Student Health
My child is feeling sick. When should I keep my child home?
Cough: If your child has a persistent cough, please keep them home.
COVID-19: Children who test positive should stay home for 5 days and return to school on Day 6. Day 0 is the day symptoms started or if your child has no symptoms, the day they test positive. Please consult the Vermont Department of Health for more information. The Centers for Disease Control recommends masking through Day 10.
Diarrhea: If your child has had diarrhea, please keep him/her home until 24 hours after the last episode. Remember to encourage your child to drink fluids as he/she can become dehydrated quickly when having diarrhea.
Eyes: If your child has eye drainage and the whites of their eyes are pink or red, please take your child to the doctor. Please encourage children to keep their hands out of their eyes anytime, especially if their eyes are infected. If your child is too uncomfortable to participate in class, you should keep your child home.
Fever: A fever is considered a temperature greater than 100.4o F and is the body's sign that it is fighting a virus or infection. If your child has a fever, please do not send them to school. Children should be fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication before they return to school. Children found to have a fever greater than 100oF will need to be picked up by a parent or guardian. The Mayo Clinic has an excellent resource addressing the care of a child with a fever.
Flu: Students diagnosed with the flu will need to follow their physician guidelines on returning to school. Most children are contagious for 1 day prior to getting ill to 5-7 days following the beginning of symptoms. As above, children should be fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication before returning to school. Please visit the Vermont Department of Health site for guidelines if you have flu-like symptoms
Rash: In the event your child develops a rash that may be disease related, or you are unsure, please have your child seen by his/her doctor before bringing them to school.
Strep Throat: Children need to stay at home for at least 24 hours after antibiotic treatment begins and they no longer have a fever greater than 100o F.
Vomiting: Any child who has vomited the previous day should not come to school. Students should stay home for 24 hours after the last episode of vomiting.
The best way to prevent an infection is good hand washing! Keep your cough/sneeze covered and keep your child home if he/she is sick.
