[*Lib*]

At least once or twice a month one of us girls in the office (there's 2 of us, we're sisters) have a kid come to work with us. Generally they are running around fine by 9am. They are good at doing the sick, until they get to work. When I was a kid mum and dad were running the business on their own, so we had to be bleeding from the eyes to get a day off! I'd be more inclined to let her have a just for fun day off if she hasn't already taken so many!!

So do your kids do it?? If they do, how do you deal with it? I want to start with a fresh slate next year. But I don't think I should be rewarding her to go to school IYKWIM?

[strawberrycakes]

My almost 5 yr old chucked a sickie a couple of weeks ago. She complained of a sore stomach the day before so DH stayed home from work, the next day she said she was still sick so I took the day off work. A couple of hours later she was eating the house out & running around.

Yesterday she had the day off & went to her grandparents because of a cold/cough, she has already tried to tell me this morning that she has to go back to Nanny's today because she has the sniffles. I am not falling for it again, if she can argue with me & run up & down the house she can go to preschool.

[corbel]

I will send them to school if they "recover". But we have a rule in our house that unless they are obviously sick, they have to give school a go and the school are aware and agree with this as it is an issue for one of my children and they are happy to give me a buzz to come and get them if need be. One of my children is really good at bunging it on and now we even have to make him stay in sick bay at school (when the teacher agrees) to get him to learn that no one is falling for it. We are trying to teach him a little about the boy who cried wolf as it is getting harder to know when something is really wrong.

[*Lib*]

That's what I am like, she's good!!!

[idignantlyright]

When I am trying to decide whether or not they are sick, I resort to saying "Okay, if you are really sick then you can go and lay in bed all day and just have crackers and plain stuff to eat."
Usually if they are chucking a sickie, about 15mins later they have a miraculous recovery.

[JustBeige]

Lib, I found that when they were younger they tended to do that more. My DS didnt really like school until he was about 8, so he would have had every day off if he could have.

I did start the rule that if they are *sick* they have to stay in bed. I find that this stops the mental health days as its no fun if you arent sick, staying in bed. Oh, they arent allowed to watch TV, play wii or anything strenuous either.

I know this isnt a popular EB opinion, but I think you need to make 'at work with mummy' days planned. Ie: once a term if she doesnt chuck a sickie then she gets a day with you. 4 days off a year really isnt much and you can always cut back as they get older. My boy only gets 2 a year now and the HS kid gets none. Having these days hasnt hurt either of them academically.

Otherwise, make going to work with you boring as possible.

[amaza]

I thought DS1 was 'off' all last week so on Friday I tried to make him have the day off and he wasn't having a bar of it. That night I took him to the dr where his temp was over 40 degrees. It hasn't come down since. I actually did make him have yesterday (and today) off but he never ever chucks sickies and apparently goes even when he is sick too.

DS2 tells me he is sick and can't go to school at least 3 days a week. When he tells me something is wrong that I know he isn't making up I will let him have a day off, other than that he's told to get them to call me if he needs to. The other day he said the inside of his ear was hurting. He is 5 so it's not something that he would know to make up unlike the normal 'my belly hurts' statements.

I can usually tell but DS1 gets sick much less than DS2 so sometimes he is hard to gauge.

[melajoe]

DD1 has fooled me once. DD2 and I had both had gastro in the days prior though, and DD1 woke up saying she had a sore tummy and then wouldn't eat her breakfast - she was very convincing. I phoned work for the day off and we took DD2 to kindy (she had recovered from her bout of gastro by then), but as soon as we got home DD1 started saying she was hungry and then she spend the day running around and playing without any further complaint. I could have taken her in and gone in to work late I suppose, but I was glad for the extra day off as I still wasn't 100% myself.

I think she just felt left out because DD2 is always sick with one thing or another and DD1 wanted some time at home with me to herself.

[ChunkyChook]

DD is pretty good, she has only had 2 days off last term and 2 days off in term 2. Both times she was super sick with gastro, the first time I ended up posting on here because I was so worried and it resulted in a trip to Emergency.

She has tried once and I said she would be in her room, no tv, water and dry bikkies, only getting up to wee and she decided her tummy wasnt too bad afterall.

[charlottesmum04]

The one time i almost sent DD to school a really really regreted it.

DD woke up on a monday morning and said she felt 'tired and weak' I told her nice try and to get her uniform on. 8am rolls around i hand her her lunchbox she tries to grab it and doesnt have enough strength in her hand to grip her lunchbox. Quick check over resulted in discovering she is weak down the entire left side of her body. Queue race to hospital 4 day stay while they investigated clots or a bleed in her brain and weeks off school while she recovered.

It now takes alot for me not to give her the beneft of doubt and just let her stay home.