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Each and every school day is filled with instruction. When students miss school, they miss valuable opportunities for learning from teachers, school staff, and peers. According to research, the following findings were shared by Attendance Works (2014):
• One in 10 kindergarten and first-grade students nationally are chronically absent, missing nearly a month of school. Emerging research shows even higher rates among preschoolers.
• These early absences correlate with reading difficulties and poor attendance patterns in later years. One California study found that only 17 percent of students who were chronically absent in both kindergarten and first grade were reading proficiently in third grade, compared to 64 percent of those with good attendance.
• The effects of poor attendance are particularly pronounced among low-income children, who need more time in the classroom to master reading and are less likely to have access to resources outside of school to help them catch up. Unfortunately, low-income children are four times more likely to be chronically absent.
• Students can begin to reverse their academic difficulties if they improve their attendance.
• Parents are often unaware of the corrosive effects of absenteeism and how quickly absences add up to academic trouble in the early grades. Some face challenges with health, transportation, or housing that contribute to absences.
• Attendance rates are better in schools where parents feel welcomed and engaged and where they trust their children are safe.
School Responses to Attendance Issues
When your student misses an excessive number of days (3 or more) of school without an acceptable excuse, you can expect one or more of the following to occur, out of concern for our students and their families:
a personalized phone call, email, and/or text
a letter mailed to your address notifying you of your student's absences
a home visit
invitation for a zoom meeting to discuss your child's absences and develop a plan for improved attendance
Should your child continue to miss excessive days without excuse, truancy charges may be filed against parent(s), guardian(s), and/or students over the age of 12 as required by Delaware law.
Any time your student misses school, please send a written note or email to explain the reason for the student's absence within three days of the student's return to school. Parents are permitted to write up to 7 parent notes (which covers a single day for each note) per school year for acceptable excuses.
Try to schedule medical appointments for after-school hours, weekends, or days off if available. If your student misses school for a medical appointment (e.g. doctor's appointment, counseling appointment, dental appointment), please submit a doctor's note as soon as possible. This can be emailed, dropped off, or faxed to your child's school.
If possible, schedule vacations around school breaks such as Winter and Spring Break or other holidays. If your family is planning a vacation, please notify the school well in advance of the vacation to seek administrative approval and make plans for missed work.
Communicate struggles or concerns regarding your child's attendance with the school staff such as the family support paraprofessional, teachers, school principals, and/or the visiting teacher. We will attempt to work with you to overcome those barriers when possible.
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