Homeschool requirements by state: the four regulation tiers
People search for a state by state list, and lists are exactly the wrong tool here. State homeschool law changes through legislation and through court decisions, sometimes several states in a year, and a list that is wrong about your state is worse than no list at all. What lasts is the structure. Learn the structure and you will know what questions to ask your own state.
This is general information, not legal advice. Requirements vary by state and change regularly. Confirm the current rules with your own state department of education or a state homeschool organization before you rely on anything here. Do not assume this page describes your state.
The four tiers
Almost every state falls into one of four broad bands, and knowing which band you are in tells you most of what you need before you read a single statute. Which state sits where is precisely the thing that shifts, so look your own up rather than trusting a memory or an old article.
- No notice. You are not required to tell anyone you are homeschooling. No filing, no testing, no reporting. You still teach, you simply do not report on it.
- Low regulation. You file a one time or annual notice of intent and that is broadly the end of it. No routine assessment.
- Moderate regulation. Notice of intent plus some ongoing accountability: standardized test scores, a portfolio review by a qualified evaluator, or an annual progress report submitted to the district.
- High regulation. Notice plus assessment plus more: curriculum approval or submission, required subjects, minimum instructional days or hours, parent qualification requirements, or home visits in a small number of cases.
Notice of intent
This is a form telling the state or the district that you are homeschooling a named child. It usually asks for the child’s name, age or date of birth, your address, and sometimes the subjects you intend to cover. Two details cause most problems: the filing deadline, which is often tied to the start of the school year or to a fixed number of days after you withdraw, and whether it renews annually. Diary the renewal date the day you file the first one. Missed renewals generate truancy letters, and those take far longer to resolve than the form took to submit.
Standardized testing and portfolio review
Where testing is required, it is normally a nationally normed achievement test taken at set grade intervals rather than every year, and the requirement is usually to test and keep or submit the result rather than to reach a specific score. Some states set a threshold below which a remediation process starts, which is worth knowing in advance if your child tests badly for reasons unrelated to what they know. Test taking is a skill, so practise the format before test day.
Portfolio review is the alternative in several states. A qualified evaluator, often a certified teacher, reviews samples of work and writes a short statement that the child is making progress commensurate with ability. What to keep for one:
- Keep a few dated pieces per subject per term, not everything. Curated beats comprehensive.
- Show progression rather than volume. What could they do in September, what can they do now.
- Include work that leaves no paper, photographed with one line of context written the same day.
- Keep a reading list. It is easy evidence and evaluators like it.
Required subjects and instructional days
Many states name subjects that must be covered, commonly reading, language arts, mathematics, science and social studies, and often health, physical education or state history and civics. The requirement is normally that the subject is taught, not that it is taught in a set order or with a set curriculum. Some states also set a minimum number of instructional days, often around 180, or a minimum number of hours. Read the definition carefully, because home instruction time counts differently from a classroom day in most statutes, and field trips, reading and project work usually count. Separately, if your child receives special education services under an IEP or a 504 plan, get specific advice before withdrawing: those services do not automatically continue for a homeschooled child.
How Different Drums helps here
For anything above the no notice tier, the work is the record. The learning log records by subject and date, work done in the app logs itself, and offline learning takes a line each. Reports can be generated per child for any date range, which lines up with an annual progress report or the evidence pack for a portfolio review. Curricula are built with week by week checkpoints, close to the shape states want when they ask for a plan, and printable worksheets and tests come as PDFs with answers, giving you dated work samples without a separate filing job. Working level is set per subject, not by age, and practice in arithmetic, maths, calculus, chemistry and physics comes from 200,000+ hand-verified questions; other subjects are AI generated and less reliable on very niche topics. Parent Only from GBP 9.99 a month, Parent + Child from GBP 9.99 per child a month, available in US dollars. 14 days free, no credit card required. Data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Different Drums is not an accredited school and does not certify attainment.
Common questions
How do I find out what my state actually requires?
Go to two sources and compare: your state department of education for the statute and forms, and a state level homeschool organization for how it works in practice. Where they disagree the statute wins, but the organization knows the local district habits the statute does not describe.
Does my curriculum need approval?
In most states, no. A small number require curriculum submission or approval, and some require that named subjects are covered without dictating how. If your state asks for a plan, a subject by subject outline with a rough sequence generally satisfies it.
What happens if I miss a filing deadline?
Usually a letter, and usually fixable by filing late with an explanation. It escalates only if ignored. File as soon as you notice, keep the proof, and diary next year’s date immediately.
Do the rules change often?
Often enough that you should check annually rather than assuming last year still applies. Legislation and district practice both shift. That is exactly why this page describes tiers rather than naming states.
Learning that flexes around your child
Different Drums builds curricula, worksheets, tests and learning records around almost any topic, shaped to your child's pace, interests and your family's values. Core practice in maths and science comes from 200,000+ hand-verified questions. Ages 2-16+, used by families worldwide.
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