Supervised or not…. The big debate
Planning a spring break or graduation trip can be a big decision for your family. Traditional trips to the beach for celebrating with friends are a highly controversial issue. Once the kids start talking at school, there can be a lot of peer pressure to participate. Many of the trips are planned without parental supervision. Seniors may see it as a rite of passage. Parents may not. Keep the lines of communication open. Parents and seniors should decide together whether your senior can go on unsupervised spring break vacations.

Safe and fun alternatives
If you want an alternative, discuss a family vacation. Remember, this may be one of your last vacations together. Or discuss a supervised spring break. Supervised spring breaks give seniors the chance to celebrate with their friends and allow parents to get involved with their sons and daughters celebrations without being a nuisance. Here’s a couple of planning ideas to get your discussions going:

• Organize a group trip with several friends and their parents.
• A cruise can be an ideal situation where the parents can keep their distance and seniors can experience a reasonable amount of freedom.
• If your whole family cannot attend, maybe a mother/daughter trip is more appropriate. Spring break often coincides with baseball spring training camps, which could make for a fun father/son trip.
• Or if you prefer to stay on land, check out hotels that will allow the kids to share rooms, while the parents have their own room. Consider smaller towns or all-inclusive resorts so you can find the kids if needed.

Be realistic with expectations
Be realistic. Kids often drink on these trips. Part of the attraction to trips in Mexico and the Caribbean is the absence of any legal age requirement for consuming alcohol. Parents and seniors should talk about their behavior and the long-term consequences they may suffer. Discuss the dangers of drinking, drugs, alcohol poisoning, drugs being put into their drinks, date rape, and foreign laws.

If your senior is planning to leave the country, they may need a passport or original birth certificate, which takes several weeks to get. They may require a contract with the parents to allow the students under 18 out of the country.