Absences & Attendance

Attendance at school is very important. Please send your child to school EVERYDAY unless they are experiencing a fever, vomiting, or are contagious to others. Do not call the school secretary to report the absence.

If a student is absent, call (408) 371-2061

Give the date,
Your name, and relationship to the child
Your child’s name, grade, and STUDENT ID
Reason for the absence and the anticipated length of the absence.

If for some reason the parent is unable to phone in the absence, the student must bring a note signed by a parent/guardian on the first day of his or her return. The note must include the date, the period of time the child was absent, the exact cause of the absence, and the parent's signature. If a student does not bring a note, or if there is no call to the absence line, your student is considered "unexcused".

When your student is absent, you will receive a Parent Square notification at approximately 9:30 am, informing you that they are absent. Please note that you will receive these messages even if you already left a message on the Attendance Line. You do NOT need to respond to the message nor call the school IF (and only if) you have already left a message or talked with Mrs. Matovich. If you forgot to already call, the Parent Square notification can serve as your reminder to do so. Again, no need to respond if you've already informed Mrs. Matovich of your student's absence.

If a student misses school for any reason, the student should contact their individual teachers and/or check the teacher’s web site for the make-up work. Please note that the majority of classroom assignments can often be found online via Google Classroom and on our teachers' daily Google slides.

If an extended absence is anticipated, Independent Study is an alternative. Arrangements should be made with the attendance secretary, Mrs. Valerie Matovich.

Please remember to make sure your children are at school daily and on time. Education Code 48260 (a) states that any ”pupil who is absent from school three full days or tardy or absent more than any 30-minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year or any combination thereof, is a truant.” Habitual truants are those students who have missed six or more days or 30-minutes sessions. Make sure your children are not missing out on valuable learning time.

Tips to getting out of the house in the morning and to school on-time include:

Select school clothes, socks, accessories the night before,
Have lunch packed and ready to go.
Set out the dishes, cups and utensils for breakfast.
Set the alarm clock 10 minutes early.
Place completed homework in the backpack and set it by the door.
Get to bed at a reasonable time. The National Sleep Foundation suggests that a preschool-aged child needs between 11 to 13 hours of sleep. School age (5-10 years) require 10-11 and teens (10-17 years) need 8.5-9.25 hours each night.

Education Code 48205: Excused absences

(a) Notwithstanding Section 48200 [California’s compulsory education requirement], a pupil shall be excused from school when the absence is:

(1) Due to his or her illness.

(2) Due to quarantine under the direction of a county or city health officer.

(3) For the purpose of having medical, dental, optometrical, or chiropractic services rendered.

(4) For the purpose of attending the funeral services of a member of his or her immediate family, so long as the absence is not more than one day if the service is conducted in California and not more than three days if the service is conducted outside California.

(5) For the purpose of jury duty in the manner provided for by law.

(6) Due to the illness or medical appointment during school hours of a child of whom the pupil is the custodial parent.

(7) For justifiable personal reasons, including, but not limited to, an appearance in court, attendance at a funeral service, observance of a holiday or ceremony of his or her religion, attendance at religious retreats, or attendance at an employment conference, when the pupil's absence has been requested in writing by the parent or guardian and approved by the principal or a designated representative pursuant to uniform standards established by the governing board.

(8) For the purpose of serving as a member of a precinct board for an election pursuant to Section 12302 of the Elections Code.

(b) A pupil absent from school under this section shall be allowed to complete all assignments and tests missed during the absence that can be reasonably provided and, upon satisfactory completion within a reasonable period of time, shall be given full credit therefor. The teacher of any class from which a pupil is absent shall determine the tests and assignments shall be reasonably equivalent to, but not necessarily identical to, the tests and assignments that the pupil missed during the absence.

(d) Absences pursuant to this section are deemed to be absences in computing average daily attendance and shall not generate state apportionment payments.

(e) "Immediate family," as used in this section, has the same meaning as that set forth in Section 45194, except that references therein to "employee" shall be deemed to be references to "pupil." [Members of the immediate family, as used in this section, means the mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, or a grandchild of the employee or of the spouse of the employee, and the spouse, son, son-in-law, daughter, daughter-in-law, brother, or sister of the employee, or any relative living in the immediate household of the employee.]

(Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 312, Sec. 1.)