Keeping kids home from school in the 2020s....

[Woodsy]

AS seen in Rev's recent thread and many others, there is strong parental knowledge here.

So can someone offer up advice on keeping kids home from school these days. Pre pandemic, we sent the boy to school unless he was seriously go to the Pediatrician sick. Now a cough and some sniffles and we are advised to keep him home.

Add to this, when many of us were kids staying home from school kinda sucked. TV was game shows in the AM and then soap operas until Brady Bunch and Gilligans island reruns came on. Not talking old enough to to slough school to ski, etc ( in SLC we had a 6" rule btw friends, and midweek passes @ Brighton and Soli were $10.)
These days there are a cornucopia of TV options plus tablets, switches, etc. DOnt want the kid to think to hack a few times means a day of entertainment as I know some of his buddies enjoy..

We keep that tight over here but as we both WFH, rather have him in school....

[Not DJSapp]

Been dealing with this the last week. We're in a very high vax area, so I'm not worried about covid very much. Fever and genuine sickness is the metric for us. If the cough/sniffles is bad and persistent enough that we think the teacher will send them home immediately, then we keep them home.

If they're home sick, they rest. No screens, no exceptions, and you don't get them back until you return to school. That cuts out the BS really, really fast. Being sick sucks, don't get sick.

[Yonder_River]

I can usually tell when my kids feel real crappy so I will keep them home if they have major symptoms that are pretty constant. Usually that's one day or so. Then it's back to school within a n95 for a day or two which helps take any guilt away. It would be nice if all parents did that. Similar to asian cultures.

[Mazderati]

Staying home also doesn't seem as big a deal because of the same cornucopia. Kids I know have computers, tablets, and work posted online so there is less opportunity to miss assignments when out.

[VTskibum]

Dealing w/ this so far this week. Daughter had fever and sore throat so stayed home a few days, big bro takes notice claiming sore throat, but we weren't sold. We told him that no videos/ipads as we didn't truly believe him. Meanwhile his sister clearly felt bad so had full suite of electronics at disposal. Fast forward to this morning, now he is actually sick he gets iPad/etc. Can't do it perfectly, best judgement.

[Danno]

Fever and genuine sickness is the metric for us. If the cough/sniffles is bad and persistent enough that we think the teacher will send them home immediately, then we keep them home.

If they're home sick, they rest. No screens, no exceptions, and you don't get them back until you return to school. That cuts out the BS really, really fast. Being sick sucks, don't get sick.

First paragraph, yes. Fever or really really bad sickness (ie bad enough that the teacher would want to send them home). My kid hasn't faked illness yet so when she is home, she gets screen time all day in her room. If I start to suspect shenanigans, I would institute the rule you use.

I can usually tell when my kids feel real crappy so I will keep them home if they have major symptoms that are pretty constant. Usually that's one day or so. Then it's back to school within a n95 for a day or two which helps take any guilt away. It would be nice if all parents did that. Similar to asian cultures.

Yep, I tell her to wear a mask if she has the sniffles.

Staying home also doesn't seem as big a deal because of the same cornucopia. Kids I know have computers, tablets, and work posted online so there is less opportunity to miss assignments when out.

Truth, my kid has a school issued chromebook and everything is online, so she is actually able to do her work from home.

Can't do it perfectly, best judgement.

As always.

[bagtagley]

My oldest pulled a fast one on the wife today. I knew she was full of it, but didn't really care. She's on it as far a school work, and wouldn't play hooky if it wasn't a slow day. She has to email teachers and do assignments, and she and I will watch Survivor together, but otherwise, she can do whatever she wants.

It would be different for my youngest. If he's really sick, screens are a blessing to keep him chill, but otherwise, he needs to be run like a pet. The wife is home full-time, but has zero flexibility, so if I'm working from home, I'm the one keeping him busy as much as possible. If I'm not here, she'll try to find other things for him to do, but he's gonna get more screens and I gotta play catch up when I get home.

[Danno]

screens are a blessing to keep him chill, but otherwise, he needs to be run like a pet.

lol

[Mazderati]

Also, when I ducked school, which was a lot, it was reruns of Daktari, Lost in Space, and Matlock.

[Not DJSapp]

My kid hasn't faked illness yet so when she is home, she gets screen time all day in her room. If I start to suspect shenanigans, I would institute the rule you use.

The no-screens policy isn't truly a hard and fast rule. When they're truly sick they don't care about the screens so it's actually really easy, and it drives home the point they need to priortize rest and recovery. But my kids are the ones that will wake up at 4am on weekends to get extra screentime and be absolute pills all weekend because they're exhausted.

[Buzzworthy]

Mine is 18 so she can do what she wants

[yeahman]

Shit I used to encourage my kids to miss school but they hated to. It was just more work and a PITA for them. I guess they are far more serious students than I ever was.

[MarcusBrody]

Shit I used to encourage my kids to miss school but they hated to. It was just more work and a PITA for them. I guess they are far more serious students than I ever was.

My first grade son was really trying to have perfect attendance this year. I think his teacher really drummed into him the importance of showing up (which I do believe in), and he internalized it. He made it until maybe two weeks ago then got a fever and had to stay home. He was legit pretty lethargic so he wasn't fussy about it and he watched videos/read books/but mostly just acted unlike a caffeinated Jack Russell and sat around. When he's not annoying, you know he's actually sick.

[mcski]

Back to the op, I’d take match game twilight zone and Gilligan (because Mary Ann, duh) any day. Def didn’t suck

As for my Sr. , she ditches. A lot. Even w all that already missed school i just don’t think it’s cool to send her to school to get some other kid sick. Even if it’s a cold. I can generally tell when she is faking or not so works out

Like lots of covid kids, she’s been worked over by all the back and forth in/out of school stuff so if she needs a mental health day I can generally tell if she is overloaded and needs it as well. But it’s not a screen time free for all

[mcski]

Also, when I ducked school, which was a lot, it was reruns of Daktari, Lost in Space, and Matlock.

This is a combo that defies all demographics

[Aldo]

Also, when I ducked school, which was a lot, it was reruns of Daktari, Lost in Space, and Matlock.

Ran into a real issue when you had a two part show - To be continued tomorrow!
Oh no! Think Rockford files , Hawaii five-O , magnum etc…

“ I’m not really feeling any better , may need another day “

[SKIP IN7RO]

[The Reverend Floater]

FWIW we started out being pretty conservative keeping our girls home when they got colds, etc after COVID.

Now they pretty much have to be feverish or they're getting the boot out the door. We're just over it and we both pretty much had to be dying to stay home when we were kids.

Is that bad? I don't knooooow...and I don't caaaare.

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[Buzzworthy]

Yup, at least with my daughter she stayed home so much during the past events that she’d rather just mask up with sniffles and go to school. Missing school with a 3.98 gpa doesn’t compute. She literally gets fomo about learning. Golf claps all around.