issues with school

[formed a band]

drugs? you do that for the years 19- 24 dont you? the start of uni, travelling period before you realise 'shit, id best get a decent job!!!'

thsts what i did anyway, and it yielded some dark times, especially at glasto, and especially the sort of thing the children of guardian readers want to winess

for the record im thirty now, I read the guardian, i dont have children , we have cat though, but I wouldnt take him to a festival

[essex_jim]

depends what you consider educational. I know many school trips that are vaguely educational, but in the main are a few days off school.

Why is Glastonbury not educational? Life is an education and never stops (if you're open minded enough)

[amfy]

if you cant see that school is more important than glasto at that sort of age, be it for just a few days then perhaps you shouldnt be breeding.

you dont want to take chances with education, and yes glasto is an education of sorts blah blah and other such tedious rhetoric , but there will be festivals a plenty in later life, nobody suffers from missing festivals til age 16.

[formed a band]

no-ones suggesting missing all of school for a lifetime of Glastonbury... it's a few days.. you know, like when a kid has a cold, they catch up

you'll never have the chance to experience anything at any given age again

why are you advocating finishing school before they take their a-levels if you're so concerned?

here's a hint... not everyone is like you (or me) some people are happy to take their kids without getting totally out of control. Is that ok by you?

you want to go to a festival and reach a coma induced state without being bothered by other people?? and you're lecturing others how to live their life?

[formed a band]

If I was taking a child it would be 2 days out of school. We like to go for the week but we would cut it down to just the Fri/Mon to minimise the days lost from school. Maybe one of us would go down early to get the tent up.

We would have loved to have taken my husband's son but we couldn't because unfortunately his mum was one of those who felt it was appropriate to take him out of school for Benidorm or Bodrum half a dozen times a year for cheap drunken breaks. It would have been impossible to take any kind of moral high ground if we had shown any hint of similar behaviour. In some ways this also gives me some level of agreement with those who say you shouldn't take your kids out of school for Glastonbury, because I do think he learnt from her behaviour that school wasn't as important as taking any opportunity to have a good time. By the time he was 15 he was hardly ever bothering with school at all.

However - as I say - just 2 days, for something that doesn't happen in the holidays at any price, and something that does have an educational value.

He always wanted to come with us but now he is 19 and past wanting to go anywhere we go! If we had taken him when he was 13 or 14 he would have loved it, and by now he would be persuading his mates to go or heading off on his own and still loving it, but he won't now - and in that sense, I do think he's missed out by not going with us when he was younger. It's remained something that's right outside his range of experience, and experience I wish we had been able to provide him with.

[Jackmypie]

'tony' here is an idea, try and realise when things are a little toungue in cheek, or indeed a little embellished too much

anyway I just dont see glasto as for kids, ok there is a sandpit, and bodger and badger but you could be mother theresa and yuo could still take kids to glasto and it would still be rife with drugs, extreme weather, alcohol, noise, out of control people

[formed a band]

Glastonbury has the friendliest atmosphere I have seen anywhere, ever. The people on drugs tend to keep to there groups of friends and don't disturb other people's enjoyment of the festival in 99% of cases. As someone who's been going to Glasto from a very early age I can tell you all what you have said is bullshit pretty much.

[The Goo Goo Doll]

My school which is actually in Glastonbury normally gives us the Friday and Monday off anyway but last year for some bizarre reason they didn't and surprise surprise the attendence plummeted. This year,we have those days free again (not that it affects me as my exams will be over!)

Anyway, the moral of the story is, if you wish to continue going to Glastonbury, maybe they will accept your offer in future years as unaourthorised absenses look bad on the school.

[formed a band]

are you still joking??

drugs, extreme weather ( ) alcohol, noise, out of control people ???

like most town centres on weekend night then

there are 2 dedicated fields for kids... by the time ours was about 7 she got bored with them and started asking "when are we going to see some bands"

[DeadAmos]

You will get very few people on here saying don't take them and that your 2 boys education should come first

No matter what anyones says there is only you can decide weather it is right for them to miss school

[123ginge]

*haven't yet read the whole thread*

Schools generally don't do much with lower years at the end of the year due to GCSE and A level exams and the fact that everyone's a bit tired so it shouldn't be that much of a problem. However I'm assuming that your 15yr old is a year 10 and therefore, if they are taking History/Geography, they are likely to have a lot of coursework (which now isn't allowed to be taken home) due in the weeks of and after Glastonbury. I wouldn't jeopardise their GCSEs but if you live nearby you can always leave as soon as you can and go straight there (when I did it I went back to school for Friday afternoon), if the coursework problem isn't relevant then I wouldn't worry - schools rarely follow up on you if it's only for a few days.

