When Should You Keep Your Child Home from School?

Deciding whether to keep your child home when they’re not feeling well can be difficult. While not every situation can be covered, here are some general guidelines to help:

• Fever: If your child has a temperature of 100.0°F or higher, they should stay home until they’ve been fever-free for 24 hours without using Tylenol or Ibuprofen and are back to their normal behavior. Be sure to check their temperature before giving any medication.
• Vomiting or Diarrhea: Keep your child home until they’ve gone 24 hours without vomiting or diarrhea and are eating normally again. If they had symptoms overnight, they should not attend school the next day.
• Cold Symptoms: Runny noses are common, but if the mucus is thick and green, or if your child has a persistent or productive cough, they should stay home. A constant dry cough may signal a more serious issue—consider contacting your child’s doctor.
• Eye Redness or Discharge: Red eyes with itching, burning, yellow or white discharge, or crusted eyelashes may be signs of pink eye (conjunctivitis), which is highly contagious. Your child should stay home until they’ve seen a doctor and been on medication for at least 24 hours.
• Chickenpox: This rash includes small blisters that scab over. Children should stay home until all blisters have scabbed, usually 5–7 days after they first appear.
• Rashes: If your child has a rash, and you’re unsure of the cause, have it checked by a doctor before sending them to school.
• Sore Throat: A severe or persistent sore throat, especially with fever, white patches on the tonsils, swollen glands, headache, or stomachache, could be strep throat. If diagnosed, your child should stay home until they’ve been on antibiotics for 24 hours and are feeling better.
• Earache: If your child complains of ear pain, keep them home until they’ve been evaluated by a doctor.

These guidelines are meant to protect your child and others at school. If you have any questions, please contact your campus nurse.