• http://www.aap.org/: The American Academy of Pediatrics website features some of the latest information on children's health from national acclaimed sources.
• https://www.kidshealth.org/: Kids Health offers parents, teens, and kids information on areas of interest from First Aid to common medical/health concerns.
• http://www.ctsafekids.org/: Safe Kids Connecticut provides information on how to keep our children safe, featuring topics from bike safety to some of the latest consumer information on product recalls.

Current public health standards and research-based recommendations indicate that routine screening and management at home are the key factors in the effective control of head lice. Therefore, our emphasis is on prevention through parental education, collaboration, and communication. Mass screenings for head lice are no longer conducted routinely in our schools. Not only are they ineffective as a method of control, but also they result in loss of instruction time, misdiagnosed cases, and a stigma for children who are sent home in the middle of the day. While head lice are a nuisance, lice do not cause disease and when first identified on a head, have usually been there for a few weeks. They are annoying and sometimes difficult to get rid of, but they are not dangerous. We are asking that everyone be as diligent as possible and check their children’s scalps throughout the school year. If nits or live lice are found, please treat and comb out the nits. By checking often, any nits that were not combed out, will hopefully be found. For more information, please read Facts About Head Lice.

Is my child too sick for school? The main reasons for keeping your child home are:

1) if they are too sick to be comfortable at school, or 2) if they might spread a contagious disease to other children. As a rule of thumb, a child should stay home who has a fever, vomiting, diarrhea, a very frequent cough, persistent pain (ear, stomach, headache, etc.), or a wide-spread rash. Most of these problems need to be discussed with your child's health care provider to determine if an office visit is needed. (If your child has frequent complaints of pain that cause school absence, school avoidance should be considered. Bring this to the attention of the child's doctor before a great deal of school has been missed.)

On the other hand, children who don't have a fever and only have a mild cough, runny nose, or other cold symptoms can be sent to school without any harm to themselves or others.

Quick Reference Sheet: When to Keep Your Child Home

What procedures must I follow to sign my child up for a sport? For the procedure to sign up for a sport, as well as the requirements for participation in a sport, please see the Athletics pages of the SHS website or contact the Athletic Department at (860) 658-0451, ext.190. The health requirement for a student to be eligible to participate in the Interscholastic Athletic Program is submission of a State of Connecticut Health Assessment Record signed by a physician that clears the student to play a sport. This Health Assessment Record must be completed within 13 calendar months of any participation. Medical clearance forms will not be accepted. If a student's Health Assessment Record will expire during the course of a season, that student must submit a new one within the 13 month deadline in order to continue participating in that season.