Why I Let My Daughter Skip School

My daughter’s in middle school, and sometimes, when she’s not sick, I let her skip school anyway.

Why? Because sometimes you need a mental health day. Sometimes you need a day to recharge.

Sometimes you need to go shopping for shoes on a Tuesday afternoon instead of dissecting a frog.

I’ve had jobs before where we got personal days, and I’ve had them where we didn’t. I have to be honest, the jobs where we get the personal days were always better jobs. The kinds of jobs I want my daughter to strive for.

This is a big part of growing up. Knowing what you do and don’t want out of your adult life and working to get that.

I think it’s also important for my child to understand that most of the time it’s important to live by the rules. Most days you need to go to school. Most days you need to go to work, too.

But sometimes, sometimes you need to be a rebel, break all the rules and have a special day just for yourself. Sometimes you need to think outside of the box. Great things happen when you think outside of the box. It’s important for kids to see examples of when it’s okay to break rules and when it isn’t.

The last thing I want for my daughter is for her to think she can’t think for herself or make her own decisions. She has to live by her own rules. But her own rules also have to mostly coincide with society’s rules, too.

That’s just how life is.

Skipping school and taking a chill day (that’s what we call them in my house) is a good thing! It’s a good reset. It’s good to see that the world doesn’t stop when you’re in school, that life goes on, and that you will someday be a part of it!

Read: The ten things I want my daughter to remember as she grows up.

So, I am all for skipping school. Heck, I encourage it.

The time we spend together on chill days is some of my favorite. It’s like we get to have a secret! She tells me EVERYTHING on those days. It’s a special window into her life. I let her break the rules a little, and she breaks them, too. Suddenly mom is cool enough to get to hear all the juicy details.

I love the juicy details. It’s one of those things you kind of have to fight for when your kid gets in middle school. I get it. Parents aren’t cool anymore.

Except when they let you skip school. Then we are the coolest.