Getting Your Child Back to School (PDF)

A collection of accessible and scientifically proven strategies for parents struggling with school attendance problems in children of all ages.

School attendance problems are a common and worrisome challenge faced by many parents. Even in milder forms, poor school attendance can increase the risk of social, behavioral, and academic problems in childhood and adolescence, and even into adulthood. Unfortunately, parents often have trouble understanding their children's school attendance issues and are uncertain about how to help.

Getting Your Child Back to School is intended for parents grappling with school attendance problems at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Covering a wide variety of attendance problems and special circumstances, the book offers practical, step-by-step strategies parents can use themselves, including asking the right questions, evaluating the severity of the problem, and knowing whom to consult. Parents will learn to change a child's negative thoughts around school, establish a clear and predictable morning routine, and set up a system of rewards for going to school. New to this edition is material on very severe and chronic cases, including discussion of educational alternatives; mindfulness approaches and parent involvement strategies; teletherapy and other options for young people who have been out of school for an extended period; and more extensive guidance on working with school officials. Easy to read and filled with concrete strategies, this book was the first of its kind dedicated to educating and arming parents with the tools they need to resolve their children's absenteeism; this new edition continues to offer the best available scientifically-proven guidance for parents determined to get their kids back to school.