Several schools recorded a dip in attendance because of the chilly conditions and rain on Thursday.
The dip varied from 10 to 25 per cent across schools.
In several schools, the sports day practice, a familiar winter routine, had to be cut short because of frequent drizzles.
“The attendance in junior classes on Thursday was low. The past three days we have seen a lower attendance than usual in the primary section. On Thursday it was lower compared to the previous two days. It was less by 20 per cent,” said Jessica Gomes Surana, principal, Loreto Day School Elliot Road.
At Loreto House, attendance was 10 per cent less than usual across all classes.
“It was drizzling in the morning. In the afternoon, too, during dispersal, there was a drizzle,” said a Loreto House official.
The drizzle forced South City International School to call off the sports practice midway.
“We were having our final practice for sports day which is on Friday. The practice had to be stopped mid-way because of the rain. We hope that it doesn’t rain so much that the field gets wet and creates trouble for us on Friday,” said Satabdi Bhattacharjee, principal of South City International School.
Parents of children in the primary or pre-primary are usually more anxious about their child catching a cold, said teachers.
“On Thursday, we had about 25 per cent less attendance. Since there was a prediction of rain, parents were sceptical about sending their little ones,” said Sanjana Vakharia, the director of Mongrace Montessori House.
On the city’s outskirts, St Augustine’s Day School Shyamnagar announced a shift to online classes for the kids in the nursery.
“On Wednesday evening we received several emails from parents of nursery requesting us to shift to online classes because of the cold. We agreed to hold online classes for this week,” said principal Rodney Borneo.
The children start classes at 7.30 am and at that hour it is colder, he said.
The children who attended classes were “covered a little extra”.
At Julien Day School Kalyani all outdoor activities were suspended because of the rain.
“Even during lunch break children were not allowed to go to the field. They finished their lunch either in the classrooms or in the corridor,” said principal Terence John.
