On Time Timmy is a county-wide attendance campaign designed for kindergarten, first and second grade classrooms with a focus on:
building strong attendance habits,
preventing absenteeism, and
supporting families of chronically absent students.
Who is affected
Kindergarten and 1st grade classes often have absenteeism rates as high as those in high school. Many of these absences are excused, but they still add up to lost time in the classroom.
1 in 10
kids in kindergarten and first grade are chronically absent.
2 in 10
low income kids miss too much school. They are also more likely to suffer academically.
2.5 in 10
homeless kids are chronically absent.
4 in 10
transient kids miss too much school when families move.
Meet Timmy
Timmy is a young rooster from the Imperial Valley, whose mission is to communicate the importance of going to school every day and being on time. Much like Dippy Duck, it is hoped that Timmy will become a staple in our community - educating students and families about the importance of regular school attendance and the negative impact that chronic absenteeism can have on a child’s success in school. Parents and students alike will learn that good attendance means... if you attend today, you will achieve tomorrow.
Attendance in the Early Grades
Many of our youngest students miss 10 percent of the school year—about 18 days a year or just two days every month. Chronic absenteeism in kindergarten, and even pre-K, can predict lower test scores, poor attendance and retention in later grades, especially if the problem persists for more than a year.
“Chronic absence can translate into third-graders unable to master reading, sixth-graders failing subjects and ninth-graders dropping out of high school.”
Improving Attendance
With data in hand, schools, families and community partners can together determine the causes of chronic absence, and implement approaches that address barriers to getting to class. The federal Every Student Succeeds Act requires districts and states to collect chronic absence data and report it publicly. California has adopted chronic absence as a measure for school accountability. Reducing California’s high chronic absenteeism rates is a priority in the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).
Parents
The challenge of improving attendance is to avoid making the incorrect assumption that chronically absent students or their parents simply do not care. Let’s ensure all children get to school every day!
Teachers
There are a variety of approaches, strategies and tools to help educators address chronic absence. Find out what you can do to ensure all students succeed in school and in life.
Principals
Chronic absence is a solvable problem. The key is using chronic absence data as a diagnostic tool to identify where prevention and early intervention are needed.