TOTALLY GEEKED!

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

RE: Pretty much an absurd article.

Empyreal · Senior Member

Like kids don't get any valued learning with real world experience...

Our kids' school is awesome, we take them out for about 6 weeks a year and the teacher staples a homework packet together for them to complete and hand in when we get back.

They also get credit for their visits to museums, monuments, national parks and other experiences as long as we send pictures and something to share with the class about it.

just Czech · Give Me Grand's!

Empyreal wrote:
Like kids don't get any valued learning with real world experience...

Our kids' school is awesome, we take them out for about 6 weeks a year and the teacher staples a homework packet together for them to complete and hand in when we get back.

They also get credit for their visits to museums, monuments, national parks and other experiences as long as we send pictures and something to share with the class about it.

But Empy, your kids are getting an advantage other kids are not. Don't you know that's wrong? wink

Good for you, Empy. Your kids are being enriched culturally and educationally. Enjoy it while you can. By the time our kids were teenagers they hated the museum trips.

huskerbb · Guru

When our kids were junior high age, or so, we took them to a Husker game in Blacksburg, Virginia.

While there, we traveled to Washington, D.C. to see the various monuments, went to some of the Smithsonian museums, went to Ford's Theatre and the house where Lincoln died, and we went to Gettysburg (which, if you have the chance, is AWESOME and TERRIBLE at the same time).

You can't tell me that they would have learned more in the 4 days they would have been in class than what they learned on that trip. Not even close.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Most of the time it isn't if they would have learned more. But more about what they are learning at the time.

Yes, visiting all the monuments and historic places are educational and I love them.

but if it isn't relevant to what they are learning in the class room or if they are learning something in class that is important for the next thing they will learn. It can be detrimental.

just Czech · Give Me Grand's!

lilyofcourse wrote:
Most of the time it isn't if they would have learned more. But more about what they are learning at the time.

Yes, visiting all the monuments and historic places are educational and I love them.

but if it isn't relevant to what they are learning in the class room or if they are learning something in class that is important for the next thing they will learn. It can be detrimental.

BS. Learning is never detrimental, period.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

You are right.

But what is detrimental is a child not being in class getting an important building block for the next thing they will learn.

All the historic sites in the world can not teach a child all the subjects in school.

If the trip is complimentary to what they are learning, then great.

If you are looking at forts and they are learning about WWII then that isn't complimentary.

Missing class can be detrimental.

NAOW · Vette's SS

That's the problem with teaching to the test. For a lot of people, Washington D.C. is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I think students should be encouraged to go if the opportunity arises.

huskerbb · Guru

lilyofcourse wrote:
Most of the time it isn't if they would have learned more. But more about what they are learning at the time.

Yes, visiting all the monuments and historic places are educational and I love them.

but if it isn't relevant to what they are learning in the class room or if they are learning something in class that is important for the next thing they will learn. It can be detrimental.

Your last statement is simply absurd. Learning is not "detrimental".

Heck, YOU are the one who posts on here fairly often complaining about what the school teaches and the way they go about teaching it.

Who cares if it is "relevant" to what they are learning in the classroom? That, in and of itself, is IRRELEVANT.

You are assuming that what they would learn in those few days is even that important--and if the kid had a B or C grade before they miss those days--and a B or C grade after they get back, then it essentially made ZERO difference.

Sure, if it means they are going to flunk, that might be different--but if a kid flunks a class, it's NOT because he missed a few days of class. There are FAR larger issues at play in that case.

huskerbb · Guru

lilyofcourse wrote:
You are right.

But what is detrimental is a child not being in class getting an important building block for the next thing they will learn.

All the historic sites in the world can not teach a child all the subjects in school.

If the trip is complimentary to what they are learning, then great.

If you are looking at forts and they are learning about WWII then that isn't complimentary.

Missing class can be detrimental.

Again, who gives a flying fvck if it is "complimentary" or not? That's the most ridiculous objection I've ever heard. People can learn more than one thing at a time.

