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Pennsylvania · 2026-2027 school year

Pennsylvania homeschool requirements, 2026-2027

Last checked against the statutes and the state's own guidance:

Start your family's records

Know what the law asks. Keep your records. Teach your day.

Every rule below is kept apart from Trellis's own record-keeping tools. Each one goes to the state's own page. This is a planning aid, not legal advice. For a hard case, ask your school district. You can also ask the state office, or a Pennsylvania lawyer.

PA

2026-2027 at a glance

  • Ages six to eighteen. Finish high school and it ends sooner.
  • Choose one of two paths: teach at home yourself. Or hire a teacher the state allows.
  • Teaching at home means one paper a year. You sign it and it goes in by August 1. One more goes in by June 30.
  • Teach 180 days or 900/990 hours: you choose. 900 hours through grade 6, 990 in grades 7 to 12.
  • Subjects: the list turns on which path you chose and your child's level.
  • Tests in grades 3, 5 and 8. Two subjects only. You may not give the test yourself.
  • Keep your own file: your child's work and the year's review stay with you.

What you must do this year, and by when

Almost every family here runs a home education program. This page is about that one. A few use private tutoring, where a paid certified teacher does the teaching. Step 1 has that second route.

  • Before you start, and then every August 1: a home education program files one affidavit. It goes to the school district where you live. Nobody says yes or no to it. Private tutoring files none.
  • By June 30: a home education program gives the district the evaluator's short note. The folder of your child's work stays with you. So does the written evaluation.
The count, the subjects, and the ages
  • Across the records year, July 1 to June 30: 180 days of teaching. Or 900 hours through grade 6, or 990 hours in grades 7 to 12. You choose days or hours, not both. Starting late? Your count starts the day your program starts.
  • All year: teach the subjects Pennsylvania lists for your route and your child's level. Keep a folder of your child's work.
  • Ages: a child must be taught from no later than six until eighteen. A graduation certificate ends it sooner. That is a diploma from a school.
The same dates, as a table

Your Pennsylvania year at a glance

WhatWhenWho this is for
The affidavit, to your school districtBefore you start, in any month. Then every August 1. Your next one is August 1, 2027.A home education program only.
A short signed note from your evaluator, to your school district. It is about your child's year. The law calls it the certification.By June 30, 2027.A home education program only.
180 days, or 900 hours (990 in grades 7 to 12)Across July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027.Both routes. You choose days or hours, not both.
The test in reading and mathematicsIn grades 3, 5 and 8, once each of those years.A home education program only. A parent may not give it.

What you never have to do

  • No yes-or-no from the district before you start.
  • No teaching paper from the state. No say over what you teach.
  • No home visit, and no look at your house.
  • No test in any other grade. No score to reach.
  • No report between those two dates. No folder sent in.

Will the district come after me? Your district does not say yes or no to you. It does not check your house or visit you. It acts in two cases only. One is a filing you did not send. The other is a reason to believe your child is not being taught. Step 13 shows what that looks like, and it starts with a letter.

Three ways families start. Which one is you?

  1. Starting fresh, with a young child. You owe nothing until your program starts. File the affidavit before your first teaching day at home. Step 3 has the dates.
  2. Taking a child out of a school, part-way through the year. File the affidavit before your first day at home. Then every August 1 after that. The school your child leaves does not have to agree. Step 3 has the rest.
  3. Moving into Pennsylvania from another state. A move after August 1 is not late. Your first affidavit is due before your first teaching day here. Your old state's papers do not carry over. With a high schooler? Step 15 has the diploma.

A home education program is run by a parent. It files two papers a year. It teaches the subjects the law lists. It counts 180 days, or 900 or 990 hours. It tests in grades 3, 5 and 8. It has one evaluation a year. Nobody says yes or no to a program before it starts. The other route, private tutoring, is run by a paid certified teacher. The folder of your child's work is never sent to the district.
Home education: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1 · Tutoring: 24 P.S. § 13-1327(a) · Tutoring rules: 22 Pa. Code § 11.31 · The state's own guide (PDF)

1Pick your routeTwo routes

Most Pennsylvania families use the home education program. They teach their own child at home. A few use private tutoring.

