<p>The senior trip at our kids’ high school is an 22 day backpacking trip in the Sierras, supervised and led by young professional outdoor educators. The seniors take off in small groups of 8 or 9, a few days after APs are over, and return a couple of days before graduation. For most, the 80 mile hike through mountains and some fairly rugged terrain is not only a wonderful bonding experience, but life-changing as well. Two to three days during the hike is spent “solo”, where each student spends time in a stationary campsite away from his classmates in solitary contemplation. (This is a real challenge for many.) The 22 day adventure ends with a six-mile run and celebration, when all the groups come together at the end, cook, eat, compare notes and sleep out as a whole class.
Three weeks with no parents, no teachers-- just the students, the leaders and and a real opportunity to get in touch with nature and oneself.
This is a senior “week x3” I could support.</p>
<p>Moonchild- my oldest did something very similar but it was through the canyonland, mazatzal, four corners area, and since their guide - who was their history teacher had connection to the tribes they spent time on Indian land as well.
Their teacher also led a sea kayaking trip in Alaska, but D didnt feel ready for it the year before.</p>
<p>Youngests senior trip was the culmination of a year long class learning to repair & rebuild donated computers. Her group went to Ghana, & the students took 90% of responsibilty planning and organizing the trip, including the fundraisers and grantwriting that permitted them to go. Once they were there, they installed the computers at the local school which served as the community center and taught others how to maintain and use them.
Their organization had been to Ghana five times, and the original computers were still running. The Ghanians are quite resourceful! :)</p>
<p>At one of the initial meetings for parents early in the year, the main teacher told a story about the first site ten years ago that still makes me teary. They were installing the computers in a Mexican orphanage, in a small village and passing their knowledge to the children that lived there.</p>
<p>Once you were 12, you were expected to fend for yourself, leaving some kids to wind up on the streets, as an apprentice if they were lucky or slave labor if they werent or for the girls, “marriage” to an old man.
As he watched a girl who was just about 12 who was having to leave the orphanage, show off her new computer skills to her friend, her face lit up as a new realization dawned. " I can go to the city to find work" she said, " I dont have to have some old mans babies". 
It opened up a whole new world for her & these high school kids had a part in that.</p>
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<p>This is always true. But the consequences of few mistakes sometimes are very grave and regretable.</p>
<p>This thread reminds me of this:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1506779-sons-prom-night-dui.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1506779-sons-prom-night-dui.html</a></p>
<p>I may be an old fogey but it seems that the partying culture of teens is meaner and more extreme than when I was a kid. I blame it on Jacka$$, Tosh, Jersey Shore, YouTube, etc. </p>
<p>Kids are exposed to inane and dangerous things that most would never dream of doing by themselves. Alcohol enemas anyone? Once judgement blurs after a few drinks, all bets are off. Add peer pressure and then stir in instant photos and video. It’s not a good mix. </p>
<p>Of course they are going to be exposed to partying at college. But unlike beach week, college presumably has the responsibility of classes and the structure of dorms.</p>
<p>As a resident of one of the east coast beach areas that you are sending your children to for beach week I see first hand how your so called adults act. Drunk, rude and impulsive behavior is the norm. Their behavior affects people people in a way you may not be aware of.</p>
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<p>This ^^^</p>
<p>I think I mentioned on the Class of 13 thread about how the boardwalk shops sell Tshirts saying “Xyz High School Drinking Team” and other stupid things. I don’t view senior week as an opportunity to let your kids be adults and learn on their own. That is ridiculous - on a college campus at least there will be a significant section of kids who don’t want to get hammered every single night, plus there are alternative activities and the structure of classes as mentioned above.</p>
<p>Senior week for the vast majority involves partying every night, cramming many kids into one condo, and no supervision. A recipe for alcohol poisoning or worse.</p>
<p>Exactly! We dread June around here. When my kids were in high school, prior to us moving to the beach full time, my answer was no. Now that I am first hand witness to the group mentality behavior these kids exhibit, I am grateful I didn’t let them go.</p>
<p>Hoping aacheermoms daughter returned home safely.</p>
<p>In reading this thread, I’m surprised not so much by kids going to senior beach weeks (which S1 did) but kids going on co-ed sleepovers or camping trips close to home. Maybe it 's because we live in conservative area of the country, but that simply isn’t done here (at least not openly) and if it was, my sons would not be allowed to participate. You don’t have to leave home to get in trouble - there’s plenty to be found in your own backyard.</p>
<p>I am not sure I agree that a coed camping trip should be tagged as risky.</p>
<p>Older D had always attended very small private schools and her friends were at least 50/50 boys & girls. She grew up having boys overnight at our house & vice versa. </p>
<p>Starting in elementary school, the all school overnight at a city park housed both boys & girls + moms & dads in same cabins. They did have a same sex parent handle bathroom duty however.
