Who had perfect attendance in school?

[Brianne]

My brother would run it under hot water.....then one day he dropped it and it broke in the sink. He told mom and she went to clean it up and found the water was hot....off to school he went.

The things we did. And now my kids will never do it because Mom got smart & owns an ear thermometer.

 

[smilingmouse]

I gott the PA award in 1st grade. I was so proud of that award

 

[pansmermaidzlagoon]

I don't see the point of those - if you are sick, you should be home. One mom on my street brags about her kids getting it - guess who's kids barf on the bus!!!!!

 

[Christine]

Boy, people sure seem *bitter* about this award.

I realize that showing up for school every day doesn't require a lot of skill, so I guess it is sort of silly.

But, I will tell you that when I received that award I was proud of myself and my daughter was proud too.

My mother taught me and I try to teach my kids that school is a responsibility and it is like a job. Sure, when your really sick, you stay home. But, you don't NOT go to school because you have a headache, or you're tired. Last year when my DD was in 8th grade, one of her peers was almost thrown out of school because she had 47 tardies. Why did she have these tardies? Because her mom didn't want to make her go to school on the days she was tired. Well, there were LOTS of days that my DD was dead tired, afterall, we get up at 5:00 a.m. and there are things that have to be done later in the evening. But, I did make her go in.

I think the perfect attendance award does sort of teach responsibility. It's not supposed to teach you to drag yourself in if you have the flu (and I have not seen anyone do that, although you would think it's done all the time by the way people on these boards talk about it). But, it is supposed to make you want to strive to come in and show up, even if you're feeling a little off.

And no, I won't keep my kids home for the sniffles. And it isn't done here in the workplace either. People who stay home for every cold and hangnail don't do very well in the workforce.

 

[POB14]

Nope, never had perfect attendance, never got close.

In fact, I missed so many days with scarlet fever in third grade that my mom thought I would flunk.

Near the end of the year, sure enough, the school called my parents in.

And they double-promoted me.

 

[Jennifer48]

I had perfect attendance from Kindergarten through the 4th grade. Once I hit jr high, so did puberty and illnesses.

In elementary school, it was a big deal to have perfect attendence. They used to give out plaques and everything. I still have them somewhere at my Mom's house.

In high school, all they did was recognize you at graduation. No big deal.

I can't even remember if I made it to all my classes in college. Hmmm....

 

[JVL1018]

I may have in the early grades, I don't remember..but in middle or high school no way.
There is nothing like laying in bed watching TV thinking, ahh I'd be in Chemistry right now if I were at school.

My daughter is in K and so far hasn't missed a day of school. She was sick once, but it happened to be Martin Luther King Day so she was off anyway.

 

[angel's momma]

Up until last year, our school system really pushed elementary perfect attendance - assembly at the end of every quarter to award certificates: then those who won were treated to a pizza party, and a group photo & list of names were printed in newsletter & local paper.

A group of teachers got together & went to the school board. There were way too many kids coming to school knowing that they were sick, just so they wouldn't miss out on the rewards.

The school board compromised - Attendance is still pushed at the Jr High/High School levels, with an emphasis on "Training for job responsibility" like Christine mentioned.

At the elementary level it is no longer emphasized. Those that do acheive perfect attendance for the entire year receive a certificate at an assembly the last week of school. The number of students with perfect attendance dropped dramatically without the added incentives pushed throughout the year.

 

[Beth76]

I remember getting the perfect attendance reward in something like 5th grade. I felt like such a dork that I made sure to never get it again. I faked sick a couple of times just to ensure that I didn't get it.

ETA: I think it's silly to reward people for not being sick.

 

[olena]

At my high school, if you had perfect attendance, you could exempt one final exam. You could exempt another if your grade was high enough. I always exempted my hardest class with my attendance perk and another exam on academics. It was nice.

 

[aprilgail2]

ETA: I think it's silly to reward people for not being sick.

I agree....I just don't think they should make a big deal out of it simply because people are sending their kids to school sick last year to get perfect attendance and when their kid came to school with a cold and got my daughter sick it means a late night trip to the ER with a 105.8 fever and dehydration, strep throat etc...their "oh its just a cold got to school anyway" was a nightmare for me!! My kid missed 30+ days because their kids came to school with a cold.