Pick this if these words describe you.

  • You are the parent, guardian, or legal custodian. That is the adult who raises the child.
  • You finished high school or its equivalent.
  • You want to teach your own child at home.
How this works
  • Your district does not have to say yes before you start either route.
  • The district does not see the folder of your child's work.
  • Trellis files nothing for you.
  • For more help, start with the state office or a lawyer.
What you do each year
  • You send one form to your district before you start. You send it again every August 1 after that.
  • You teach the subjects Pennsylvania lists for your child's level.
  • You teach for 180 days or 900 hours (990 in grades 7 to 12). You choose days or hours, not both.
  • You keep a folder of your child's work.
  • In grades 3, 5 and 8 your child takes a reading and mathematics test. A parent may not give it.
  • Once a year an evaluator reviews the folder and talks with your child.
  • You give the district the evaluator's note, the certification, by June 30.
A second route: private tutoring

Pick this if a Pennsylvania-certified teacher is paid to teach your child.

  • The tutor teaches only your family's children and does most of the teaching.
  • The tutor gives your district a copy of their teaching certificate and their record check.
  • The tutor reports which children they teach.
  • You give the district a written promise. It says the tutor covers the needed subjects and time.
  • No affidavit, no yearly evaluation, and no portfolio to keep for the district.
  • The subject list is not the home education one. Step 5 has both.
  • There is no Pennsylvania high school diploma at the end of this route. Some families switch to a home education program for the last year.
Two other routes, where a school does the filing
  • A religious day school or an accredited school. These are schools your child joins.
  • The school files its own forms with the state. You do not file anything.
  • If a district letter names them, this is what they mean.
Home education: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1 · Tutoring: 24 P.S. § 13-1327(a) · Tutoring rules: 22 Pa. Code § 11.31(b) · The state's own guide (PDF)

2Know who must be educated

  • The compulsory school age begins no later than six.
  • Say your child turns six in July. That child must be taught from the school year that opens that fall.
  • It runs until the child is eighteen. A graduation certificate ends it sooner.
  • You may start your child earlier than six. Six is the latest. There is no statewide calendar date.
  • Your own school board sets the age for kindergarten and first grade.
What the state's own guide adds.
It reads this as a September 1 birthday rule. The law names no date
  • The guide says a child who is six by September 1 must start that year.
  • That is what the state office does. It is in no law.
  • Your district may follow it. Ask yours in writing.

Ask your district which ages its board set. Nothing on this page can answer it.

Compulsory school: 24 P.S. § 13-1326 · starting ages: 22 Pa. Code §§ 11.13, 11.14, 11.15, 11.16

3The two set dates

A home education program has two set dates. Both belong to the supervisor: the parent who runs it.

  1. The affidavit: before you start, then every August 1. You file it with your district. A first year has no date of its own.
  2. The certification, by June 30. You give the district the evaluator's short note.
What the affidavit holds.
You, each child, your address, your goals by subject, shot records, and everyone at home

One affidavit can name every child you teach.

  • the supervisor's name, and the name and age of each child;
  • the program address and phone number, and that the subjects are taught in English;
  • an outline of objectives by subject: the goals you plan to teach toward;
  • records of immunizations and of needed health services;
  • a promise that you will follow the law;
  • a signed statement about every adult in the home. It covers the last five years.

That statement covers the supervisor and anyone with legal care of the child. It starts over with every affidavit.

