A father has sparked mixed reactions after revealing how he tricked his daughter’s school into believing she was missing to highlight what he saw as a lack of responsibility and professionalism.
What Happened
The dad shared his story on Reddit, explaining how he dropped his 7-year-old daughter off with her teacher before taking his younger son to a separate building for pre-kindergarten... Continue reading here ▶
But when he returned to his car, he was shocked to see his daughter standing there in tears. She had tripped in class, hurt herself, and broken her favorite water bottle—a possession she was deeply attached to.
In a rush to get to work, the dad decided to take her to his mom’s house for comfort instead of calling the school. He assumed the school would contact him, but they never did.
“They didn’t call me. My daughter was fine but wanted comforting, and no one was there for her, so she came to find me,” he wrote. The dad added that his daughter, who is waiting for an autism assessment, has a history of wandering when distressed.
Confronting the School
At the end of the day, he picked up his son and approached his daughter’s teacher to ask why no one had called about her absence. He claims the teacher panicked and quickly disappeared into the classroom. Frustrated, he went to the main office to demand an explanation.
There, the teacher admitted she didn’t realize his daughter was supposed to be in school that day. The principal stepped in, criticizing the dad for not informing the school of his decision to take his daughter home.
“The principal told me it was incredibly dangerous to not call her in and to let the staff worry,” the dad explained. “But I think it’s unprofessional that they didn’t call me when she wasn’t in class. I handed her off to a staff member, so someone knew she was there. Anything could have happened to her.”
The dad is now considering switching his children to another school, adding, “They’ve scheduled a meeting to discuss this, but I don’t think I trust this school anymore.”
Divided Opinions
Seeking a second opinion, the dad turned to his brother, a teacher, who told him he was wrong. His brother argued that the school staff might not have realized the situation because they saw him with his daughter and assumed she wasn’t staying.
What Others Think
The dad’s story has sparked a heated debate online.
One commenter criticized his actions:
“You should have notified the school when you picked her up. From her story, it’s not clear if teachers even saw her in class. Why would you assume they knew she was supposed to be there?”
Another pointed out the safety risks:
“What if a stranger had taken her? The real danger here is the school not paying attention to the whereabouts of children entrusted to them.”
A teacher added their perspective:
“As a teacher, my responsibility is knowing where my students are at all times. If a child goes missing, my first call is to the main office, who contacts the parents. If your daughter was marked ‘present’ but wasn’t in school, that’s essentially falsifying a legal document.”
