As treatment progresses, your child may return to school either part time or full time, but extended absences due to infections or complications from treatment are common. A child who is out of school longer than two weeks for any medical reason is entitled by law to instruction at home or in the hospital. It is a good idea to request offsite instruction as soon as you find out your child may be out of school for longer than two weeks. The school will require a letter from the doctor stating the reason and expected length of time offsite instruction will be needed. Four ways to continue education are:

1. Homebound or hospital education

2. Video teleconferencing of classes

3. Online classes

4. Homeschooling by parents

If your child is hospitalized far from home, the hospital will provide onsite teachers or make arrangements with teachers from the local community. If your child is hospitalized close to home or is at home but cannot attend school, your school district provides the teacher (called a homebound teacher). The hospital teacher or homebound teacher is responsible for gathering materials from the child’s school.

Communication was the key. I wrote weekly updates and made copies for each teacher, put their names on them, and delivered them to school. I learned that a single copy of a letter didn’t get passed around to everyone. (Joel was in high school.) Some classes used a tape recorder; they all kept a record of what he’d missed. His math teacher got together with the librarian and arranged to videotape his math classes. They did so much on the board, on overheads, and with discussion in that class that an audiotape would not have helped. All teachers were willing to meet with him after or before school to essentially reteach the concepts that he had missed.

I also told his teachers it was okay to discuss Joel, his leukemia, and his treatment with the other kids in his classes. They would never have done it without my okay. I knew that in the absence of information, there would be rumors flying. This might not work for everyone, but it served us well.

Technology provides many ways to keep up with schoolwork. For example, some school systems provide a computer so the student can keep up via teleconferencing and online classes. In some cases, parents choose to homeschool their child. Check with your local school district to find out the requirements for homeschooling.

We used Skype® and had a weekly time set up so that Patrik could see his classmates, and they could see him. If an oral presentation was due, he heard a few of theirs, and presented his. If nothing shareable was due, they just traded jokes or did a show and tell of something that had happened that week. If he was not feeling well or was hospitalized, it was cancelled for that week. It sure helped make him still feel a part of his class, and the teacher said it really helped his classmates to see he was still okay, and still himself. He wasn’t allowed to attend school at all for frontline treatment (almost 10 months). Patrik started the first day of 5th grade this year. He was able to walk in the building, feel welcome, and step right back into his friendships. No problems at all with that. I really thank his teacher last year for keeping him a part of his class despite not being in school.

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One thing we did in the hospital was ABC Reading Eggs®—an online learn-to-read app (http://readingeggs.com). There were of course times where we wasted hours watching TV and DVDs, but we also encouraged Flynn academically—we didn’t try hard, just provided alternative opportunities. By doing Reading Eggs® and by always having books on hand, he learned to read very young. I was always so proud of this because the chemo took away so much of my boy, but it was all only temporary. I think he was clever to realize that reading was an excellent form of distraction, and even now at 6.5 years old he will still go to his room to read when he’s upset. By escaping into his world of books, he becomes calm and happy once again. I will be forever grateful for this positive that emerged from the darkness.