I got a letter the other day from a parent whose daughter had missed more than 30 days of school. “Please excuse my child for these absences because of asthma, colds and the weather,” the note said.

The weather?

So, if the day was cold, then her daughter wasn’t learning. If it was raining – no learning. Foggy—no learning. Snowing—no learning. Below freezing – no learning.  What do you think this child is learning? I’ll tell you. This parent is teaching her child that the weather dictates whether she will meet her responsibilities or not. Not a good lesson.

I have teachers who suffer from asthma, yet they show up to work every day no matter the weather.

When parents make sure their children go to school every day they are teaching them what it means to be responsible and self-disciplined. They are preparing them for the world of work, when they will need to show up every day in order to be successful.

I have students who arrive to school late virtually every day. When asked why, one parent answered, “I don’t get into work until ten so I am not getting up earlier.” What is important to this parent? Her own comfort, not the education of her children.

A child who arrives late to school not only misses all that has been taught before their arrival but also interrupts the instruction for the other students who did arrive on time. It is unfair to the student and the rest of the class.

And yet again, what lesson is this parent teaching her child? I’ll tell you. This parent is teaching her child to disrespect other’s time and effort, and that only her timetable is important. Not a lesson for future success. There isn’t a job in the world that will tolerate a consistently late employee.

School is preparation for the future in more ways than just the ABCs. Help your child learn that attendance and punctuality are important to future success by getting them to school every day and on time. It is a lesson they won’t forget when they become our future doctors, lawyers, teachers, artists, parents.

Dr. Vasthi Acosta is Amber Charter School (ACS)’s head of school in northern Manhattan. Her email is askdrvasthi@ambercharter.org.