School attendance is essential to students’ achievement at every grade level. Students who develop patterns of good attendance are much more likely to be successful both academically and socially. Students are expected to attend school unless they have an excused absence. At Talbot, we are working on improving our student attendance rates. Students fall behind when they miss school-whether the students are absent for excused or unexcused reasons. A few absences every month can add up to weeks of lost learning over the school year. Here are some quick attendance tips that may help improve your child’s attendance:

• Set a regular bedtime and morning routine.
• Lay out clothes and pack backpacks the night before.
• Only keep your child home when she/he is truly sick. Keep in mind complaints of a stomach ache or headache can be a sign of anxiety and not a reason to stay home.
• If your child seems anxious about going to school, talk to teachers, school counselors, or other parents for advice on how to make him/her feel comfortable and excited about learning.
• Develop back-up plans for getting to school if something comes up. Call on a family member, a neighbor, or another parent.
• Please avoid medical appointments and extended trips when school is in session.
• If your child has a doctor’s appointment, you are encouraged to bring them to school after the appointment so they only miss a portion of their learning time, rather than the whole school day.

To enhance our existing absence-checking procedure, we use a system called SafeArrival. With SafeArrival, you are asked to report your child’s absence in advance using any of these 3 convenient methods:

1. Using your mobile device, download and install the SchoolMessenger app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store (or from the links at https://go.schoolmessenger.com). The first time you use the app, select Sign Up to create your account, using the same email address you have provided to Talbot School**. Select Attendance, then Report an Absence. (**If you are unsure what email address you have provided, please call us.)
2. Use the SafeArrival website, https://go.schoolmessenger.com. The first time you use the website, select Sign Up to create your account. Select Attendance, then Report an Absence.
3. Call the toll-free number, (855) 787-3577, to report an absence using the automated phone system.

These options are available 24 hours/day, 7 days a week. Future absences can be reported at any time.In addition, we will use the SchoolMessenger Communicate automated notification system to contact parents whose child is absent when the absence was not reported in advance. The automated notification system will attempt to contact parents at multiple contact points until a reason is submitted for the absence. If our system is unable to reach the designated contacts, office staff will follow up. If you report your child’s absence in advance using the SafeArrival toll-free number, website or mobile app, you will NOT receive these notifications.

Students are considered tardy if they report to school later than 7:40 a.m. Parents/Guardians who have not called in for an absent or tardy child will be contacted by the school in order to ensure that the child is safe at home, with the full consent of the parent/guardian. Excused absences are defined by Maine State Law and the Portland School Board of Education as:

• personal illness;
• an appointment with a health professional that must be made during school hours;
• observance of a religious holiday;
• a family emergency; or
• a planned absence for a personal or educational purpose that has been approved in advance by the principal/assistant principal.

All other absences are considered unexcused. Absences for family vacations during times when school is in session are considered unexcused absences. It is important to be aware that such unexcused absences may make it difficult for students to master concepts taught and reinforced in the classroom program. Vacation or make-up assignments really cannot “replace” specific classroom instruction. Teachers are not required to give vacation homework or make-up assignments or assessments.

Maine Law (20-A MRSA 5001- A) requires that children attend school. In cases of excessive unexcused absences/truancy for which the parent is responsible, the School Department may refer to the Department of Human Services and law enforcement.