Sending Child Back to School After Being Sick

I'd send him. I have 4 children. It's a good idea to teach them that it is important to go to school, even when things aren't perfect. As long as they are not contageous. As they get older, they will be less apt to want to stay home for lesser reasons.
My rule was if you don't have a fever or are not throwing up, and don't have anything that could possibly be contageous, then you go to school. Everyone has their ups and down days. Good for you for looking out for other children. Not a lot of parents do,

I'd wait until the morning to see how he feels. If you're still not convinced he is ready for school, keep him home. Otherwise, he might look and feel a lot better after a good nights sleep...

If he's not contagious and feels ok, let him go to school. He's not hurting anyone by being there and ear infections are quite common during the infant/toddler years, as I have a 3 1/2 year old and a 15 month old who have had their share of ear infections. Why make him miss a day he wants to be there and dr.gives the ok?

If he says he wants to go to school in the am and has no fever, I say let him go. You would be surprised how fast they can bounce back. :)

my daughter's preschool's rule is if they had a fever within 24 hours they cannot go to school. if he's feeling fine and the Dr says it's ok, and he hasn't had a fever... he will probably be ok to go back.

Believe it or not, I just got an ear infection. I didn't even know that happened to adults! My infection was very bad, and I actually had a perforated ear drum. Let me tell you, I will be SOOO much more sympathetic the next time one of my kids gets an ear infection! It was very painful (and I have a high tolerance for pain). However, after one dose of antibiotics and a good night's sleep (well, sort of -- I'm still getting up frequently with an infant), my ear no longer hurt. It still feels clogged up (now almost a week later), and I can't hear as well out of that ear. But the pain was gone several hours after the first dose of antibiotics. I don't think infections get much worse than mine, so I'd say that if your son wants to go to school, you should let him go.

My two older boys (2 and 4) recently got ear infections also, and they were no longer complaining of pain the next day after having had one dose of antibiotics.

The kids have to be on antibiotics for a full 24 hours before they can go back to school. I am in Dover and if you ask the nurse they will tell you that it is in the handout from the beginning of the year.

Typically after being on antibiotics for 24 hours you will see a huge improvement. That's why your always warned to finish the entire medication, because most people feel so much better in 24 to 48 hours that they don't need it anymore.

I say send him to school, but of course you won't be able to make that call until morning.

In regard to the 24 hour issue, the rule at our school is either for fever or something contagious like strep (of course every school is different). My daughter has had numerous ear infections and it is amazing the difference one day of antibiotics can make. If he feels well in the a.m., let him go.

When my kids get ear infections, the first dose of antibiotics followed by some motrin and a good nights sleep seem to make them feel a lot better. They're usually bouncing off the walls again the next day. If you see he's feeling better, and he says he's feeling better, I would send him on to school. He can always call you if he starts to feel bad throughout the day, but it is my experience that the day following treatment the kids feel a lot better. Best of luck!

As long as he feels well enough, I would let him go. My kids got ear infections when they were smaller, and as soon as they started taking the medicine, they would feel better.

I agree! 24hrs of anti biotic for my DD is usually good too!

He won't be up to snuff for several days, or "well" for a couple of weeks. While I'm sure he wants to go... being bored at home, versus 6-8 hours of school will be a different matter when he's still in pain.

So, obviously, I'd wait another day.

My daughter had 6 ear infections in a 7 month period when she was younger, so I feel like a quasi-expert. Your son is obviously not going to be 100% until a few days into the antibiotics, but I always sent my daughter back to school as soon as she had at least 2 doses of the antibiotics. I found that being in school, with her routine, took her mind off the discomfort of the ear infection. Never once was she sent home when I sent her in....If it were me, I would let him go to school.

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If your doctor says it is okay, and your son says he feels okay too, then it's probably safe to send him back to school. Just make sure he keeps taking the antibiotics for the full duration and he'll be fine. It's a bummer to watch your child be sick but they usually recover pretty quickly and want to get on with life, and that's a good thing!