Sure, missing class CAN be detrimental, but not at all for that reason. However, most of the time, missing a few days is NOT detrimental at all. If they are getting a B average in class before they go, it's HIGHLY likely they will be able to maintain it when they get back. Even if it drops to a C--so what? Is getting a C in a couple of classes in junior high as opposed to a B REALLY going to have a material impact on their future? No way.

-- Edited by huskerbb on Saturday 3rd of January 2015 04:09:05 PM

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

just Czech wrote:
lilyofcourse wrote:
Most of the time it isn't if they would have learned more. But more about what they are learning at the time.

Yes, visiting all the monuments and historic places are educational and I love them.

but if it isn't relevant to what they are learning in the class room or if they are learning something in class that is important for the next thing they will learn. It can be detrimental.

BS. Learning is never detrimental, period.

Of course it ISN'T.

flan

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

huskerbb wrote:
When our kids were junior high age, or so, we took them to a Husker game in Blacksburg, Virginia.

While there, we traveled to Washington, D.C. to see the various monuments, went to some of the Smithsonian museums, went to Ford's Theatre and the house where Lincoln died, and we went to Gettysburg (which, if you have the chance, is AWESOME and TERRIBLE at the same time).

You can't tell me that they would have learned more in the 4 days they would have been in class than what they learned on that trip. Not even close.

husker, I don't know if I could stomach that...or a visit to Auschwitz.

flan

huskerbb · Guru

flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
When our kids were junior high age, or so, we took them to a Husker game in Blacksburg, Virginia.

While there, we traveled to Washington, D.C. to see the various monuments, went to some of the Smithsonian museums, went to Ford's Theatre and the house where Lincoln died, and we went to Gettysburg (which, if you have the chance, is AWESOME and TERRIBLE at the same time).

You can't tell me that they would have learned more in the 4 days they would have been in class than what they learned on that trip. Not even close.
husker, I don't know if I could stomach that...or a visit to Auschwitz.
flan

It's not macabre in that way. It's just striking in the number of memorials to various units and the lives lost. It's not that what you see is going to make you hurl--it's just the awesomeness of the terrible sacrifice of lives made to end slavery in this nation.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

As someone who claims to be a former teacher, if the teacher is teaching something that has to be learned to go on to the next thing then you should know better than anyone how hard it can be for a student to catch up.

I am not saying that a child CANT learn something valuable on a trip to those places. They most certainly can.

Only that the timing of the trip should be carefully considered so the child doesn't miss something crucial in a class at school.

I also think teaching a kid they need to go to school not be out just because is important. Yes, you get vacation time and sick days in the work force. But you do have to plan for it and not just take days any time you want.

Commitment is something a lot of people DONT learn.

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

Lily, this is why you ask the teachers for the work ahead of time. This way, on the airplane, or in the hotel, you can work on the class work they missed. My kids always managed to get the work done for a whole week in just a few hours - highlighting just how much time in the regular school day is wasted.

If there were concepts they were learning that I couldn't help them with (and that happens very very rarely) then my kids used their recess or free period to catch up with the teacher. We never asked a teacher to come in early or stay late because we chose to go on vacation.

This does teach commitment - a commitment to completing their work as promised. It also teaches your child to make arrangements to meet their commitments no matter what obstacles are in the road.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

huskerbb wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
When our kids were junior high age, or so, we took them to a Husker game in Blacksburg, Virginia.

While there, we traveled to Washington, D.C. to see the various monuments, went to some of the Smithsonian museums, went to Ford's Theatre and the house where Lincoln died, and we went to Gettysburg (which, if you have the chance, is AWESOME and TERRIBLE at the same time).

You can't tell me that they would have learned more in the 4 days they would have been in class than what they learned on that trip. Not even close.
husker, I don't know if I could stomach that...or a visit to Auschwitz.
flan
It's not macabre in that way. It's just striking in the number of memorials to various units and the lives lost. It's not that what you see is going to make you hurl--it's just the awesomeness of the terrible sacrifice of lives made to end slavery in this nation.

Okay, thanks.

DH is a Civil War buff, he would love it.

Maybe someday...

flan

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

I just don't understand the need to take a kid out of school with all the breaks they have.

If it is necessary, that is a different thing altogether. But just to go on vacation?

I don't agree with it.

