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Articles and Tips: Parenting

When Should Your Child Miss School?

How sick is too sick?Stuffy noses and stomachaches are not always good reasons to keep a child home from school. As a general guide, your children should not go to school with:

  • an infectious or contagious disease,
  • a fever of more than 100 degrees,
  • vomiting or diarrhea,
  • frequent or painful urination,
  • a widespread rash, or
  • an earache accompanied by fever.

Call your pediatrician if your child has any of these symptoms.

Healthy children usually want to attend school and see their friends. If your child asks to miss school often and does not have any of the symptoms listed above, consult your doctor to determine if there is an emotional cause. Children's stress, sometimes created by events that seem insignificant to adults, often manifests itself in vague complaints such as headache or fatigue.

Other school tips for parents

More about parenting


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Bradley Hospital
Parent Guides

Bradley Hospital helps you deal with difficult parenting issues in these comprehensive reference sections:

Effective Discipline
Current attitudes, ideas and help for parents of toddlers, teens and kids in between.
En español

Alcohol & Drug Abuse
Understanding potential problems, signs of abuse, and tips for prevention and intervention.
En español

Depression & Suicide
Recognize the signs of depression, why kids fall victim and what you can do to help.
En español

Teenage Parties
What you don't know can hurt you. Tips for parents of hosts and guests. Plus, ideas for a successful bash.
En español

Life's Difficult Changes
Symptoms of transitional difficulty in parents and kids and advice for dealing with change.
En español

Parent/Child Communication
Feel like you're from different planets? Here's how to find middle ground.
En español

Childhood Chores
Why household chores are important for kids and teens.
En español

Healthful Leisure
 A little leisure might be just what your family needs. Why leisure time is important and how to add more to your life.
En español

Rhode Island Parents' Guide to Children's Mental Health
(PDF 5.07mb)

Have questions about common children's mental health problems? Download this one-stop resource for those answers plus information about advocacy organizations and support groups.

(This document requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you don't have it installed you can download it now for free.)