School Policies

Most of you know, I have two children. I work from home part-time. It was very important to my husband and myself that someone be home for our children. We see the problems that occur in this area with latch-key kids, and we wanted to avoid that. Money is always tight, but we'd rather live with a tight budget and know our children are not doing drugs, vandalizing houses, etc, as many kids in this neighborhood do.

My daughter rarely gets sick. I'm not sure why, but she was born almost three weeks late, and she's never sick. She avoids illness in a manner that stumps me. My son, however, is always the first in line to get whatever illness one of his classmates scares. He just had his 9th day sick this school year - he's been through a stomach flu, an ear infection, and now this chest/head cold that I am still battling two weeks later. He was born almost three weeks early - labor was induced and lasted 48 hours, so I often wonder if that plays a part in just how different my son and daughter are when someone is sick in their school...

Anyway, I got a letter a couple days ago - on my birthday no less- the school is demanding I attend a meeting on my son's extreme number of absences. Apparently, the school has a new policy in which they will not allow a student to miss more than 6 days of school per year. I'm baffled. From the time both of my children started school, we've been told not to send our children to school if they have a fever, an ear infection that distracts them from their work, are feeling nauseous or throwing up, and the likes. So I keep my children home when that happens.

My son gets A's, his homework is handed the next day after he returns from being sick, and yet I'm being told he's missed too much schooling and that a meeting is necessary. I'm ticked.

When a school thinks they are a better judge of a child than that child's own parent, I have serious issues. What's worse, the "committee" who deems how many days a child can be sick is now making it a no exception deal. All days off can no longer be allowed without a doctor's note for each day the child is sick. There is talk of my husband's company switching to a health insurance plan that will make copays for routine care rise to $50. So I am supposed to send my son to the doctor for $50 each time for anything - a stomach bug, cold, etc. I won't go into the fact that the doctor is against having to see a child for routine stuff that could be easily treated at home.

It's absurd and making home schooling my children look more appealing by the second.