I would come up with the money somehow for the trip. It sounds like a wonderful opportunity. I would have loved for my kids to have a chance like that!

I'd let her go, opportunities like this don't come long very often. My DD went to Australia and New Zealand when she was a freshman (with the People to People organization). She had a wonderful 3 weeks doing things that she would not have had the chance to do otherwise.

Oh, I didn't make it clear that she is a freshman in high school and only 14. That's what worries me too.

Donna

one of my kids did summer school in london (and traveled all over on the weekends, lol), and one in puerto rico...

dd2 was with a friend and they were on the buddy system...but dd1 went, not knowing one person, but spoke fluent spanish. they were both college age...and both were before 9-11...but it was a lifetime thing, and they both benefitted from the experience. it did help mature dd2.

it does depend if it's school sponsered, and the number of chaparones...where they stay, and what the objective is, has the trip been done before? if she's a mature child, can help earn monies for the trip (i assume they'll have the required number of fund raisers) maintains her gpa, then i think she'd do well...

What does your gut tell you? If you feel a resounding no that she shouldn't go, then you probably shouldn't let her go.

I (standing on the outside looking in) can understand your fears as a Mom (of two girls, myself), but I also see the cultural and life-enriching benefits the trip will offer her. On the flip side, I also understand the financial aspects of it. I'm sure it won't be cheap. It's a sacrifice that could be well worth it for her.

Pray about it and talk with DH more and give yourself a few days to think more about it.

Please let us know what you decide.

All I can say, we were lucky as our daughters never had such an opportunity.

They did go to Germany, but there they were picked up by my sisters, and they stayed with family the whole time there.

My youngest was 12, when she went (after grandpa invited her for the summer), and the older daughter went in her junior year in high school.

Moni

I know that various classes in both the middle school and high schools in this district do these types of trips regularly, (not necessarily to Europe, but to Canada, Washington DC, Fla)and I will assume they are well organized and know what they are doing. (It is a very good school district with very dedicated teachers that that do tons of things for the kids here)

My daughter really is amazingly mature for her age and in a vaccuum, I would say yes without blinking an eye. I guess it's the safety issues this raises that has me worried.

Also, I know that this will not be an inexpensive trip and I will have to talk to dh about having her defray some of the cost (not a huge part, but some of it) just to give he some sense of responsibility.

I have some time to mull this over.

Thanks for your input and if anyone else can shed some light with their experiences, I would appreciate it.

Donna

I can certainly understand your fears, but my 1st thought would be to let her go. Since it's a school trip and given her age, I would expect they'd be supervised most if not all the time.

Will she ever get an opportunity like this again? Get her a little spanish dictionary and a good camera!

Also, I think it's a great idea to have her work for a portion of the trip, or her spending money. It will mean more to her knowing she babysat XX amount of hours, raked leaves etc to earn the trip.

Buena Suerte! (Good Luck!)

If it were my DD, I would find the money somehow and let her go. I think it is wonderful that you would have her work and earn part of the money. My friends let their DD go to France with her French class when she was just 12 and then again when she was 13.

Is this something that the school does each year? If so there will be another opportunity later on. I would discuss that with her and let her know that you are in favor of her going, but that she might want to consider waiting a year or even two. A little more maturity could pay off.

If that is not feasible, then I would help her every way possible to raise some of the money, and let her go.

How times have changed! 1942. . .my high school Senior trip was to Williamsburg, overnight(!) and we thought that was fantastic. Actually, it was, because that is where I met my future DH, but that is another story.lol

Sue

Our schools have been doing this for as long as I can remember. My 16 year old will be going to Spain with her Advanced Spanish class this year. My oldest went to Germany with her high school German class 2 years ago. She had a blast and I'm sure my younger one will also. The kids were well taken care of and chaperoned. Nothing wild or crazy happened.
Donna if you can make it happen, let your daughter go. You will not regret your decision. NancyLouise

What she will learn on a trip like this is terrific. Way beyond any book on Europe or Spain she could pick up. Of course, you know this from your trip.

Does she really want to go? If she seems lukewarm about it, I'd take that as a "no."

Love your idea of having her help with the expenses, even if it's a small amount. There will be expenses beyond the trip itself, probably some clothes, maybe luggage, spending money, etc.

