Decide your policies on late work, attendance, communication, and missed assessments before the term, and write them down. A policy you set in advance is easier to apply evenly than a judgment you make under pressure when a student emails at midnight.

Aim for policies firm enough to be fair to everyone and flexible enough to handle real life. A blanket no-exceptions rule can punish students facing genuine hardship, while no structure at all is unfair to those who plan ahead. Consistency is what students experience as fairness, so apply your stated policy the same way for everyone.