Which led to exchanges like one kindergartner suggesting I could sleep with his dad, when my 6 yr old & new to the school- daughter was hesitant about me leaving at night & bunks were already assigned.
( I didnt take him up on it - but I did lay down for a while.</p>
<p>Perhaps it was just a more innocent environment. When she was in middle school on a character building backpacking trip in the middle of November in a temperate rainforest, I was more shocked by one of the students pouring fuel onto a fire, than I was hearing that she had to move into one of the boys tents when hers collapsed in a rainstorm.</p>
<p>Emeralkity, I think footballmom is talking about unchaperoned events with kids just taking off to go camping together, similar to beach week.</p>
<p>It’s not done here either, footballmom. Don’t feel bad. I know it’s more accepted in some regions than others, and it’s becoming more acceptable everywhere, but it’s still not really okay with us.</p>
<p>We offered to let D2’s boyfriend come on a family camping trip with us, and get a cabin with him having his own room, or two shelters next to each other and him having his own nearby shelter. We were pleased that he was happy with this arrangement and actually consulted with his parents about the appropriateness of the arrangement before making a decision. Good kid. We like him. :)</p>
<p>Well, in that case, I will say that I am by nature a worrier & I wouldn’t let my kids go off with their same sex friends while they were still in high school for a camping trip, even when their friend is über responsible and trained in wilderness first aid + search & rescue ( and also was 18- my kids didn’t turn 18 until end of school year)</p>
<p>I didn’t forbid her to go, but my dog and I went to the same campground just so I would feel better. My dog & I had fun, but it was Sept & I forgot how cold it got at night. I had forgotten ground insulation.
Doggie was not too happy, she wanted to sleep in the car.</p>
<p>Other than that, they didn’t express interest in unchaperoned trips in high school.
They liked having parents around ( or maybe just my wallet).</p>
<p>Just heard thru the grapevine that one if the group houses at senior week got thrown out by Tuesday. A parent was complaining ‘there goes $5k down the drain’</p>
<p>This was a house with NHS stUdents and mostly girls. I have not heard if any of the boys houses fared the same. </p>
<p>My son would never admit it but I think he’s glad he didn’t go.</p>
<p>I had never heard of the concept of beach week or senior week. It was not a phenomenon at either of my 3 kids high schools (one private and one public)in Florida. </p>
<p>We have a house on the Jersey Shore. Now I understand why the rental down the block was filled with teenagers a few weeks ago. They were loud, and happy but not out of control. I was just surprised to see them there and on the beach when I knew that NJ schools were still in session.</p>
<p>This whole idea of Beach week seems crazy to me. Do the parents pay for this? None of the kids I know could afford something like this, nor would any landlords I know rent to a bunch of teenagers. To me, this just sounds like overprivileged, spoiled rich kids with little regard for the law, or for the rights of others (such as the right to enjoy a nice quiet weekend at the shore). Around here, even graduation parties are rare. S2 and his friends are busy working to try to save money for college. I keep trying to encourage a trip to a nearby waterpark and he refuses to spend the money!</p>
<p>I enjoyed this thread, I had no idea it WASN’T common to go on beach week! I too, like aacheermom’s daughter went to OCMD when I graduated (3 years ago) for a week with friends! </p>
<p>Along with that, the same summer as a graduation present my best friend and I spent two weeks, just the two of us, in Cannes, France…</p>
<p>(The second comment was more an anecdote for parents allowing their kid to go somewhere on their own)</p>
<p>It also may be difficult because we own the home we stayed at in France and we just stayed in a hotel at the beach that was ALL senior week kids</p>
<p>
Beach Week/Senior Week is pretty much a regional thing, I think. Mostly mid-Atlantic area, it seems. It’s not surprising that you might not have heard of it in Texas. </p>
<p>As for who pays, it depends. For example, if a condo costs $2500 for the week, the per-kid cost is probably $300 - $500, depending on capacity. That sum can be earned at an after-school job. It’s really not a cost that’s just for “overprivileged spoiled rich kids.”</p>
<p>I went on a senior trip with my best buddy the day after high school graduation as a Texas teen. We went to Corpus for a couple of days, and then to San Antonio overnight. It was a blast. If my parents had known what all we were up to, I would imagine I would have gotten some push back. I had my own money from odd jobs. Couldn’t believe they let me go. I came back with a very risque bathing suit and my hair bleached out! <strong>gasp!!</strong></p>
<p>Just depends on the kid, the circumstances, etc.</p>
<p>^ It also depends on the culture and time. Twenty, thirty years ago teens did not have hookup culture, deadly seducing drugs to put in drinks, Victoria Secrets, sexting,…</p>