Suggestions to Improve Attendance

If attendance has been an increasing problem with your client, a plan will need to be developed with the client, their parents, and the school administration and/or attendance officer. Improving attendance requires a team approach and application of reinforcement, relationship, and meaningfulness.

Some suggestions include:

• Using a combination of encouragement and reward rather than simply punishment or exclusion.
  • Rewards at school could include recognition for attendance and academic success.
  • Rewards at home could include: material objects, spending money, transportation to activities, and opportunities for social activities.
  • Consequences could include an earlier curfew and loss of privileges.

• Encourage your client to use a checklist of things to do to ensure that he/she does not miss anything important while preparing for his/her day.

• It will be helpful if the client has a staff member that he/she can check in with every morning to help ensure attendance and appropriate preparation for school. This will help to reinforce the importance of supportive mentoring relationships.

• Help your client to devise a schedule for his/her morning that allows for sufficient time to prepare for school. 
  • This should include time guidelines for each step along the way. 
  • If getting out of bed in the morning is an issue, then it will be important to help them identify the best time to go to sleep at night to ensure that they are rested in the morning.

• The client’s course selection should include a number of high-interest courses, ideally offered first thing in the morning and last thing in the afternoon in order to book-end their day with something positive.

• Should lateness or attendance become a persistent issue, it may be necessary to work with a school social worker or counsellor.