it's on our list.... If budget allows!!! Have the best time.

Be firm on what the benefits are for them. Sometimes I preface conversations with what I expect from them so could you say outright you don't need their opinions on it because the decision has already been made and the plans are in place?

From a teachers point of view, if you could avoid them missing the first few weeks of a new school year I would. Not sure how that works with your plans but I've seen quite a lot of students struggle when they return to school after missing the first few weeks. The pace might be slow but a lot of prep work is done that can make some students feel isolated when they return.

Its a great opportunity for you all. Hope it works out.

Thank you and it was because of my Dad's job. We didn't have to move around but he thought it would be good for us, my Mum wasn't as happy about it. It was hard for her, she had already moved from her family roots and had to up sticks.

However for me it was amazing and we did settle back in England eventually, which I found soooooo awful, boring and grey. It gave me the lust for life and I've since lived in different countries and travelled a lot, which I've loved. Xxx

Its not about the remebering. Its about experience shaping you. Babies can’t remember going to baby sensory or rhyme times but we do it to help their brains develop and socialise them.

Take the kids, 6 months is nothing in a lifetime of schooling.

My kids missed about 20 months in total, we kept up in maths and read a lot but that was all. They slotted back in fine.

I don’t think you should justify yourself really, it’s your decision. If you start justifying, it opens up a conversation that implies you need their approval, and you don’t. I’d be offended if my parents thought I wasn’t putting my children first or hadn’t considered basics like schooling. Obviously if it was just part of a conversation and my mum asked our plan I’d be fine, but if it was because she disapproved and was telling me the reasons she disapproved and the things she assumed I didn’t have a good enough plan in place for, I wouldn’t be impressed.

I am not in Scotland so it may be different there but Home Schooling for a period would certainly result in your child being removed from the roll here and their place being given away if someone wanted it.
I am not saying that you shouldn't do it, I am just saying that you should take into account the fact that you may be struggling for a school place when you return.
BUT school places may not be in such demand where you are.

Might your parents feel differently if you planned in a couple of opportunities for them to come join you along the way? Bet the kids would love that too and it would help break it up.

Did you go in the end @Plummonkey88 ??

That's a shame. My sister and BIL just travelled with their 8 and 10 year old in SE Asia for 6 months (and it didn't include the summer). It was a great experience and I'm sure they learned much more than they would have done at school. The school had no problem with it. They did of course check there would sitll be places for them and they were officially home schooling for the duration. They had some online tutoring, I'm not sure how much exactly. I think just weekly.

Key info missing… where do their children attend school?