I know that is my opinion and mine alone.

Kids should be in school unless it is absolutely necessary to be out.

NAOW · Vette's SS

All the breaks they have? We don't have lots of breaks. Christmas break, and 4 day weekend on Easter and Thanksgiving.

I wish the school would do a week off in the fall or spring. That would be ideal.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

I think a lot of it depends on the child. SS is currently failing math. He doesn't even have the basic concepts mastered. He is so behind that he is being put in mandatory tutoring. For the life of me I have no idea why or how they keep him in Gifted and Talented. His other grades are barely passing. For him, being gone for two weeks would be detrimental. But if a child is doing fine in school and can make up the work I see no issues at all with them going on vacation.

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

lilyofcourse wrote:
I just don't understand the need to take a kid out of school with all the breaks they have.

If it is necessary, that is a different thing altogether. But just to go on vacation?

I don't agree with it.

I know that is my opinion and mine alone.

Kids should be in school unless it is absolutely necessary to be out.

For us, I was not allowed to take vacation time when the kids were out of school. If the kids were off, it was a holiday and I needed to be at work. So the only time I could take vacation was during the school year. I didn't give a second's thought to it and neither did the school because my kids did their work and made arrangements to stay on top of their assignments. If anything, it taught MORE responsibility than the average day in school.

I also took my kids out for a special lunch on their birthday (if it fell during the school year) and brought them back to school when we were done. I didnt really care what the school thought of it. They are MY kids and as long as I am their mother, they will be where I think they need to be. No one ever took issue with it - and DD wasn't shy about telling the school secretary where we were when I brought her back.

It didn't ruin their lives, it didn't teach them to be irresponsible. They are exactly the opposite. One day doesn't teach a kid anything. It's a pattern that teaches them. And the pattern in our house was school comes first, unless there are other circumstances.

I know what to do_sometimes · Frozen Sucks!

MM, depends on the kid's mood the day they take the tests, which is why the tests are given a few times a year. DD's scores are out of the park, she is smart, reads all the time and is good in math. If she received a lower score on the tests one time, I would not be concerned.

I know what to do_sometimes · Frozen Sucks!

And BTW, the Euro kids don't have better schooling, different and different test baselines, doesn't mean they are better.

huskerbb · Guru

lilyofcourse wrote:
I just don't understand the need to take a kid out of school with all the breaks they have.

If it is necessary, that is a different thing altogether. But just to go on vacation?

I don't agree with it.

I know that is my opinion and mine alone.

Kids should be in school unless it is absolutely necessary to be out.

Fine. You are entitled to your opinion--but your previous justifications to others are nonsense.

Also, your opinion extends no further than your own children.

-- Edited by huskerbb on Saturday 3rd of January 2015 08:00:06 PM

huskerbb · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
I think a lot of it depends on the child. SS is currently failing math. He doesn't even have the basic concepts mastered. He is so behind that he is being put in mandatory tutoring. For the life of me I have no idea why or how they keep him in Gifted and Talented. His other grades are barely passing. For him, being gone for two weeks would be detrimental. But if a child is doing fine in school and can make up the work I see no issues at all with them going on vacation.

Exactly. If they are getting a B before they go--they'll probably get a B when they get back. Whatever they miss during those few days they either already know, will learn some other way, or it just isn't all that important.

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

I know what to do_sometimes wrote:
MM, depends on the kid's mood the day they take the tests, which is why the tests are given a few times a year. DD's scores are out of the park, she is smart, reads all the time and is good in math. If she received a lower score on the tests one time, I would not be concerned.

Here we only take the tests in the spring.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

I really think this needs to be used with reasonable common sense. If your kid is failing - don't pull them out of school for a vacation, that's just dumb. But if they are doing fine, I think they should be able to. We try to do family vacations with extended family, but with different school schedules, etc., it's very difficult. School is not everything - life is about more than that. If done RESPONSIBLY, I have no problem with it.

BTW - our school district allows for 10 unexcused absences, but the school DD10 attends is a theme school and we can only have 5. She has had one so far for a long weekend vacation b/c her and her sister had fall breaks on different weeks b/c they go to school in different counties.