Find out all you can about the trip. Maybe they are having an orientation for students and parents you can attend. You want to know where they will be going and when, what they will be doing each day, and especially how many adults will be going and how much the kids will be allowed to explore on their own. How many students in a hotel room, and does she have a nice friend in the class she can room with? They will probably be unsupervised in their rooms, so the choice of an appropriate roommate would be important. What company or person is making the trip arrangements, and have they done this before? When you have all the information, you will probably feel more comfortable.

I consider trips like this for our children truly a "gift." I hope she can go if you are comfortable with the plans.

Susan

I'd defintely have her work to pay for a significant part of it. It is a real opportunity for her to work toward a financial goal and to reap the rewards of that hard work.
(And... I bet you she will enjoy it more than the kids who contributed nothing will.)
I think the chance to expose her to another country and their culture should not be missed.
Good luck with your decision!

Do let her go, don't let her miss this once in a lifetime opportunity. I have been to Spain, it is a beautiful, peaceful country. Everything is very inexpensive there. As long as she is in a group and they use the buddy system, she will be fine. One thing I did was a tour of the Olive Factory, very interesting....and another one of the castles there... One thing that was so amazing to me the whole country seems to shut down around 11 and doesn't reopen until about 2...long lunch hours. Oh, how I wish I were going with her. I long to go back.

My youngest went to Mexico for a week long school trip when he was just 12...of course I was a bit worried,but the school had a teacher chaperone for every 4 kids plus a medical Dr also traveled with them.
He enjoyed it immensly.
He's now in his final year of obtaining his PHD and has studied in and travelled to many countries,but that first trip away from home will always hold special memories for him.
I think that the experience will do wonders for your daughter,but as a parent I understand your concern,

Does she have a passport already? And also find out if you need to get noterized letters from both parents allowing her to go. New regulations are quite strick. My DD got into serious trouble over a year ago just taking her two girls to Canada without written permission from their Dad.
Trips are great as long as there is adequate supervision, a qualified medical person, and the orgization that is taking them has done this before and is aware of any alerts etc.
Has the person (teacher) from her English class done this before?? Does she speak spanish fluently? Is the whole class going?
Lots of questions, and you need to get everything in writing. What airlines? Hotels? Money? who handles it?
Yes it can be a excellent trip, but if this is just a class outing, and the person has not done this before I personally would say no.

I think if she wants to go, you can afford it, you think she's mature enough, and the trip is well organized and chaperoned, it sounds like a terrific trip.

However, I just want to point something out, because a couple of posters have mentioned phrases like opportunity of a lifetime...when will she have an opportunity like this again...etc (sorry, I don't remember exact wording). Anyway, most universities have amazing travel opportunities that weren't available back when I was in college. At my son's college, students can spend an entire semester in France taking classes taught by in English by professors from his college. They structure the classes so that students always have a 3 day weekend, and most students save their "easy" classes to take in France so they'll have time to sightsee. The students buy Euro Rail train passes so they can see lots of Europe. There are also many, many similar opportunities available in South America, other European countries, New Zealand, Australia, etc. So your daughter will probably have the opportunity to to Europe in college if she likes. I think college students can also get student loans to help defray the cost.

My 10th grade daughter wants to go to Europe with her high school class. I've told her that we can only help her a very few times with travel expenses, so she needs to think very carefully about whether or not she wants to spend $2500 for 9 days in Europe, when she could put that money toward $7000 to spend an entire college semester there. I hope she chooses to wait and go as part of a college program.

But if finances are not an issue, then it sounds like a wonderful opportunity for your daughter and perhaps she can travel both in high school and college. Just be aware that there are a lot of fabulous travel opportunities that open up to college students, and don't make a huge financial sacrifice thinking that this will be her only opportunity. There will be others.

Okay I'm going to tell you about my DD#2's experience with her German Class when she was 17 or 18 (so about 3 years ago). Lots of kids, teacher VERY experienced, plenty of chaperones. MOST kids were good. Couple were caught trying to buy heroine in Denmark I think it was or maybe the Czech Republic. One kid got angry because a glass elevator wasn't moving fast enough, so he punched it, broke the entire pane of glass, almost got the group kicked out of that hotel. Oh yes, his grandparents were one of the chaperones! The teacher said it was THE WORST trip she'd been on. The adults had to take turns sitting in the hallways so the kids slept in their (segregated) rooms. MOST kids were good, but the ones that were not, they almost ruined it for the good ones.

