Senior Week

[citygirlsmom]

for my D, her friends couldn't wouldn't go to the hawaii trip (which sounds really icky- i can't stand being around messy partiers- and teens aren'tthe most responsible when it comes to picking up their messes at the beach or pool), and she just didn't wnat to hang with the rest of her class, many were nice kids, but seemed those that went to the beach were either real partiers, or ones that just couldn't wait to start

my friend lets her son go, he did it as a jr with seniors, he is a good kid, but really, what was she thinking

turns out his SR trip to hawaii for grad week, he was messing around with his friends and really trashed his ankle...it took 8 weeks to heal and almost ruined his chance to play his sport in college- he finally admitted they had been drinking

[mairoula517]

I don't know...I definitely agree with many here that senior week is really just an excuse to party, but you have to know your kid.

I'm a senior in high school and I'm going on senior week with my friends. None of us really drink or anything like that, so senior week is going to be a fun, relaxing week at the beach...nothing crazy, but a good time none the less. My parents trust me and know me enough that they know I won't get into trouble. I guess it depends on the kid, but not all senior weeks are bad!

Plus, like someone else mentioned...how are you going to send your kid off to college if they can't spend a week at the beach alone??

Also, I think it depends on your kids friends. I would have to say I have a pretty unique group of friends for my high school.

[NorthMinnesota]

Never heard of Senior Week around here. Glad we don't have to deal with it!

[HisGraceFillsMe]

Ours is before graduation too.

We graduate June 12th.

June 3-6 we have Senior Finals (the rest of the school just has regular classes).

June 9th is the Senior Assembly (where they basically tell us not to screw around at Graduation and yell at us for an hour)

June 10th is Senior Distribution (where we get our Caps & Gowns, tickets and that sort of stuff)

June 11th is the Senior Picnic (FUN STUFF, I'm excited).

[Bigredmed]

My little brother had 8 of his friends go to Cancun (at the end of July for some bizarre reason). My dad and another couple chaperoned. My brother had an absolute great time, my dad had a great time, and they still talk about it pretty frequently. The four kids who had never drank while in HS were the drunkest ones on the trip for the duration.

It's a little bit different, but I went on a trip to Vegas with 10 of my fraternity pledge brothers 2 days after college graduation, and it was absolutely one of the best memories of college for me.

I don't think it's that big of deal to begin with but I think there is definitely wiggle room on this, something to get your child to spend time with their friends for one last significant memory. Whether that's another trip or something else, that can avoid a lot of the concerns you might have about this particular "senior week".

[inspiration08]

i know in VA, its really known as "beach week" and tends to involve a lot of college students as well.

my opinion? i hate parents that are overbearing and hyper-involved in their kid's lives. i've seen a lot of stuff that makes me think some people just should NOT have children. ever. being a senior, and going to beach week, really only happens once, and i think parents should let their (18 year old, about to go off to college and live on their own for gods sake) seniors go. and yeah, it IS just an excuse to get really drunk and party. if this isnt your kid's scene, they probably dont want to go. if they do want to go, then maybe you dont know everything about them (shocker).

i mean, my mom is letting me and my best friend go on a cruise to the virgin islands for spring break, because my 18th birthday is right in the middle. she knows that i do drink, regularly, and thankfully my she's really cool with that because im responsible about it and i basically do everything i'm supposed to (grades, sports, work at a restaurant).

not everyone is lucky enough to have an amazing family like mine. i really will miss them at college- i've grown to appreciate them so much in the past two years!

[HisGraceFillsMe]

^If you're drinking regularly and you're 18, you're obviously not responsible.

[RacinReaver]

Why not?




PS: Talking to someone that didn't ever drink until he was 21 here.

[inspiration08]

i actually am incredibly responsible. your statement has absolutely no basis, HisGrace. please elaborate.

[HisGraceFillsMe]

If you're drinking and you're 18, you're breaking the law. Since when is breaking the law on a regular basis (even a law that you disagree with or you think is wrong) responsible?

You could be very responsible in the manner in which you drink...but you're being irresponsible in that you're drinking underage, which comes (at least) with a hefty fine if you're caught. I don't know the exact penalty and I'm sure it varies by state.

[Singersmom07]

"how are you going to send your kid off to college if they can't spend a week at the beach alone??"

Around here Beach Week is putting way more stress on young people and their decision making ability than most of the college experience will. I know that big parties and getting drunk occur on campus and off. But beach week concentrates it to an unbelievable degree with all the peer pressure added in.

Answer for all 4 was "No" here and no apologies. None of mine could go until they were old enough to reserve their own rooms and pay for it.

We did allow various other trips on a smaller scale without the peer pressure for drunken over the top parties.

[1of42]

Originally Posted by HisGraceFillsMe

If you're drinking and you're 18, you're breaking the law. Since when is breaking the law on a regular basis (even a law that you disagree with or you think is wrong) responsible?

Ever heard of civil disobedience? Maybe not perfectly responsible, but certainly not reprehensible.

In any case, I think you'd find that many (or most) of the most responsible, smartest, nicest and most successful high school and college students you know drink underage. They do it because the law is that stupid.

[HisGraceFillsMe]

^I'll agree with you that civil disobedience is not necessarily reprehensible.

However, she's not getting the alcohol herself, and asking others to buy it for you is certainly irresponsible, because they face worse penalties than she does should they be caught. Even if it's her parents who are willingly providing it, which is a whole other debate.

I don't want to get the thread off topic, as there's a whole other thread solely based on alcohol if you'd rather continue this there.

Also, I happen to know that very few (if any) of my close friends drink. In fact, I can't think of any off the top of my head. I know a good friend of mine used to drink, but quit after one of her friends got into a very bad accident involving a drunk driver.

[1of42]

Yes, we should probably continue the discussion another time. All I will close with is this:

You have a very, very atypical group of friends if none of them drink. In high school, I can think of maybe 1 or 2 kids out of the 150 in my senior class that did not drink on at least major party occasions (though it was in Canada, so a lower drinking age, but still, all of them were underage). Of my group of friends, everyone drinks when we go out clubbing, or partying, or whatever. Here at college, the same holds true - though the substance-free dorms increase the ratio of kids who don't drink, somewhat. But even with a decent substance-free population, by far the majority of people on campus drink, at least occasionally.

It's probably a testament to your friends that none drink - but it's certainly not typical.

[HisGraceFillsMe]

Oh, I'm well aware, and I do see your point. I don't think that just because someone drinks it makes them a bad person...and in hindsight, I probably shouldn't have used the word "irresponsible" either. I just think the consequences it could have aren't worth the momentary gratifiaction of a "buzz". I'll also admit that I'm very biased against alcohol, since I know too many alcoholics and I've seen too often what alcohol does to a person and their family.

Anywho. To get back on track.

I've always found the whole "Let them do it because they'll be in college in a few months" argument to be a cop-out. Yes, they'll be in college soon-but they're not there yet. Also, I think that when these students are shacked up on the beach with all their friends and then they get drunk, there's a tendency to want to do stuff they wouldn't normally do to prove they're "cool".

I dunno, seems too high-risk for me. Like a trip to the ER waiting to happen.