Is your child in a school right now?
Your program starts when you file the affidavit. Time before that does not count
  • So file before the first day you want to count.
  • The school your child is leaving does not have to agree. The law asks it for nothing.
  • Still follow that school's own leaving steps. Keep a copy of what you send.
  • That is good sense, not law.
  • The state office calls this a move to a new school, not a drop-out.
Signing it, and what stays yours
  • It is a legal declaration. Most families sign it before a notary. The state names that form first.
  • The state also allows an unsworn declaration. It carries the perjury sentence the state asks for.
  • No report says every district accepts the unsworn form. That is your district's call, not a promise.
  • The outline of objectives is filed. But it cannot be used to find you out of compliance.
  • Your child's folder and the written evaluation stay with you. Only the evaluator's note goes to the district.
Pennsylvania Department of Education: its own affidavit and declaration forms

A private tutoring program has neither date.

The affidavit and the certification: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(1), (h.1) · Unsworn declaration: 42 Pa.C.S. § 6206 · the record statement: 24 P.S. § 1-111(e)

4180 days, or 900/990 hours

  • Both routes teach 180 days or 900 hours. In grades 7 to 12 the bar is 990 hours.
  • You choose days or hours, not both.
  • Your count starts when you file the affidavit. Time before that does not count.
How the law counts
  • The law sets the number. It says nothing about what makes a day or an hour count.
  • The law also does not say which twelve months the count runs over. That is unsettled: no rule settles it.
  • This page counts July 1 to June 30. That is how the state office runs the year.
  • Your own records may use another twelve months. No rule says you may not.
  • The state's own guide says the same about the affidavit starting your count.
The measure: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(c); the hours by level: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)(1) · tutoring: 22 Pa. Code § 11.31(a)(4)

5Teach the needed subjects

  • The subjects depend on your route and your child's level.
  • The level is elementary (grades K-6) or secondary (grades 7 to 12).
  • Two subjects sit on the home education secondary list and not on the tutoring one. They are geography and safety education.
  • Open the list that fits your child. Each one is the law's own list.
Home education program: elementary (grades K-6)
  • English, including spelling, reading and writing
  • arithmetic
  • science
  • geography
  • history of the United States and Pennsylvania
  • civics
  • safety education, including regular and continuous instruction in the dangers and prevention of fires
  • health and physiology
  • physical education
  • music
  • art
Home education program: secondary (grades 7-12)
  • English, including language, literature, speech and composition
  • science
  • geography
  • social studies, including civics, world history, and the history of the United States and Pennsylvania
  • mathematics, including general mathematics, algebra and geometry
  • art
  • music
  • physical education
  • health
  • safety education, including regular and continuous instruction in the dangers and prevention of fires
Private tutoring: elementary (grades K-6)
  • English, including spelling, reading and writing
  • arithmetic
  • geography
  • the history of the United States and Pennsylvania
  • science
  • civics, including loyalty to the State and National government
  • safety education, including regular and continuous instruction in the dangers and prevention of fires
  • health, including physical education and physiology
  • music
  • art
Private tutoring: secondary (grades 7-12)
  • art
  • English
  • health
  • mathematics
  • music
  • physical education
  • science
  • social studies, including civics, world history, and United States and Pennsylvania history

The home education statute points to Chapter 5, which has been empty since 1999. The live rules are in 22 Pa. Code Chapter 4.

Home education subjects: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(c)(1)-(2) · tutoring subjects: 22 Pa. Code § 11.31(a)(1)-(2) · Pennsylvania Department of Education: the Home Education Program page

6Test in grades 3, 5 and 8

  • A home education program's child takes a test in grades 3, 5 and 8.
  • The test covers reading/language arts and mathematics only.
  • A parent or guardian may not give the test. The law names nobody who must give it.
  • Your evaluator may ask who gave it. Keep that with the score.
More on the test
  • Only three grades. No other grade is tested by this rule.
  • Two subjects. Reading/language arts and mathematics. Nothing else.
  • A state-listed test. You may use one nationally normed test from the state's list. Other children the same age took it too.
  • The Statewide test. Pennsylvania gives a Statewide test at grades 3, 5 and 8. That is the other choice.
  • The Keystone Exams. They are end-of-course tests for high school. They do not meet this duty.
  • The scores go into your child's folder, where the evaluator reads them. The district does not receive them.
  • There is no score to reach. The law sets none.
  • A private tutoring program has no yearly testing rule of its own.
What the state's own guide adds.
No way out of the test, and who pays for which one
  • It says there is no way out of this test.
  • It says the Statewide test is free at your district.
  • You pay for a test from the state's list, and for giving it.
  • It would have a trained evaluator give the test. That is what the office wants, not the law.
  • It counts the Keystone Exams as Statewide tests. It also says your child need not take them.
Testing grades and subjects: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)(1) · Pennsylvania Department of Education: the tests it lists for a home education program

7The folder you keep

The law calls this folder the portfolio. It holds three parts.

