November vs. August

[NY GOOFY]

I need help with planning. I have a DS entering high school in September. We have always taken our Disney trips in either October or November and missed a few days of school. Now that he is entering high school I am nervous.
Our 2 choices are to go in November (he will miss 3 days of school, but crowds and weather are great) or August (he will miss no school, but heat is brutal and heavier crowds).
Any opinions from those of you out there with high schoolers? Thanks:confused:

[DisneyMom12]

I would go with November. 3 days is not that bad. See if the teachers will give him his work.

[cuteduck223]

we took a high school freshman in January. She was going to miss 6 days of school, but was able to get all of her work ahead of time.

She had all of her homework done by the middle of the week (she
would get ready first and then do hw during time when people were getting ready in the morning).

it happened to be the week of the blizzard here in Illinois, so she was actually ahead when she got home-she ended up only missing 3 days of school.

If your son can commit to doing homework on the trip (and you are committed to making time for it) its really not a big deal.

[Giselle]

Definitely November. Three days is not a big deal in the scheme of things, and IMHO it is not worth the time and money to go when all the out-of-school vacationers are there in the summer because you spend all your time waiting in lines, everyone is grumpy due to the crowds, and the heat is exhausting. However, many people go during the summer and have a wonderful trip. Have a great one!

[exvagirl]

November, definitely. I'm actually in high school, and I went in nov. and missed two days of school and it was totally fine. Got all the work ahead of time and the weather and crowds were GREAT! :thumbsup:

[NJGIRL]

My vote is for November. In the grand scheme of things missing 3 days will not make a difference. To me being comfortable during a vacation makes a huge difference. Family time is so important and he may be getting close to the time when he doesn't want to vacation with his parents anymore.:(

BTW our teachers will no longer give us work ahead of time so we just make it up when we get home.

[EvilQueen2006]

Depends on what dates in Nov or august. the last week of august tends to have lower crowds because local schools are back in session already. Thanksgiving week in November tends to be more crowded.

The weather is def. better in November! Unless you love extreme heat and humidity.

[Ramblingman]

My vote would be for November. Both of mine graduated from HS in the last few years (one just last year) and missing three days is no big deal.

When we were in SC, we planned a trip to DC for business. We decided to take the kids to see the sights. Since it was three days in January, we discussed it with the teachers and principal beforehand, and had all our ducks in a row with homework handed out before we left, etc.

After we got back, we received a letter from the school board implying we were bad parents for not sending our kids to school and warning that we were facing suspensions and other penalties should there be additional time missed. Needless to say, they changed their tune when I went down there and pointed out that my kids learned more in those three days than they would have in any month of school. The icing was we had written permission from the school prior to leaving plus our children presented reports on their trip.

But hey, that is unlikely to occur in a high school, so stick with November and avoid the humidity of August.

[RedSoxFan]

My daughter will be a freshman in HS in the fall as well. We are taking her out of school for 2.5 days in November. The boys have missed a few days when they were in HS for trips and have never had a problem with catching up. I vote for November as it'll be just too hot in August (at least for me anyways).

[Disney Doll]

My kids are not yet school aged, but as a former teacher I would say I think it just depends on the kid. If your child struggles in school I would be hesitant to have him miss 3 days for vacation, but if he does well and you don't think catching up would be too difficult for him I think missing school now and then for family time is perfectly fine.