SO...I don't want to burst your bubble, just wanted to point out that sometimes it isn't the best of times. If you're sure your child will be one of the good kids (mine was one of the good kids, I checked with the teacher when I heard these stories, only thing she did was plug in a ---what we thought was the correct voltage plug in, said so on the box---wasn't and blew out the electricity on one side of the hotel, it was truely an accident, and MY fault, I got the converter for her---anyway good kids will be good, bad kids, they'll be bad, plain and simple

Vickey=MN

My niece went to Europe 2 Easters ago with her class (4 teacher chaperones), she was 16. She went to Florence, Rome, Athens and a few places in between. She loved it and I am so glad she got the chance to go.
Last month she went to Arizona with a school team (4 kids, 2 teachers). Again, chance of a lifetime, she saw Sedona Red Rocks, the Grand Canyon and rode in a hot air balloon.

Both times she raised money for the trips through yard sales, bake sales, etc. Her parents didn't have to pay anything for the Arizona trip but did pay some for the Europe trip.

I'd say let your daughter go. School trips are generally safe. I can't imagine passing up an opportunity like this.

Thank you so much for all of your input. It has been invaluable. You have given me so much to think about.

I know it is a great opportunity and even though we can probably afford it, she will be paying for a significant portionof it if we allow her to go.

I will await more information and will raise many of the good points you guys have mentioned.

I have so much trouble letting go and letting her explore the world. Thanks for your help. I will let you know how it turns out.

Donna

What a wonderful opportunity. My DGD#2 went to Australia last spring w/ a group. She was 16. My oldest daughter went to Hawaii w/ the school band when she was a freshman, and her little sister went to NYC as a freshman. Let her go. She'll be fine and will have memories to last a life time!

Donna, Do you have your passport? If your DD goes, make sure you have your passport just in case! A friend of mine got her passport when her DD went to France at 12 years old. She said that if something happened she wanted to be able to get there ASAP!
Well, nothing happened, but she felt better about letting her DD go.
Kathy G in MI

My best friend takes students to Spain and/or Mexico every year. The kids are freshmen-junior year. They have a wonderful time.

In the 11 years my friend has been doing this, there was only one negative incident - involving a 17-y-o getting drunk. He was put on a plane home the very next morning.

These teachers really take their responsibilities very seriously. They want a positive and enlightening experience for every student, and they work hard to provide it.
The particular program my friend works with has students staying with host families, (thoroughly checked out) and attending courses during their stay. They actually have very little free time. And during the free time, they are with the chaperones, and meet up every hour or so, or they're on a tour of a museum or somesuch activity.

I'd send my child.

Hi concerned Mom (and, probably, Dad),

It seems to me that one of our major tasks as a parent is to encourage our young ones to develop their independence and help them move toward it ... in incremental steps.

World War II (despite U.S. claims/experience to the contrary) began in 1939, when I was 10, and our farmhands went into the forces. Dad at just under 40 had a fairly large farm, for those days, to run ... and my younger brothers and I got introduced to various and multitudinous chores at an early age. I've long felt that if our young folks grew up with an experience of being granted certain responsibilities and privileges, beginning at an early age, and live with the certainty that, as they discharged those responsibilities reasonably capably, would have more granted, we would avoid many of the rebellious activities that occupy the minds and time of many of our youth, these days.

I often sat down and discussed with my kids what kind of result(s) they might expect to happen, were they to follow a certain course, or another, or a different one. That is, to help them develop linear, logical, multi-faceted and critical thinking.

When we come to a fork in the road, we choose which course to take, then later, though (usually) we can't go back to re-live it ... we can learn from the results that have come from that choice.

My daughter spent a year on Rotary student exchange program with a family where the father was civic engineer in Hamburg when she was, I think, a junior in High School. She went with a school group to spend a week camped (tenting?) above Florence, travelled " ... like a little mouse in the back seat ..." with her family on several extended trips, visited North Africa ... and had a ball.

