There are many reasons why families consider part time attendance at school in South Australia. Some just starting out on their homeschooling journey's feel apprehensive about how successful they will be teaching their children at home and aren't ready to leave the security of the classroom. It can take a year or so to 'find your feet' homeschooling and even longer to identify your child's preferred learning style and the approach to learning that works best for him or her.

Other families find that they need respite from homeschooling for a variety of reasons: finanical considerations may mean that full time homeschooling is no longer possible; or the child wants to 'try' school; if the family lives in a socially isolated location school may offer the contact with others the child needs; the school may offer specialist instruction in subjects or areas of interest to the child unable to be found elsewhere in the community; parent ill-health or disability; and so on. Returning to school should never be considered as 'failing' at homeschooling or 'homeschooling didn't work out'. In fact, families continue to contribute to their children's education in a very hands-on way when their children are attending school.

It is possible to part time school and homeschool in South Australia. In the past families have approached school principles and classroom teachers and suggested the idea. Some schools are okay with it and will allow it but others take a more conservative view and refuse. You can only ask. The Education Department of SA official position was that it would not support part time school/homeschool arrangements, but it would not interfere if the school approved. Many homeschooled students in South Australia have taken advantage of attending part time. For some schools it can be an advantage, particularly if the child is talented or gifted in a particular subject, such as dance, music or sport and participates in interschool competitions.

The Yankalilla Area School, an Education Department school that covers Junior, Middle and Senior (primary and secondary) school years, has officially adopted a 'Shared School' policy that legitimises part time school attendance for home educated students in The Yankalilla Area School Annexe.

Students work not in year levels but according to age and ability. Learning programs are determined by the ability, interests and needs of individual students, and by requirements defined by the Department of Education and Children's Services. The Annexe is a class where family and school come together to create an exciting and challenging learning environment, able to meet the needs of individual children due to its flexible organisation and high degree of parent involvement.

It's been going since 1975 as an 'alternative school', and was conceived of as a class where parents could become as involved as they wanted, and over the years has tried (with some success) to implement natural learning into the classroom experience. The advantages of being part of the Annexe is living in the country near beautiful beaches, and the ease of which students transition to regular high school classes. The students of the Annexe use facilities in the main school (art rooms, science labs, gym, library, etc).

There is also a private primary school - Kirinari Community School- situated in Unley in the Adelaide metropolitan area that offers a part-time program for home educated students. It is small, cosy, homelike, mutli-aged primary school, very similar to the Yankalilla Annexe, with a long history of supporting home education. The curriculum is flexible and the teachers communicative and supportive. It is currently running a special program one day a week for homeschool students.

One home educating parent looking into part time attendance found out that there is provision for part-time attendance at government schools on the basis of medical reasons. The provision is granted for up to 12 months at a time and there has to be a plan in place to re-integrate into full-time schooling sometime in the future.

Sunrise Marion, an exclusively Christian school, offer subject based enrollments in secondary school, but not primary school, by negotiation.

Families needing respite have been able to access Family Day Care. Family Day Care can care for children up to 12 years of age and need to provide age appropriate activities in the course of the day. The challenge is to find a family that is happy to take on school age children and is supportive of what you desire educationally for your child.

Author: Beverley Paine