Saskatoon Public Schools Homeschool Registration: What You Need to Know

If you live in Saskatoon and plan to homeschool, your registration goes to Saskatoon Public Schools — not the province, not the Ministry of Education. Saskatoon Public Schools is your registering authority under Saskatchewan's home-based education framework, and the division has its own application process, its own reimbursement program, and a requirement found in fewer other Saskatchewan divisions: naming a designated home-based teacher.

Here is what you actually need to do to register correctly with Saskatoon Public Schools and access the division's curriculum support funding.

Saskatoon Public Schools Is Your Registering Authority

Saskatchewan has 27 school divisions, and home-based education registration is local — you register with the division that covers your home address, regardless of which school your child previously attended.

For most Saskatoon families, that means Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools or Saskatoon Public Schools (Saskatoon School Division No. 13), depending on whether you want your registration in the public or separate school system. This post covers Saskatoon Public.

If you live just outside the city limits, you may fall within a different division — Living Sky School Division, Prairie Spirit School Division, or another regional division. Confirm your division before you submit anything.

What Saskatchewan Law Requires You to Submit

Registration with Saskatoon Public Schools, like all Saskatchewan divisions, must satisfy the province's Home-Based Education Program Regulations, 2015. You are required to submit:

1. Notice of Intent A written notification to the division stating your intention to operate a home-based education program. It must include:

• Each student's full legal name, gender, and date of birth
• The name of the last school attended and the grade level (or confirmation that no previous school attendance applies)
• Parent or guardian names, complete home address, and phone number

2. Written Educational Plan (WEP) This is the substantive planning document. It must address Saskatchewan's required areas of study — Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Health Education, the Arts, and Physical Education — and for each subject describe your goals, planned resources, and how you intend to assess progress.

Most families write this as a brief narrative, not a formal scope-and-sequence document. A paragraph per subject addressing what you'll teach, what materials you'll use, and how you'll track learning is entirely sufficient. The division is confirming you intend to cover required subjects — not auditing your curriculum choices.

Saskatoon Public Schools has its own home-based education application form. Using the division's form is the most straightforward approach, but submitting a clearly written Notice of Intent and WEP as a single document is also accepted in practice. What matters is that all required information is present.

The Designated Home-Based Teacher Requirement

Saskatoon Public Schools, unlike many Saskatchewan divisions, asks applicants to identify a designated home-based teacher — the parent or other adult who will be the primary instructor. This person does not need a professional teaching certificate. There is no qualification threshold. The designation is an administrative identification, not a licensing process.

In almost all cases, the parent completing the application is listed as the designated home-based teacher. If instruction will be shared between parents, list the primary instructor.

This requirement catches some Saskatoon families off guard because it isn't emphasized in general Saskatchewan homeschool guides, which describe the province-wide minimum requirements rather than division-specific additions. When you contact Saskatoon Public Schools' home-based education coordinator, they will likely ask about this during the application process.

Deadlines: August 15 and September Funding Cutoffs

The August 15 deadline is provincial — it applies across all Saskatchewan school divisions and governs compliance for families starting in September. Your Notice of Intent should reach Saskatoon Public Schools by August 15 for a September start.

Missing August 15 does not strip your legal right to homeschool. The regulations prevent the registering authority from refusing registration when you made a reasonable attempt to comply. But there are funding consequences for late registration.

Saskatoon Public Schools offers a curriculum and technology reimbursement of up to $500 per student per year for registered home-based families. This reimbursement covers eligible education-related expenses — curriculum materials, educational software, workbooks, and similar items. Eligibility and deadlines for this funding are tied to registration timing.

Contact the Saskatoon Public Schools home-based education office directly to confirm the current funding cutoff date. Division-level funding policies can shift from year to year, and the figure and deadline should be verified before you plan your curriculum budget around them.

Submitting Your Application

Submit your completed application to the Saskatoon Public Schools division office, addressed to the home-based education coordinator. Email is the most common method. Do not submit to your child's current school — the school is not the registering authority and cannot process home-based education applications.

If your child is currently enrolled at a Saskatoon Public school, send the school a separate withdrawal letter at the same time you submit your home-based application to the division. The school must release your child's records. The school's cooperation is not a condition for your legal right to begin home-based education.

After you submit, you do not wait for a formal approval before beginning instruction. Registration under Saskatchewan's framework is a notification, not a permission request. Once your application is in, you have satisfied the notification requirement.

What to Expect During the Year

Once registered, Saskatoon Public Schools' home-based education team may follow up with a welcome contact or orientation. Division practices vary — some divisions are hands-off after registration, others offer optional resource access or periodic check-ins. Your assigned home-based education contact at the division can clarify what Saskatoon Public's current engagement process looks like.

At year-end, you submit an Annual Progress Report to the division. This is a written summary of the year's learning across required subject areas — not a standardized test, not a formal evaluation. A narrative describing what your child studied, what resources you used, and evidence of reasonable educational progress is the standard. Sample work, reading lists, or a subject-by-subject summary all serve this purpose.

Reimbursement: How It Works in Practice

To claim the curriculum reimbursement, you keep receipts for eligible expenses throughout the year and submit them to the division according to their current process. The division reimburses up to $500 per eligible student. Items that typically qualify: curriculum packages, workbooks, educational subscriptions, and learning materials directly tied to home instruction.

General household items, computers, and internet service typically do not qualify. Confirm what's eligible with the division before making purchases specifically for reimbursement purposes.

If you are homeschooling multiple children, the reimbursement cap applies per student. Two elementary students would be eligible for up to $1,000 in combined reimbursement from Saskatoon Public Schools.

Practical Notes Before You Submit

• Get the correct contact at Saskatoon Public Schools before submitting. Call the division office and ask for the home-based education coordinator. Submitting to a general inbox or the wrong department creates delays.
• Write the Written Educational Plan before you call. Many families spend weeks anxious about the WEP and then discover the coordinator's expectation is a one-page summary per student. Draft something simple, then confirm with the division if you want reassurance.
• The law is on your side. If any school or division official suggests you need permission, approval, or a teaching certificate, that is incorrect. You are notifying, not applying.

The Saskatchewan Legal Withdrawal Blueprint includes ready-to-use templates for the Notice of Intent, Written Educational Plan, and Annual Progress Report — written to meet both the provincial requirements and the specific expectations of divisions like Saskatoon Public Schools.

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