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My daughter has told me everyday this week that another child has been absent and one has gone to the nurse becaues of a stomache ach.

I have never done that. My mother kept me home for several days once when I was a kid because something was going around in school. (I don't remember what it was.) When most kids were over it she told me I could go back the next day, but the next day I woke up with the illness. It just took longer for it to incubate in me for some reason, and I ended up missing twice as much school than I would have if she had sent me on the days before I actually got sick.

You cant avoid the inevitable. No one wants their child to get sick, but sooner or later it is going to happen and it is an unavoidable evil of being in school arounds hundreds of kids and god knows what germs. There is no telling your daughter is going to catch whatever is going around but like in Gail's case, she may get it anyway despite being sheltered from it.

I only keep my kids home if they are sick. There's constantly something going around. The best thing you can do is teach your child to wash her hands. Also, I tell my kids to wash up as soon as they walk in the door from school. If your school allows it, have your daughter bring her own water bottle to school. My school allows this to keep the numbers down at the germy water fountains.

I know eventually she will get sick, I'm such a germaphobe! The teacher makes sure they wash their hands before lunch but not before snack time. She does have her own water bottle, she knows not to drink from the water fountain, unless that is the only option at the time then she knows not to touch the thing with her lips. There are just a few things that bother me that don't make sence that the teacher does and I feel awkward mentioning it to her. My kids are very good at remembering to wash their hands. When we come home they go right to the bathroom to wash no matter where we came from. I am always reminding them to remember to wash in school and they always say "I know" The thing that bothers me is that I don't know how clean the room is. Do they disinfect everyday?, since you can see one by one the kids are all getting sick, will they clean all the toys and door handles? I can't sit and think of this it bothers be really bad that she's there with all of that!

It's a bit off topic, but if your kid is sick they should be kept home. I remember the kid behind me all the way through elementary school achieved perfect attendance at my expense. It really ticked me off to have this kid coughing and sneezing all over the back of my head. Guess who ended up sick in bed for weeks. I think this relates to work also, if you're running a high fever and contagious stay home!

I always keep my children home when they are sick, but I won't keep them home because others are or have been. I've been told that a lot of viruses can be spread before anyone starts to exhibit symptoms, so if my daughter comes home and tells me that someone was sick in class, I know that there is a good chance she's already been exposed. Plus, viruses usually take a while to cycle through the class. Last winter, there was always something or other going around-- I would've had to keep her home for a good three months to avoid all of it. I just do the best I can to keep them healthy on my end and accept that they will sometimes get sick (and hope that it is helping to build their immunity). I do get annoyed when parents send clearly sick children into school-- actually, I feel worst for the sick children. When I'm sick, I don't even want to get out of bed.

I bet there is at least one kids absent everyday from school in each class. There is just no avoiding it. Practicing good hygeine with hand washing etc is the best defense. Have your child keep hand sanitizer at their desk and teach them what's appropriate about what they can share. I remember sharing lipstick with my friend in middle and high school and never thinking twice about it...grosses me out thinking about it now! Lol

Sometimes it is so hard to decide if your kid should stay home. My daughter was sick recently, and I was so torn. She never had a fever or stomach bug, but she had a runny nose and bad cough. I ended up sending her to school because she is really good about coughing/sneezing into the crook of her arm and they hand sanitize like crazy in her classroom. I actually pulled out her school manuel and read when we should keep them home, and since she was fever-free, I sent her.

In our school they have each student at the beginning of the year send in 2 tubs of baby wipes for the class. Twice a day they wipe down their desks. When the kids are doing that the teachers wipe down door handles etc. in the room. Also in our district if you kid has a temp of over 100 you are not supposed to send them to school until 24 hours after their temp goes back to normal. I think at our school most parents follow this because the principals drill it into the students at morning announcmounts. Trust me our kids know they get to stay home extra time if they have been sick. They remind us parents. And when we call our students out for the day the attendance officer also ereminds us of the rule.

I think kids will get sick regardless but all you can do is reinforce good habits, and let colds run their course.