Do you let your DC stay off school on the last day of a term?

[goaskmum]

For example, the last day of school before the Christmas holidays? If it’s a half day and they’re just watching DVDs?

I don’t like allowing DD to do it but sometimes she asks me

@Haudyourwheesht

I'm a secondary teacher and we have around half capacity on the last day. This is a massive increase in recent years: when I started teaching you'd only have 2/3 pupils per class.

I don't tend to put DVDs on unless they're directly related to with they've been doing (as an English teacher there's often the film of the book!), but they'll often be making posters or similar, and I let them have music on.

Out of interest, if a school gives its pupils a half day on the last day of term do teachers stay in school after the kids have gone home or do the teachers go home early too?

@RaleighDurham

There also seem to be a rising number of people who think it's OK to keep their kids off school when it's their birthday. I mean, WTF?!!!

Why not?

I don't go to work on my birthday - I've always taken it as annual leave

@goaskmum We only have an official half day before the end of summer term and that's for teachers and pupils. There's normally a staff lunch or retirement dos or that kind of thing.

Otherwise you're in for the 30% of kids who are there.