 

[Christine]

I agree....I just don't think they should make a big deal out of it simply because people are sending their kids to school sick last year to get perfect attendance and when their kid came to school with a cold and got my daughter sick it means a late night trip to the ER with a 105.8 fever and dehydration, strep throat etc...their "oh its just a cold got to school anyway" was a nightmare for me!! My kid missed 30+ days because their kids came to school with a cold.

Honestly, you can't expect people to keep their kids home from school with colds. And you can pick up "colds" anywhere--that's just life. And I would be a little concerned if my child missed 30 days of school just by coming into contact with people with colds--that doesn't seem right.

 

[Sparx]

I never get PA. I'm always out sick for at least a week every year.

 

[UP Disney]

Remember when perfect attendance (PA) used to be a big deal? Did any of you parents out there have PA? Are you trying for your children have it as well? I had PA from 4th thru 12th grades. I got an award each year and special accolades at graduations. The other kids' parents always seemed impressed. I must admit, it did feel nice (especially if I couldn't get any other award ). DD-9 has never had it. I don't like for her to miss school, though. But, when she's sick - oh well, maybe she'll get Miss Congeniality

I missed one day of high school (for my Grandfather's funeral) in my sophomore year. They always gave the award out at the awards banquet at the end of the year. My senior year, I was the only senior to receive it. I got a standing ovation from the school. At first, I thought they were being mean but later found out that they were all really impressed! Yes, I was a geek (but also an accomplished athlete) but I also didn't like missing ANYTHING! I'd miss a day of school and have all kinds of stuff to catch on with my friends. The school work was never a big deal catching up on. It was me that didn't want to miss. Luckily, I tended to get sick during the week-ends and school breaks.

I don't think my DD's ever had perfect attendance any year. One is 20 and the other is 17. They just didn't have the same desire as me plus seemed to be sick more.

 

[teacherforhi]

My senior year I was very careful about attendance. Your grade and attendance determined whether or not you got to exempt the final.

It broke down as:
4 absences and an A
3 absences and a B
2 absences and a C
1 absence and a D

 

[aprilgail2]

And I would be a little concerned if my child missed 30 days of school just by coming into contact with people with colds--that doesn't seem right.

It wasn't right and luckily once her tonsils and adenoids came out she was much better..but up until then a cold sent her to the hospital.

 

[rigs32]

I took off for Jewish Holidays each year, so I never got it. It used to annoy me, but I was a bit of a nerd that way.

I can't believe they counted the High Holidays against you! How many Christian kids would have perfect attendance if they were expected to show up on Christmas?

 

[monarchsfan16]

Perfect attendance? What's that?

Seriously though, I've always gotten sick easily. Not so much that I was ever in danger of failing, but I've missed plenty of school, and gone in sick plenty of other times, because I had to. My high school had a strict attendance policy, and it wasn't worth the effort to appeal to stay home every single time I was miserable. My mom's a teacher, so obviously she never kept us home for "just a cold", although as I've gotten older, colds aren't simple colds for me. They're hacking, loaded coughs that keep me up all night, resulting in me barely being able to move the next day. They're difficulty breathing and talking. So I definitely missed for "colds", but that's because colds for me are complicated. When I was younger colds were simple so I only missed for ear infections, strep, chicken pox, stomach viruses, etc.
I think in my best year I missed just two days of school. Worst? 14 or 15. Surprisingly I haven't missed a class yet since I've gotten to college (this is my second semester). I've gotten sick plenty of times, but all at really inconvenient times.

 

[daisyduck123]

I haven't read all of the posts but...

My kids will never get PA...we just spent 9 days in Disney in Jan. & are going back for 9 more days in May. They'd rather have their family vacations that some photocopied certificate stating "Perfect Attendance". Besides...I do keep them home when they are sick.

I'm a teacher...getting rid of PA awards would be one of the best things. I can't tell you how many kids come to school sick. Yes, not all are trying for PA, but a few are. One mom actually said "I told Johnny if he stayed home, he wouldn't get PA". Oh brother...

I told my entire classroom of parents on Back to School Night that if their child was sick, they had to keep him/her home, & that I'm not a fan of PA.

 

[Tiggerkeeper]

DH had perfect attendance ALL 12 years of school! I, on the other hand, missed at least 1 day every year with ear/sinus infections. And as for our kids well, they had a few mental health days here and there...but were really never sick.