She was a sensible, smart kid ... but it matured her a good deal ... and got her interested in travelling and participating in various new ideas that may have been latent before, but had been undeveloped ... and had she not had that opportunity, who knows whether they ever would have been developed?

Unless there are some substantial counter-indications that surface, I'd be inclined to let/encourage your daughter to go: it'll quite likely change her life ... bend the sapling in different ways for the tree to grow ... or at least provide her with some memorable experiences.

I recommend having your daughter make a significant contribution to her trip: earned stuff is much more highly valued.

If the U.S. is to participate fully in world affairs, in a way that will engender more respect on the part of people in other areas, she needs people who have participated in different parts of that world: our world has become much smaller ... a "global village", right? A much better impact will be made if many of her citizens have travelled abroad and come to know the people there and respect not only the people, but their ways, as well.

Good wishes to your fairly responsible, smart daughter (according to your testimony) as she proceeds to develop a multi-faceted, interesting, challenging life. And to you, her parents, as you proceed with your own adventures, further down that road of life.

Never kill the kid that resides within you (even at advanced age) ... or strangle the kid that you guide (for a short while).

And enjoy your kids while they're with you - for they're soon grown and gone. I regret that I could be only a semi-involved/resident father after my kids were 6 and 9.

ole joyful

Younger son went with the Latin Club in high school to England. Several students and adults were on the trip, and it was a trip he enjoyed. They went the week of spring break and the week after that.

Go to the parent meeting and ask your questions.

By the way, these broadening experiences are great to put on college applications. Admission folks like to see such independence and culturally educational experiences.

My DD had that opportunity when the school orchestra and choir went to Germany for 3 weeks. I think she was 15, but many of the members were older or younger. The kids sold oranges and grapefruits to make money, and/or worked at the local fair in the school booth selling hotdogs and burgers. All of these things were supervised by the teachers. She was able to make up at least half the money needed.

While in Germany they were housed by families of the German choir and orchestra. They had a wonderful time and were on their best behavior as it wasn't just the teachers, but the host families they had to be respectful of.

On another occasion she was sponsored by our local Lions club as an exchange student and spent 6 weeks in Switzerland hosted by a Lion member and his family there.

These were both opportunities we didn't feel we could deny her, especially since she was willing to help pay for the first one, and the Lions club paid for the second one.

Our daughter went to Europe this yr. She went with a school trip. She said that all the kids were very polite and well mannered. Even the ones that she had doubts about . She loved it.We have been and are hoping to go again soon.
No one knows your daughter like you do. You have seen the best and worst of her. My advice is to attend all the meetings and get to know all the other kids that she has made friends with. I am assuming that this is her first yr in HS. This is a choice that your family makes. If you decide to let her go, I'm sure she'll love it.
Make sure she has a MC so she'll have that to fall back on if she doesn't have enough cash. ATM cards are a must. Check the exchange rate and she'll need a passport. If your husband can go you'll never regret it. School trips are great but I'd have to think long and hard about letting my 14yr old daughter go alone too.
Good luck
The school can always use good chaperons.

Well, hopefully I will find out more today. I spoke with dh and maybe he will consider going (he has never been to Spain, while I have). My dd does have a passport, as do I and dh. My dd really has great friends (as smart and mature as she is) so I would not worry about that part of the trip (but I would also be talking to their parents also).

I am going to keep an open mind on the issue. I like the fact that they are starting very early to get information to the parents. You guys have give me some really great tips to help in the planning of this thing.

I should also mention that if she can't go on this trip, there is a senior trip to Disney that they do every year.

Again, I will keep you guys updated. Thanks for all your help.

Donna

My son Janson is 18 now and a senior in high school. He'll be going to Italy and Greece this year with his girlfriend (Also 18) and a bunch of others. My initial reaction was fear but you know what... I raised a really great, responsible child who is now a young man. He's paying for a large portion of the trip. No matter how fearful I am for him, I can not let my fear hold him back. I've taught him that a risk not taken is a missed opportunity so I have to stick with that now. Your daughter has an opportunity to go on a school sponsered trip with chaperones. It would be great if your husband can go, but if not, allow her to go and I think you'll be amazed how it affects her life.