Answer the bell, be in school

School attendance matters. Having taught more than 15,000 students over 43 years in the classroom, I can tell you there are three primary keys to success in school:

1. Show up

2. Pay Attention

3. Get the Work Done

The most important of these is the first one, showing up, because, without it, the other two don't usually work out very well. Good attendance is where success in school begins. The vast majority of kids who have failed my classes over the years have failed primarily due to not showing up.

Some easy things to remember:

* Every Day

* Every Class

* Attendance Counts

* It's how you Pass

Improved Attendance = Improved Learning = Improved Grades

Three-day weekends are not actually supposed to last five days, and the first week of school is not an appropriate time to go camping or to a less crowded amusement park.

In fact, the first week of school is probably the most important school week of the year. It starts the solid foundation for the entire school year. It's when classroom rules and expectations are laid out. It's content introduction. It's getting to know one another and relationship building. It's orientation and safety instruction in shop classes, P.E., and more.

In short, it's starting off on the right foot. And this year, with the implementation of the new Idaho Core Standards for math and language arts in grades K-12, every day will REALLY count.

Our first day of school is Tuesday, Sept. 3, and I would ask every parent and guardian in our district to make sure your children show up on time and are prepared to pay attention and get the work done. Let's all start the year off right and make every day count.

Dave Eubanks is a trustee of Coeur d'Alene School District.