Mom's Talk - How Sick is Too Sick For School?

Simple question: How sick does your child have to be before you keep him/her home from school?

Mom #1:

Anytime they have a fever, I do not send them. If they just don't feel well, I make the call based on their behavior. If they have been sleeping longer, are very lathargic, or you can just tell they really feel bad, I keep them home. For my child with Asthma, if he has been coughing all night or used his inhaler more than twice before school, I keep him home.

Mom #2:

As a mother, by the time your kids are school aged, you really do know how sick is too sick to send them. Sniffles, cold, minor cough…unless it’s allergies, they probably picked it up at school anyhow…give them some cold medication (non-drowsy, of course) and send them on their way. If they have a fever (even a slight one), vomiting, or just so miserable that they won’t get out of bed in the morning, you know they need to stay home and rest. Fortunately, my kids haven’t had too many of those; we’ve been lucky in that respect, I know. And unless they really were “too sick,” they wanted to go to school because they’d thought they’d miss something and get behind. That was usually my first sign that they were “too sick:” wanting to stay home (again, I know I’m lucky there, too!). Kids who are “too sick” won’t be alert enough to learn anyhow and need to stay home. Yes, all mothers know when this is the case. And, as a working mom, that’s what sick days are for, to stay home and baby your kids when they especially need it.

Mom #3:

I always ask myself, would I want my child exposed to a peer who is sick like my child? Sometimes the answer is yes. For example, I sent my oldest to school today with a sinus infection, knowing that it would not spread to others. There have been times; however, when I walk into my daughter's school and I cringe as we walk past this child who sounds like he has pneumonia. What does that mom know about that child that I do not? That is why beside the obvious stay home illnesses listed above, I think it is really the parents call. Would you want your child in school if his classmate as in the same shape as your child is right now?