  1. A log you write as you teach. It names the books you read, by title.
  2. Samples of your child's writing, worksheets, workbooks, and art or other made work.
  3. The grade 3, 5 and 8 test scores.

You keep the folder. You do not send it. The evaluator reads it once a year.

What the folder does not have to hold
  • No number of pieces is set. No amount for each subject is set either.
  • Only the books you read need titles. The pieces of work do not.
  • Shot records ride with the affidavit. They are not part of the folder.
  • No report card is asked for. Pennsylvania sets no grading rule for you.
  • Your district stopped receiving folders in 2014.
  • A private tutoring program keeps no folder for the district.
What the folder holds: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)(1); kept, not sent: § 13-1327.1(e)

8The yearly evaluation, kept on file

  • Once a year a home education program has an evaluation.
  • The evaluation is an interview with your child and a look at your child's folder.
  • The written evaluation is a record you keep. You give the district only the evaluator's short note, by June 30.
  • Ask an evaluator early in the year. June is late, and they fill up.
  • Most families find one through other families who teach at home.
Who does the evaluation.
Never you, and never your husband or wife. The law names three kinds of person
  • The evaluator may never be you, the supervisor, or the supervisor's spouse.
  • The evaluator is one of three kinds. A licensed clinical or school psychologist. A Pennsylvania-certified teacher. Or a nonpublic school teacher or administrator, the person who runs a school.
  • A teacher or administrator must have experience at your child's level. That means two years grading the subjects taught at that level.
  • A nonpublic school teacher or administrator needs that experience in a Pennsylvania school. It must be in the last ten years.
  • It is unsettled if the level rule reaches a psychologist. Trellis does not pick a side.
  • Other training counts only when the supervisor asks and the superintendent agrees first.
What the state's own guide adds.
It is not of one mind about what goes to the district
  • In one place it says the written evaluation goes to the district.
  • In another it says the evaluator's short note goes.
  • The law names the short note. That is what this page follows.
  • Ask your district in writing which one it wants.
What it measures
  • The evaluation asks if your child is getting an appropriate education. By law, that means the needed subjects and time, and a child who keeps learning.
  • There is no score or percentage it asks for.
  • A private tutoring program has no yearly evaluation.
Evaluation and certification: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)(1)(i)-(iii), (e)(2), (h.1)

9Special education approval under the law

  • This part is for a child identified as needing special education services.
  • A child identified only as gifted and/or talented is not covered here.
  • The state's own guide sends this note with every affidavit.
What the law asks once a child is identified
  • The program must address the child's needs. This is the law, not a choice.
  • A special education teacher certified by the state must agree to it in writing. A licensed clinical or certified school psychologist may also do so.
  • That approver pool is narrower than the evaluator's. A teacher without that certificate may not do it.
  • The note of that approval is filed with the affidavit.
  • You may ask the district for services. If it agrees, they happen at a public or licensed private school. Neither side can be made to agree.
  • It is unsettled if this approval is needed every year, or only at the start. Trellis does not pick a side.
Special education approval: 24 P.S. § 13-1327(d)

10Moving to another Pennsylvania districtFor a home education program

  • A home education program may move to another Pennsylvania district. The state calls this a relocation.
  • This step does not cover a move out of Pennsylvania.
  • You need a letter of transfer for it. Ask your old district for it by registered mail 30 days before the move.
  • Your old district has 30 days from the day it gets your request. You file the letter with the new district.
  • If a case about your child is open, the new district keeps the program.
In-state relocation: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(2)-(3)

