There will soon be a change to when children start preschool and school in South Australia. The change will mean that all children will start on the same day at the beginning of the school year. The change will come into effect in 2013 for preschool and 2014 for school.
On this page:
Calculating when a child will start preschool or school
How will this change benefit my child?
Calculating when a child will start preschool or school
Under the new arrangements, if your child:
- turns four before May 1 they will start preschool or school on the first day of term one in that year
- turns four on or after May 1, they will start preschool or school on the first day of term one the following year
- has already started preschool and you move, your child can start as soon as they are enrolled.
Enter the month and year your child was born in the same first day calculator 
to find out when your child should start preschool and school.
Remember, these changes do not apply until 2013 for children starting preschool and 2014 for those starting school.
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How will this change benefit my child?
Having all children start on the same first day means that every child will have four terms of preschool and then four terms of Reception when they go to school. This will provide a more stable environment for all children, with fewer changes to classes throughout the year. It also brings South Australia into line with other states.
More information
On this siteStarting primary schoolPreschools and kindergartenTerm dates and academic yearChoosing a schoolThe education system in South AustraliaDownloads
Same first day, factsheet 1 PDF (571KB) - Department for Education and Child Development