SICK DAY GUIDELINES:

Should I keep my child home or send him or her to school?

We ask that your child stays home if he or she:

• Has a fever of 100.0 degrees or higher
• Has been vomiting or has diarrhea
• Has symptoms that keep your child from participating in school, such as:
• Very tired
• Persistent cough or frequent sneezing
• Headache, body aches, or earache
• Sore throat- a little sore throat is ok for school, but a bad sore throat could be strep throat, even if there is no fever. Other signs of strep throat in children are a headache and upset stomach. Call your child’s doctor if your child has these symptoms. A special test is needed to know if it is strep throat.
• Keep your child home if he is coughing or sneezing often because this spread the sickness to others.

24 hour rule:

• FEVER: keep your child home until his or her FEVER has been gone WITHOUT medicine for 24 hours. Colds can be contagious for at least 48 hours. Returning to school too soon may slow recovery and can make others sick.
• VOMITING OR DIARRHEA: Kep your child home for 24 hours after the LAST time he or she vomited or had diarrhea.
• ANTIBIOTICS: Keep your child home until 24 hours after the FIRST dose of antibiotic for anything like ear infection or strep throat.

We often have many children and adults with colds coming to school, and each one is passing their sickness to others. Please help others from becoming sick by keeping your child home when they are sick.

For more information, or if you have questions, please contact the School Nurse.