11What Pennsylvania does not ask of you

Your curriculum is what you teach. Pennsylvania adds none of this:

  • no approval from the district to start either route;
  • no teacher license, degree, or home-teacher paper;
  • no curriculum approval;
  • no smallest number of hours in a day, and no school calendar the state sets;
  • no yearly testing outside grades 3, 5 and 8;
  • no home visit, and no check of your house;
  • a private tutoring program files no affidavit, keeps no folder, and has no yearly evaluation.
More on what the state does not ask
  • no Pennsylvania high school diploma at the end of private tutoring. Some families switch to a home education program for the last year.
  • a home education program is not a nonpublic school. The rules for nonpublic schools do not cover it.
  • a home education program is not a school. It cannot keep your child out of school over immunizations. Missing records go through your affidavit and a district hearing.
Your records and the law
  • Because so little is filed, your own records carry the load.
  • A home education family is exempt from the attendance law. Nothing in it reaches a family that filed a program.
  • It is unsettled if that also protects a family that never filed. Trellis does not pick a side.
Pennsylvania Department of Education: home education and private tutoring · 22 Pa. Code §§ 11.31a, 11.31(b)(1), 11.20; 24 P.S. §§ 13-1327.1(b), (d), 13-1333(d), 13-1333.1(e), 15-1511, 15-1511.1, 16-1605

12Your child may also take part

A home education child may take part in some school groups. The child must meet the same rules the school's own children meet.

  • ask the school to lend its own courses and books for your child's grade;
  • take part in sports and clubs, under the school's eligibility rules (who may join);
  • take school courses. Your district must allow at least a quarter of the school day;
  • take career and technical training, like a trade or tech program.
The small rules
  • A course may have only a few open seats. The school may give them to its own children first.
  • Getting to school is your call, unless a bus already runs with extra room.
  • If your child wants to take part, ask the school how to sign up.
  • These rights belong to a home education program. The law gives a private tutoring program no such right.
Taking part: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(f)-(f.4) · Pennsylvania Department of Education: Homeschooling and Career and Technical Education FAQs

13If the district says your child is not learningThe steps, if they open

The district may act in three cases. Each starts with a letter.

  1. A missed June 30 certification. The district sends a certified letter. You have 10 days after you get it to send the late certification. If you do not, the district holds a hearing.
  2. The district believes your child may not be learning. It may send a letter that states its reason. You have 30 days to send a new evaluation and certification before a hearing.
  3. The district believes some other rule was missed. It may send a letter that states its reason. You have 30 days to send a new certification before a hearing.
If a hearing opens
  • A missed affidavit is not its own case. It falls under the third letter.
  • Your child's program keeps going during any appeal.
  • The district holds a hearing in 30 days. A hearing examiner decides in 15 days.
  • That examiner takes no side. They work for neither you nor the district.
  • That examiner may set up a remedial education plan. It fixes what is missing.
  • It needs both you and the district to agree. Your program keeps going.
Ending your program
  • To end your program, that examiner must first make one finding. Your child is not getting an appropriate education.
  • Your child must then join another school soon. The program may stay open during any appeal.
  • For twelve months after such a finding, you may not supervise that child. This is the rule for the supervisor and the spouse.
  • That examiner must give your records back, keeping only copies.
Hearings and appeal: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(h.1), (i.1), (j.1), (k), (l), (m)

