Unfortunately, truancy can sometimes become such a strong habit that the person finds it difficult to become a student again. The backlog continues to worsen, which is not conducive to a desire to return to lessons. In the older grades, weekly attendance is difficult to make up, let alone longer absences or many single hours.

So what should we do if we find out that our child has been truant?

• first of all, stay calm and don't make hasty judgments, but look into the situation (e.g. did the whole class run away, what was the reason, etc.)
• talk calmly and listen carefully to the child
• do not hit the child or use other serious punishments, but spend the time talking to the child and spending time together in other ways
• show the child what the consequences of skipping school might be, but do not moralise
• emphasise in the conversation that missing school means making up material and that a test must still be passed
• don't "blow the whistle" and don't talk too much about it - in families where parents have less time for their children, it can be important for young pupils to receive any kind of attention (even negative attention)
• if a child admits truancy on his/her own, it should be appreciated (it means that he/she trusts us!)

sometimes it's worth looking at our own attitude to work - aren't we role models for our children in this respect (?)