To ask do you think children with a SAHP have a higher level of absence than those without?

[smyle]

just my hunch as I sent DS (5) off to school today when I was on the fence about if he was well enough. If I was at home I think I would have kept him at home, but when I took work as a consideration into the balance I thought he'd survive (and he did!) but putting him to bed tonight I reckon I'll have the same dilemma tomorrow - however tomorrow I'm working from home so will probably keep him off if he is the same... I do wonder if there are statistics out there as my hunch is when children and iffy and on the fence about if they are well enough for school or not, and work isn't a consideration then children can be kept off more easily. BTW I don't ask this with any judgement either side - I love being a working mum, but today I wished with my whole heart I was a stay at home parent! DS has a 100% attendance record since starting school (now Y1), and though he is a very healthy and robust lad I do think part of this is about our working lives - which actually makes me feel quite bad!

[Waltermittythesequel]

Honestly, the parents who throw their dc into school because they can't be arsed being home with a sick child, or because they're desperate for a piece of paper saying their kids managed to go to school loads are total numpties.

And that's regardless of whether they are WOHP or not.

[Biscuitsneeded]

I only know 2 SAHMs. One is very serious about her kids' education and is a SAHM precisely so that she can be completely involved in checking all homework is done thoroughly. Her kids barely ever miss school. The other is a lovely, lovely friend but she has a degree of health anxiety herself and is unconsciously passing it on to her kids by keeping them off school every time they have a sniffle. She also has quite sedentary kids who will happily sit on the sofa under a duvet reading or watching TV all day. I think if she had very active kids like mine she wouldn't be so lenient!
I'm a teacher. My kids are almost never off school because they can't be. DS 1 had tonsillitis last year and we drove him 100 miles to grandparents on a Sunday night so that I could go to work the next day, as I had had three days off earlier in the year when he had appendicitis and was being operated on. DS2 has had 100% attendance for the past few years. He gets heavy colds but is luckily pretty robust in other ways. I wonder if teachers' kids have statistically fewer sick days than other kids?!

[wonderingsoul]

I hate rewards for attendence.. like have cookie for being lucky enough to not get ill,

[Fivetoomany]

Forest, you realise that medicating a child with calpol is exactly the same as you swallowing two paracetamols? Would you take a day off of work because you needed medication (paracetamol) I can't believe people keep the children off school because they have a cold or feel abit under the weather!!

[Zoflorabore]

Our school has a bouncy castle tomorrow just for those dc who have 100% attendance, thankfully after a terrible start to reception last year with tons of illnesses, mainly asthma related and also chicken pox, my dd will be one of the "lucky ones" tomorrow as her year one record fits the bill,

I don't agree with this at all, it's like bribery.

Genuinely ill children are being penalised and some are kept off school by parents for selfish reasons and are being seemingly punished.

I heard one mother telling her friend that she had kept dd off the day before as she had a hair appointment which would have interfered with the school run

[NeverTwerkNaked]

This:
"Have to disagree with a lot of posters here who seem to view sending children to school when they are ill enough to need medication as a badge of honour. It's unfair on the teachers rest of the class/school and their families to spread bugs around in this way. "

I don't see why it's somehow seen as virtuous if your child has never had a sick day. If you sent them in poorly and they were infectious then that is pretty selfish! I am work part time and whether it is a work day or not wouldn't affect my decision.

[Biscuitsneeded]

Just to add thought that of course if they are really ill with a temperature, vomiting or diarrheoa then we find a way to get them looked after. I'm not totally heartless and I wouldn't want to spread contagion of anything worse than a cold.

[Minty82]

That's awful Zoflorabore! Is that in the UK? Just bizarre!

[Zoflorabore]

Minty- yes in the UK!
I had to read the newsletter twice, dd is 5 and is excited as they are but has been telling me that her friends ( insert about 5 names ) won't be going on it.

The school is a joke which saddens me as I went there and ds (14) did and it was great.

[SmellyChristmasCandles]

I was a sahm or working part time when mine were at primary school. By the time they reached about year 4, they just didn't seem to pick up bugs and illnesses as often as when they were younger. When they were unwell, to be honest it wasn't anything that warranted time off. Which is why, with both of them, they went from y4 to year 12/13 without time out. One of them caught swine flu in y12 and the other had a minor operation which meant a few days off in y13. No smugness here, I work in a school and know that some kids genuinely pick up more illnesses than others. It's not our practise to send home children more easily if parents don't work. It is always about whether the child really needs to go home. If they do, we call whoever is the next contact if a parent is at work. A parent who refused to collect their child because they were at the gym would have a call from the headteacher.

[ForestDad]

52many - yes I know what's in calpol! Depends on your line of work (slightly off topic), in my line of work you aren't generally allowed to work if you are ill enough to need drugs to get through the day. I've had other jobs where it's not an issue.
However children are not adults and if you take a sick kid to the docs what do the prescribe for feeling under the weather/heavy cold etc? Calpol, rest and fluids. Not calpol and school so they can give it to everyone else and spread the misery. I wondered why my kids always got bad colds every time they went to nursery.

[Minty82]

Fivetoomany - depends what you mean by a cold. If I kept them off for a runny nose or a cough they'd never go near school. But if they're running a temperature and generally feeling grotty I really fail to see the value in sending a small child off to be miserable all day. As I said, I may have to be harsher about this if I go back to work, as we have no local family, but I don't think
I'm unduly lenient at the moment so I'm slightly fretting about it.

