FOR some children every day is show day — but they still have to go to school.
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Even kids of show families have to attend classes, albeit in a special mobile classroom.
This week the National School for Travelling Show Children set up under cypress trees at the Warrnambool showgrounds. It caters for pupils from prep to year seven.
In the mobile van Shara Richards, 11, and her brother Jake, 8, along with Mia Chambers, 6, are guided by their teacher Katherine Blanchard.
Shara and Jake’s mother Brenda Richards puts high importance on her children receiving a solid education.
“Education is really important,” she said. “We wouldn’t be on the road without the travelling school.”
The Richards family live at Melton, in Melbourne’s west, and operate the Showbag Warehouse van.
“We travel for 10 months of the year,” Ms Richards said.
“We go through New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. We travel with our three children and it’s a massive community that travels.”
Ms Blanchard has been with the travelling school for one year.
“It’s the best job in the world,” she said. “It’s just like an ordinary school. The kids are really motivated and take their education seriously.”
Originally from Bribie Island, she said her favourite places so far have included Wagga Wagga and Warrnambool.
School days are exactly like a normal school. Classes run from 9am-3.30pm and the pupils wear a uniform.
Until two years ago the school was government-funded, but now the travelling community pays for the teachers with only a small amount of funding.