-
Over the last six years, I have been removing my children from school to
travel the world
. - On our journeys, they’ve acquired knowledge from experiences that cannot be found in textbooks.
- Their educators aren’t typically pleased when they skip classes, yet up until now, they have managed not to lag behind.
With dual master’s qualifications along with extra work as a personal assistant,
adjunct professor
I prioritize education and approach my studies with a lot of dedication.
So, even before becoming a mother, I was clear about my commitment to making sure my future kids receive an excellent education. I confidently believed that they would excel in their studies.
perfect attendance awards
Each year without fail and never skip even one class.
Nevertheless, raising children often doesn’t unfold as we expect. Since my children have gotten older, I frequently pull them out of school for our excursions.
I witnessed directly how much my children gained knowledge from their travels.
Initially, I hesitated about removing my kids from school to travel the globe. But as I witnessed the significant advantages, I grew increasingly at ease with keeping them home from classes.
I believe that showing them how to exchange Moroccan dirhams for dollars made for a more practical math lesson compared to struggling with abstract equations in class that felt disconnected from reality.
Moreover, certain lessons cannot be grasped from reading; they must be lived through for complete comprehension.
Even though my children studied the Holocaust at school, touring the museums and gas chambers in Auschwitz deepened their comprehension of these events and provided them with an even greater awareness of the appalling genocide.
Moreover, they felt the stark reality of the climate emergency acutely as we gazed upon a swiftly thawing glacier.
Iceland
.
Of course, there is great joy in our travel as well. Seeing how life adapts and thrives in the desert in Dubai taught them more about evolution than any textbook.
My kids have missed class to visit places like
India
, the United Arab Emirates, and Istanbul, however, they have gained insights into various cultures, languages, religions, and cuisines.
In time, I recognized that I needed to remove them from their studies so we could squeeze in all the excursions we planned to go on.
Once we began journeying together, I soon realized we couldn’t visit all the places we desired within just our school holidays without each other’s company.
My kids’
spring and winter breaks
Typically lasting around a week, these trips seem insufficient for an international journey to me. Although summer vacations offer more extended periods, places such as Egypt can become unbearably hot during July and August, making them less appealing.
Moreover, since my children go to separate schools, their holidays rarely coincide. Therefore, six years back, I began taking them out of school for a few days each year to embark on trips together.
Teachers aren’t usually pleased when I’m involved.
Children skip classes to go traveling.
I get why teachers put in significant effort to create lesson plans and ensure students stay focused.
They frequently voice worry over the classes my children might be missing out on and how they’ll manage to keep up with their homework. While I do agree with this concern, thus far, my kids have kept pace without falling back.
To address this issue, I make sure to schedule our trips so they coincide with only a handful of days at the start or conclusion of school holidays. This ensures that they do not miss out on whole units and have minimal catching up to do upon their return.
At present, we have a functioning system and no intentions of discontinuing it.
Fortunately, several of my children’s educators have reacted favorably to our journeys, noting that these excursions will prove to be quite enriching experiences.
A teacher — who is also a parent — admitted how beneficial travel can be for strengthening familial bonds. Having personal experience, I completely concur.
I’ve discovered that whenever I pull the kids out of school for a trip, they come back with increased curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. Should this change at some point, I’ll reconsider how we handle our travels. For now though, it’s working well.
I have no intention of ceasing to take my children across the globe until they leave for college.
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