14Health and tooth checks

  • Your affidavit must show your child's immunizations and the health services the law lists.
  • Pennsylvania's shot rules allow an exemption. One kind is medical. One kind is religious.
  • If your child has one, the affidavit shows the exemption instead of the records.
  • Two of the checks are set by grade. One is set by a state health board. None is the yearly test.
The checks
  • The state office reads an exemption as meeting this. That is what the office does, not what the law says.
  • Medical checks. When your child first starts school, in grade 6, and in grade 11.
  • Tooth checks. When your child first starts school, in grade 3, and in grade 7.
  • Hearing, height, weight, and a tuberculosis check. The Advisory Health Board, a state health group, sets when these happen. A parent may refuse the height and weight measure in writing.
  • You can use your own doctor or dentist at your own cost. It goes on a state form.
  • The exam must come no earlier than four months before your child's school term opens.
Medical checks: 24 P.S. § 14-1402 · tooth checks: 24 P.S. § 14-1403 · your own doctor: 24 P.S. § 14-1407 · shots and the exemption rule: 24 P.S. § 13-1303(a), (c)-(d) · 28 Pa. Code § 23.84; the affidavit: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(1)

15Finishing high school in Pennsylvania

A home education diploma rests on five groups, each counted in years.

  1. four years of English;
  2. three years of mathematics;
  3. three years of science;
  4. three years of social studies;
  5. two years of arts and humanities: art, music, and the study of people.
  • The law names those years. It never says where they were taught.
  • Years from another state are not ruled out, and not ruled in.
  • You keep the record of what your child did.
Who signs the diploma
  • A supervisor-issued diploma is on the state's own form (PDE 6008).
  • Only the twelfth-grade evaluator may co-sign it. That is the one who did your child's last evaluation.
  • A group on the state's own list may send its own diploma instead. It uses that group's form.
  • No law says who signs that one.
  • The law's diploma rule names those five groups and no more.
  • The state's own guide adds health, physical education and free-choice courses.
  • That is what the office puts forward, not what the law asks.
  • Private tutoring has no Pennsylvania diploma at its end.

High school and the diploma in Pennsylvania

Graduation and the diploma: 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(d), (d.1) · Pennsylvania Department of Education: home education and private tutoring

What Pennsylvania has not settled

These are real holes in the law, not holes in this page. No rule answers them. If one of them decides your year, ask your district in writing. Or ask a Pennsylvania lawyer.

  • What makes a day or an hour count. No rule sets that for a home education program.
  • Which twelve months the day and hour count runs over.
  • What happens when August 1 falls on a Saturday or a Sunday.
  • Is the special education note needed every year, or only in the first year?
  • Does the law that makes children go to school reach a family that never filed?
  • May a parent be their own child's paid teacher under the second route?

Questions Pennsylvania families ask

Do I have to tell the school district before I homeschool in Pennsylvania?

Show answer
A home education program files one affidavit. It goes to the superintendent of the district where you live. That is the person who runs the district. It is due before the program starts. After that it is due by August 1 each year. It is a filing, not a way of asking. No district says yes or no to a home education program. Private tutoring files no affidavit. That teacher files their own papers instead. Trellis never files anything for you. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(1)

My child is in school now. How do I start?

Show answer
Your program starts when you file the affidavit. Time before that does not count. So file before the first day you want to count. The law asks for no sign-off from the school you leave. Still follow that school's own leaving steps. Keep a copy of what you send, and the date. The state office calls this a move to a new school, not a drop-out. That is what the office does, not what the law says. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(1) · the state's own guide (PDF)

How many days or hours does Pennsylvania ask for?

Show answer
180 days of teaching. Or 900 hours through grade 6. Or 990 hours in grades 7 to 12. You pick days or hours for the year, not both. Both routes meet the same number. No Pennsylvania rule says what makes a day or an hour count. None sets a smallest day, a start date, or a school calendar.
Starting part-way through a year? The law does not lower the number for a year you start late. No rule says how a part year counts. This page counts from the day your program starts. Ask your district in writing if that year worries you. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(c) · 22 Pa. Code § 11.31(a)(4)

Does Pennsylvania ask for testing?

Show answer
In a home education program, yes. In grades 3, 5 and 8 only. In reading or language arts and mathematics only. Use a test from the state's own list. Or use the Statewide test given in those grades. The Keystone Exams are end-of-course high school tests. They do not meet this rule. A parent may not give the test. A guardian may not give it either. There is no score to reach. The scores go in your child's folder, not to the district. Private tutoring has no testing rule of its own. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)(1)

What subjects do I have to teach in Pennsylvania?