[danbailey80]

it is friendly, very friendly, no doubt. but its not for children

[Jackmypie]

it is, its like a town , going a bit mad for a few days, most towns and cities have plenty of kids facilities, but would i take a child to the park sandpit or swimming in the day then to a rave on a normal saturday night?

[formed a band]

actually maybe im biased, children are rubbish full stop

[bigbilly]

taking my two sons this year eldest is 15 (been twice before) youngest is 12(first time)! pretty much been told by the school that no authorised absences are being granted for any child regardless of the circumstances! this all seems abit clandestine to me, pissed off at the fact the school have more power than me to decide what is best for my lads, i'm 100% convinced that the pair of them would gain more education-wise in a week at glastonbury, than they would sat in a classroom!

[ukslim]

it is, its like a town , going a bit mad for a few days, most towns and cities have plenty of kids facilities, but would i take a child to the park sandpit or swimming in the day then to a rave on a normal saturday night?

[alframsey]

When I was younger I was ill the last weekend in June every year from 94 to 2006, never had any issues and I'm doing fine I think

Give them the 5 days off, Glastonbury memories are worth more than 7 days messing around in a class room at the end of the school year, most likely watching films, eating party ring biscuits, and drinking cheap fizzy 'cola'. Give them the best week of the year!!!

[Morse Code]

I took my son in 2009 and 2010 (then 12 and 13 years old), will be taking him again this year, and would thoroughly recommend taking kids.

I don't have a relaxed attitude to education and realise how important a rounded education is but we shouldn't assume that a child's education can only be achieved in a classroom. Indeed we shouldn't assume it's entirely the schools responsibility to educate our children either. My son has a keen interest in music and performing arts so how could Glastonbury not be an education in these areas? Compare the thought of taking a child out of school for a skiing trip for an entire week to The Alps (which our school does every year) and you could argue that Glastonbury holds a much higher educational value.

Aside from the simple educational argument there's also a lot to be said for spending time together as a family, enjoying a mutual interest that is outside the norm. There is huge value in having a positive relationship with your kids and, for me anyway, this is one way help cement that.

[Jackmypie]

this is the kind of thing I was 'hinting' at earlier. Is a ski-ing trip that educational?

[formed a band]

what a surprise

then f**k off lecturing others what they should do with theirs

with all due respect

[dvjj]

I love threads like this, makes it feel like Christmas Glastonbury!!!

[formed a band]

i told you that entire post which you haved editited to suit should be taken with a bucket of salt, however you have used it against me again despite that which is totally pointless, rendering your entire imput null and void by the official rules

so there, i win

the end

[duggie20]

Education is more important than a festival. They'll have years to go to Glastonbury in the future. What do you mean they'll learn more at Glastonbury in a week which is estentially a big piss up with lots of cool bands, than in a classroom?

[Glastoboy]

A brilliant response from someone I assume also missed out on a decent education to go to a festival. If you had stayed at school I would expect a far more structured and reasoned response.

There is no way my kids would miss out on valuable education that is paid for by the tax payer to simply attend a music festival.

I started attending music festivals when I was 15 but made do with V as it was outside of term time. When I was older I started on places like Glastonbury.

It's bad parenting, and before anyone starts having a go as I know you will, the moment the OP put this on the forum it's open to all kinds of opinions including my own.

[/quote

Nice sanctimonious attitude you got there Essex Jim. I can tell that the compassionate Glasto vibe doesn't rub off on you much then.

[duggie20]

How can taking a child out of school for a week be bad parenting? parents are entitled to a holiday whether it be in Disneyland or Glastonbury, not everyone is lucky enough to be a teacher or M.P. and have holidays during term times.