To take ill toddler to school

[signforcar]

18 month old DD has been sick. Normally she goes to nursery on a Friday but tomorrow I have the morning off because it is DS’s nativity.

I really don’t feel I can miss his nativity; he’d be devastated. WIBU to take DD? No one else here.

I’m assuming there were potentially a hundred of so other parents going into/leaving the school at the same time as this mum and child. I also highly doubt most schools would allow this anyway - a parent and child to be in the playground or wherever it was on their own for safeguarding. Either way - of course she is likely to have met other people along the way on the day of a nativity.

Surely you know the answer to this??

DO NOT take a pukey kid to a room full of other kids & their parents - especially this close to Christmas!! Outrageously unfair & irresponsible.

It's a school nativity play, not the Oscars! Your son will not be 'devastated', he might be a bit upset that you can't come but he will forget about it by tomorrow.

I think it really depends. If she's actually unwell and continues to vomit/ has a temp /other symptoms etc then obviously you can't take her. But at that age my kids sometimes did the thing of randomly throwing up in the early hours then being totally fine afterwards. Nobody else ever got ill from them either. In this situation I'd take her.

Nobody has a crystal ball to know whether their child, who has vomited once, has a contagious bug, or a one off case of vomiting. You have no idea. Just because they’ve vomited once before and were ok afterwards doesn’t mean subsequent occasions will be the same. You are knowingly potentially spreading germs to all and sundry by taking them out. Utterly, utterly selfish.

Out in the open air, with the child under the rain cover? I’m quite risk averse but even I think that’s a ridiculous reach.

I presume if OP's child was like yours, where you knew that them being sick meant they were not about to be quite unwell, or vomit again, then she would not be asking.

How do you know no one got ill from your children? Heck, we don't know if we're spreading bugs around before we are symptomatic (bacteria and viruses are pretty smart).

I doubt many schools would allow it anyway. If a child’s sick - keep them at home!! If they’re not well enough to be in a room with other people then just stay at home. Standing outside in the rain for an hour to watch a nativity through a window is ridiculous.

I’ve not idea whether schools would allow it or not, that wasn’t my point. I was challenging the ridiculous assertion that a child, under a rain cover, out in the open air, would be infecting passers by with their illness. Sometimes poorly children have to be taken out, unfortunately.

Well at our nativity we all had to congregate for 10 mins together before being allowed in, showing our tickets one by one in a queue. It’s not entirely unreasonable that they’d be near other people or children at a school event. It being contagious wasn’t really my main point either. I was disagreeing with the poster who said this mum was an amazing mum to do this. My point is - if they’re too ill to be near others and you have to watch a nativity through a window - don’t take them out. It’s not fair on the ill child either who probably would rather be in bed.

TheDearReader

My daughter isn’t in school yet but do parents and children not tend to mingle after the nativity is over? And therefore he will be looking for her? Maybe they don’t, as I say my child isn’t school age but I would have thought there was some sort of mingling afterwards for congratulations and pictures etc

No, our grandchild’s first in reception this year. The children just waved goodbye then filed straight back to their classroom for a treat. Teachers took/sent photos.

I'd go op, get there so you're last in the queue and stand at the back.

Thank you,he was very good about it I have to say,half his class has been out with a bug most of the last week so there is something nasty going & at our school the show is attended by lots of grandparents, younger kids etc & the thought of them possibly being ill over Christmas just wasn't worth the risk (I had asked his dad to take him but his GFs kids bedtime came before his show so I worked an alternative)

Do germs not travel when you’re standing/sitting at the back of a school hall?

Must remember that one.

I wouldn’t drag a young, poorly toddler out in the cold to watch a nativity through a window

You are being ridiculous. Nearly every one of your posts is making me do this: 🤦‍♀️

I hope you haven't took the child into school exposing all of the children and their parents/relatives/carers to the virus!

There is lots going around and as a nurse in the community there are lots of flu/rsv/norovirus going around! And I'm constantly exposed to it as all of their family members have it also!

My child has been off school this week....missed her Christmas lunch/Christmas jumper day and it has been my birthday so she/we have missed out on the celebrations we had planned. She may miss doing her nativity on Monday if she remains unwell!

Things happen, your poorly child is more important than selfishness of taking them and exposing lots of people to this virus unnecessarily!!!

So what happened? Did you go 🤣

This is something I always do at each school event. Last in, stand right at the back, then first back outside...I can't stand crowds. I usually inform DC where I will be standing so they know in advance.

This still isn't advisable with a sick child though. Best just asking another parent to take a photo on your behalf!

If that was the case, I’m pretty sure the OP has enough sense as a mother of two to look at the situation and decide it was fine. She wouldn’t have started a thread on Mumsnet if she didn’t think her child had a bug.