School law in Germany is state law. In North Rhine-Westphalia, Section 43 of the School Act says what happens when a child is ill. If a pupil cannot come to school because of illness or another unforeseeable reason, so benachrichtigen die Eltern unverzüglich die Schule und teilen schriftlich den Grund für das Schulversäumnis mit. The parents notify the school without delay and give the reason for the absence in writing. Pupils of 18 and over write their own. German families know the note as die Entschuldigung, the excuse.