Absence Reporting

Will your child be absent?

Please notify the office as soon as possible, by phone or reporting in Family Access (instructions on this page).

360-412-4761
Leave a detailed voicemail if necessary.

cmsoffice@nthurston.k12.wa.us

Attendance Procedure

The first bell rings at 9:16 am and attendance is taken at 9:20 am in the classroom. If your student arrives later than 9:20 am, they will need a note or phone call from the parent or guardian to excuse the tardy. Students should check in at the attendance window to get a pass to class. Students who have 3 unexcused tardies in a single week will have an isolated lunch period.
Students who arrive by late bus must check in at the attendance window and get a pass to class. A late bus will not count as a tardy.
To excuse your student for an illness or appointment for the school day, please call the attendance line or submit an absence request in Skyward Family Access.
If your student has an appointment during the school day, please send a note with your student or call to have your student released for the appointment. A call in will require the parent/guardian to come in and sign the student out. If you send a note, no other signature is required.
When possible, a doctor’s note is appreciated for illnesses or appointments.
An automated attendance notification call goes out to families by 1:30 pm daily. Excused absence requests will need to be made by 11:00am to avoid receiving an automated call. Any requests made after 11:00 am can be viewed as 'Excused' on Family Access.

Absence Reporting in Family Access

Log into Family Access. Contact your school office if you do not know your username and/or password.
If you have multiple students, click on the student you wish to report the absence at the top of the screen (the drop-down at the top if you're using the mobile app).
Click on the Attendance tile.
Make sure you're on the Absence Requests (tabs are in the middle of the screen), click Add Absence Request at the very right, choose the appropriate reason, adding notes, and copying the request to multiple students, if needed.
A message will be sent to your office with the information and will be pending until it has been processed.

Watch this video to see it in action!

Attendance Matters at NTPS

What is good attendance?

Why is good attendance important?

Three levels of absence issues, from satisfactory, warning, and chronic absence issues.

When attendance is good, they do well in school! Regular attendance ensures that:

Preschoolers build skills and develop good habits for showing up on time
Elementary students read well by the end of 3rd grade
Middle & high schoolers stay on track for graduation

When do absences become a problem?

Satisfactory: 9 or fewer absences means your student can keep up and keep learning!
Warning Signs: 10 to 17 absences in a school year mean your student will miss a lot and struggle to keep up!
Chronic Absence: 18 or more days in a year (2 days a month) is enough to warrant meeting with the student and your family to discuss any challenges that we may help overcome.

What happens in a student misses too much school?

Too many absences—excused or unexcused—can keep students from succeeding in school and in life. Students who miss more than 1 school day a month become at risk for longer-term challenges. For example:

Half of the students, who miss 2 to 4 days in September, go on to miss nearly one month of school;
Chronically absent (2 days a month) students are more likely to drop out of high school;
Chronically absent kindergartners score 20 percent lower in reading and math in later grades;
Student absences in 8th grade are 8 times more predictive of 9th grade course failure than test scores;
Chronic absenteeism is the strongest 6th grade predictor of not graduating from high school.

That’s why if your student has two unexcused absences in one month, state law (RCW 28A.225.020) requires that schools schedule a family conference with the student to identify barriers and supports available to ensure regular attendance.

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