Homeschooling in South Dakota

Taking your child out of school in South Dakota

First move: File the Alternative Instruction Notification (online or paper) within 30 days of starting homeschooling and let the school know the child is withdrawing.

No district approval is needed.

The legal routes

One route exists in South Dakota. They carry different duties, and families often do not know the alternatives to the obvious one.

Alternative instruction (SDCL 13-27-3)

Since 2021, homeschooling ('alternative instruction') is a way of complying with compulsory attendance. File a one-time Alternative Instruction Notification with the state Department of Education or your local district; instruction must cover at least language arts and math, leading to mastery of English.

The notice, and who receives it

Goes to

South Dakota Department of Education (online AIN system or paper form) or your local school district

Deadline

Within 30 days of the first day of alternative instruction

Renews

one-time

Form

Alternative Instruction Notification (AIN). Re-file within 30 days only if the child moves to or open-enrolls in another district, stops homeschooling, or (per DOE) starts dual credit. — official form

Subjects South Dakota requires

• language arts
• mathematics
• instruction must lead to mastery of the English language

See which courses here cover these subjects →

Compulsory school age

Until 18 (or graduation). A child who is 5 or 6 by September 1 is subject to attendance, but kindergarten need only be completed before age 7, so in practice a child may start at 6.

Narrow exceptions: withdrawal at 17 with parent consent; equivalency test at 16 in listed circumstances.

Teaching time

South Dakota sets no required number of teaching hours or days, so what counts as a full year is yours to define. The courses here are planned as a 36-week year of about 180 sessions, which is the ordinary shape of one.

Who may teach

None; teacher certification not required. One person may not instruct more than 22 children.

Testing and evaluation

No testing since July 1, 2021 (SB 177 repealed the former grade 4, 8 and 11 testing requirement). Optional testing is at family expense.

If a child re-enters public school, placement is based on standardized tests and transcript review; placement can be appealed to the Secretary of Education.

Records to keep

None required by law. DOE recommends attendance and grade records; parent-issued transcripts are needed for activities (previous semester's transcript before each season), public school re-entry, state dual credit, college admission and scholarships.

High school, diplomas and transcripts

Parent issues the diploma/transcript; no state homeschool graduation requirements found. Homeschoolers can use the state dual credit program with an AIN on file and a DOE-signed Memorandum of Understanding.

Public school classes, sports and activities

Part-time enrollment in public school classes is allowed on request (SDCL 13-28-51). Districts must let homeschoolers living in the district take part in athletics, fine arts and other activities, including SDHSAA-sanctioned ones, under the same rules (SDCL 13-36-7); a prior-semester transcript and SDHSAA eligibility checklist are required.

Homeschoolers may borrow public school textbooks free (SDCL 13-34-23) and may open-enroll in other districts' activities under open-enrollment rules.

Funding: education savings accounts, vouchers and tax credits

None known (no ESA, voucher or homeschool tax credit found).

What changed recently

No enacted changes to alternative instruction for 2023-2026 (the major overhaul was SB 177, effective July 1, 2021: testing repealed, one-time notice within 30 days, sports/activities and open-enrollment access). SL 2025, ch 80 amended the general compulsory-attendance sections (13-27-1, new 13-27-1.3 withdrawal at 17 with written parent consent, 13-27-1.4 equivalency test at 16); it did not change alternative instruction.

2026 H.B. 1158, which would have required annual notices and state assessments in several grades, was withdrawn from the calendar by Jan. 29, 2026.

What we could not confirm

The statutory section containing the 30-day filing deadline was not identified (it is stated by DOE's FAQ and HSLDA). Whether any 2025-2026 ESA/voucher bill passed could not be checked because the web search budget ran out; none is mentioned on DOE or HSLDA pages reviewed.

Section 13-28-51 (part-time enrollment) and 13-36-7 (activities) were read via DOE/HSLDA summaries, not the statute text.

Listed because a legal summary that hides its gaps is harder to trust than one that names them. How these pages are checked.

Statutes and sources

Statute and regulation

• SDCL 13-27-1
• SDCL 13-27-3
• SDCL 13-28-51
• SDCL 13-34-23
• SDCL 13-36-7

Statute text

• SDCL 13-27-3 and related (SD Legislature)
• SDCL 13-27-1 and related (SD Legislature)
• SDCL 13-27-3 (Justia, 2025 code)

State agency

• South Dakota DOE - Alternative Instruction (Homeschooling)
• South Dakota DOE - Alternative Instruction Notification form (PDF)
• South Dakota DOE - Online Alternative Instruction Notification system
• South Dakota DOE - Alternative Instruction FAQ (rev. 9/10/26)

Secondary sources

• HSLDA - South Dakota homeschool law
• HSLDA - How to Comply with South Dakota's Homeschool Law (Mar 2025)
• HSLDA - South Dakota Expands Liberty for Homeschool Families (SB 177, 2021)
• HSLDA - Bad Bills Thwarted in Washington, South Dakota (Feb 2026)
• HSLDA - Public School Access for Homeschoolers in South Dakota