100% school attendance now will not be..

victory

My son,12 is very proud of his 100% school attendance and will have his name(along will all the other 100% kids) put in a box to win a bike at the end of this school year, which has been on exhibit all the way through the year on the ceiling in the gym room.

Eldest says the chances of his name being picked are slim but even so youngest does not need a bike, he has one,it is not so much about that, he is still very excited and pleased to be in with a chance.

Now the problem:D 8 months waiting for a consultancy appointment for son, we have finally got one for three weeks time which wipes out his 100% as it is school time. There may even be 2.

Spoke to the receptionist and she was short and curt and agreed yes I could have another appointment outside school times, half term, summer hols etc but I would automatically go back to the beginning of the waiting list, so that is a no.

Spoke to the school and they said that even though I suggested maybe son could work his day/s off ie an extra hour after school or added homework they said no. Fair enough, was not looking for special treatment , it has to be fair for all.

OH says to sign in before the appointment or get back before school closed for the day, neither of those can be done because the appointment is just over 3 hours away from home at 10.55am and so we could not sign in before or get back with public transport for 2.40pm when school closes. The appointment if on time lasts 45 mins.

Son says he has kept his attendance intact and should not be penalised through no fault of his own and is very sad.

It is a shame I will agree with him there, it is just one of those things, anyone got any ideas?

[Deleted User]

Tell him that 100% attendance is a statistical anomaly. He's lucky he's not been ill enough to miss school, but he should realise it's just pure luck. There are plenty of kids who don't intentionally miss school, but won't have 100% attendance because of sickness.

It's more important to be treated medically than it is to have a meaningless statistic that no one will remember in a year.

Attendance will not improve his grades. It will never go on a CV. No one at 6th form will care. Also, he's trying to win a prize that he already has!

victory

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Tell him that 100% attendance is a statistical anomaly. He's lucky he's not been ill enough to miss school, but he should realise it's just pure luck. There are plenty of kids who don't intentionally miss school, but won't have 100% attendance because of sickness.

It's more important to be treated medically than it is to have a meaningless statistic that no one will remember in a year.

I am sure he feels blessed he has not been ill but it is not about that, he is lucky to be healthy yes:D

Person_one

I don't really think schools should be awarding 100% attendance in that way, for exactly the reason you're discovering!

victory

Person_one wrote: »

I don't really think schools should be awarding 100% attendance in that way, for exactly the reason you're discovering!

Well, the way son sees it they are an incentive, something to work towards, he was truly happy and excited that every day he was one step closer until the appointment:D

Mado

Aww. Bless him for his attitude!:T

I'm afraid he'll have to learn the hard way.
Kids who have been ill and missed school as a result also generally do it without a fault of their own.

I'm surprised at how generous the school is; it's quite a big prize for something that is out of bounds for many pupils. Maybe you should suggest to them that it should be "no unauthorised" absences. After all, they're always insisting that parents should not send kids who are ill and to keep them for at least 24 hours after the last incident for tummy bugs.

[Deleted User]

What's really bad, is if your son actually was ill, and forced his way to school even with an infectious illness, just to keep up 100% attendance. That's how diseases are spread, and it's why you shouldn't go into an office when you've got an easily spreadable illness

Person_one

victory wrote: »

Well, the way son sees it they are an incentive, something to work towards, he was truly happy and excited that every day he was one step closer until the appointment:D

That's what they want him to think.

The problem though, as he's finding out now, is that its a goal that is actually completely out of your control in most cases.

You can choose not to truant, or to go in with a cold instead of staying in bed, but you can't choose not to have consultant appointments, or chronic conditions, or broken legs or appendicitis!

fluffnutter

He's clearly a conscientious kids, but seriously? His health and hence this consultant's appt is way more important than a bike he doesn't need. It's nice to win stuff for sure, but it's a great opportunity to talk to him about perspective. Seeing the doc is more important than entering some raffle.

gunsandbanjos

Mado wrote: »

Aww. Bless him for his attitude!:T

I'm afraid he'll have to learn the hard way.
Kids who have been ill and missed school as a result also generally do it without a fault of their own.

I'm surprised at how generous the school is; it's quite a big prize for something that is out of bounds for many pupils. Maybe you should suggest to them that it should be "no unauthorised" absences. After all, they're always insisting that parents should not send kids who are ill and to keep them for at least 24 hours after the last incident for tummy bugs.

It is a good attitude to want to be at school 100% of the time.

But I think this whole prize thing is a little unfair as you say above, 100% attendance is totally out of reach for my daughter. She would love to attend everyday but due to numerous medical conditions that is never going to happen.

victory

Mado wrote: »

Aww. Bless him for his attitude!:T

I'm afraid he'll have to learn the hard way.
Kids who have been ill and missed school as a result also generally do it without a fault of their own.

I'm surprised at how generous the school is; it's quite a big prize for something that is out of bounds for many pupils. Maybe you should suggest to them that it should be "no unauthorised" absences. After all, they're always insisting that parents should not send kids who are ill and to keep them for at least 24 hours after the last incident for tummy bugs.

The school is generous but you have to have an unbelievable amount of 'points' for attendance, homework, helping the teachers, behaving, helpfulness towards other, politeness etc etc to get the good prizes, there are book tokens, books, sweets, treats, day trips out if your class has performed well, vouchers for game you name it there is there and it really helps them to stay focused and well behaved.:D