[storminabuttercup]

At our school I see the total opposite. I'm a working mum but I am lucky enough to work from home 80% of the time, but I'm not supposed to use that time as childcare obviously. I've noticed that I'm in the minority where keeping DC off school for 48 hours post D&V is concerned, we had parents covering chicken pox with plasters, one sahm told me it's too hard having them at home all day...
I have family members with compromised immunity, I follow the NHS advice!

[stopfuckingshoutingatme]

Yes ! So
Is a sahp and keeps them off for very minor stuff

[Whatthefudger]

Ds had pretty much 100% attendance until this last year. In the last year he's had stomach bugs, some really shitty viruses and a couple of accidents. I work full time but im very lucky to have family close by. I would hate for him to be penalised in any way by school for a run of illness. Especially since his attendance has been bob on for the last 6 years

[Merlin40]

In secondary we often see the opposite. Working parents sometimes don't have the time or energy to get their kids in if they're feeling borderline or refusing.

[ChippyDucks]

I'm a SAHM and always send them into school. We live nearby and they can always call. Saying that, I've brought a child home on various occasions because they're 'feeling sick' and within an hour of being home they're absolutely fine. I've taken to asking the roasting hot school, when they call, to take their jumper off and give them some cool water and call me back if they're still ill. I've never had a call back yet.

[corythatwas]

Why should FATE worry about the risk? It will be some other child with poor immunity who catches her dc's flu and ends up hospitalised (and with no attendance award). If your child is ill enough to need Calpol, then they probably have more than a runny nose.

[unlucky83]

I'm a SAHM - and my Dcs (nearly 16 and 10) have more or less 100% attendance - DD1 complains about it!
But they are rarely ill -even when things are going round like a D&V bug -they don't catch it. (iirc DD1 last vomited when she was 4 ...DD2 about 6 - but that was during the holidays)
For a cold etc - I send them in - but (at primary) let the school know and say if they are at all concerned to give me a call and I'll come and get them. When they were little if they didn't wake up in time for school I wouldn't wake them up - I figured they needed to sleep.
But both of them were only late a couple of times because of that -mostly they did wake up in time to get them there on time. And if they miraculously recovered from something at home - I would send them in - even for an hour or so.
I know I am lucky they are so seldom ill but also I am a get on with it type of person - if you being absent will make some else's job or even life harder you go and do your best.
I have worked with people in the past who will take time off for a sniffle - even if that means others have to work much harder/crazy hours to cover them...I have limited patience for that...and I think that is something that you learn as a child and going to school. I don't buy the you are just making others ill - by the time you have an obvious cold you will have already passed it on anyway.
I have to say my GPs were farmers and I guess that is where the attitude comes from - you have to look after animals - you can't not feed them or milk cows or let them out because you have a cold...(if you are really ill you still have to try and do the minimum for them).
I also know some DC's with both parents working full time who are often off sick... I guess they did have family support when the DCs were little though, so they could both go to work. I will agree if I worked I couldn't have just let them sleep off bugs when they were little though...I did think that a couple of times...

[BernardsarenotalwaysSaints]

I think that might be the case for some. I don't but I have 2 in school & 1 in nursery (2.5 days a week) so I have to go down anyway. I also know when they're genuinely ill rather than trying it on they're rubbish at faking. We've been lucky so far this year, the older 2 have only had a half day absence each, on differents days & ds' was after registration so isn't shown. Dc3 has been off for a few days this year as she had a bad cough & has spent whole nights up coughing & being sick from it, I'd rather let her rest at home for a day & go in to nursery the next than send her in tired & grouchy.

Last year was a different story, the older 3 all had chicken pox so 2 x5 days off & dc1 had 6 days off for it. Dc1 also had about 3 days for earache (at different points) & dc2 was off for a sickness bug & later in the year heatstroke.

If they've got a cold I see how bad it really is, we all know most colds you're fine to work through but then every so often you'll get one that knocks you for six. I can tell when mine have that sort of cold because they'll refuse breakfast & ask to go back to bed.

[londonrach]

Feeling sorry for some dc now being forced into school when unwell. Hope i never do that with my dd. You might be right op x

[BernardsarenotalwaysSaints]

For on the fence situations I tend to send them in. I make sure that they know if they're still feeling ill they can tell their teacher & I'll come & get them. I've yet to get a phone call in that situation. I ask how they're feelimg when they come out at the end of the day & they've always said fine

[littlewoodentrike]

I can't speak for all SAHM's, but I am one, and if the kids are off school I don't get the day to myself! I am just as strict about it as I was when I was at work (if anything, I'm worse now as I'm quite protective of my time).

[karmassidekick]

Our school publish the names of the children with 100%attendance on the end of term news letter. There is definatly a corrolation between the kids always in school having 2 working parents or a working single parent.
I wonder if the fact they might have gone to nursery as babies and young toddlers rather than staying home with a parent until pre school means they have better immunity as they have already been exposed to or caught alot more bugs? So less likely to get ill in the first place and also more likely to be at school even if not feeling great as parents have to work.

[StealthPolarBear]

" I wonder if teachers' kids have statistically fewer sick days than other kids?!"
Why would that be?