Show answer
The list depends on your route. It also depends on your child's level. Step 5 opens all four lists in the law's own words. One difference catches families out at the older level. The home education list has geography and safety teaching on it. The tutoring list does not. Nobody says yes or no to your books or your way of teaching. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(c)(1)-(2)

What records do I have to keep?

Show answer
A home education program keeps a folder. In it: a log of what you taught, written as you go. It names the books you read, by title. It also holds some of your child's work. And the grade 3, 5 and 8 test scores. The written evaluation joins it. All of it stays with you. Your district stopped getting folders in 2014. Only the evaluator's short note is filed, by June 30. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e)

My child is five. Do I have to do anything yet?

Show answer
No. A Pennsylvania child must be taught from no later than six. That runs until eighteen. The law carries no September cut-off date. Your own school board sets the starting ages for the first two years of school. It works inside the ranges the state rules allow. So ask your district what its ages are. The state's own guide reads this as a September 1 birthday rule. That is what the state office does. It is in no law. 24 P.S. § 13-1326 · the state's own guide (PDF)

Can we join a homeschool group or take outside classes?

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Yes. Pennsylvania does not stop you from joining a co-op. Nor from hiring a teacher, taking an online course, or joining a group class. It says yes or no to none of them either. You stay the parent who runs the program. The duties on this page stay with you. That is the affidavit, the days or hours, and the subjects. It is also the folder and the yearly evaluation.

Can my child play on the public school's team or take a school course?

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Yes, if your child is in a home education program. Your child must meet the same rules the school's own children meet. The law covers borrowing books and tools. It covers clubs and sports. It covers school courses of at least a quarter of the school day. And it covers trade and technical training. A class may have only a few seats. Getting there is your job, unless a bus already runs with room. Private tutoring carries no such right. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(f)-(f.4)

Does Pennsylvania give a homeschool diploma?

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There is no Pennsylvania state homeschool diploma. No state office gives one out either. A parent may give one out on the state's own form. The evaluator who did the last year's evaluation signs it too. It rests on four years of English. It rests on three years each of mathematics, science and social studies. And two years of art, music and the study of people. A group on the state's own list may send its own diploma instead. Private tutoring has no Pennsylvania diploma at its end. What colleges read a record against is on the Pennsylvania high school and diploma page. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(d)

What is private tutoring, and should I use it?

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It is the second route. A Pennsylvania-certified teacher is paid to teach your children. That teacher teaches only your family's children. That teacher does most of the teaching. The teacher gives the district their teaching paper and their record checks. The teacher also reports which children they teach. There is no affidavit. There is no folder kept for the district. There is no yearly evaluation, and no grade 3, 5 and 8 test. There is also no Pennsylvania high school diploma at its end. So some families switch to a home education program for the last year. 22 Pa. Code § 11.31(a)(2)

We are moving to Pennsylvania from another state. What do I do?

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File your first affidavit before you start teaching here. A first year has no August 1 date of its own. So an August 20 move is not late. File before you start. Your old state's papers do not carry over. Pennsylvania asks for its own affidavit and its own subjects. It counts its own days or hours. Step 10 is for a move inside Pennsylvania. It does not cover crossing the state line. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(1)

We are moving to another Pennsylvania school district. What do I do?

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Ask your old district for a letter of transfer. Ask by registered mail, 30 days before you move. That is mail the post office tracks and signs for. Your old district has 30 days from the day it gets your ask. You then file the letter with your new district. If a case about your child is open, it carries on there. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(b)(2)-(3)

How do I find an evaluator?

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Most families find one through other families who teach at home. The state office lists home education groups by county. Step 8 has who may do it, and who may never. Ask early in the year. June is late, and they fill up. Pennsylvania Department of Education: its list of home education groups

What if we go back to a school?

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Nothing in the home education law asks you to file anything to stop. Your last year still has its evaluation and its short note by June 30. The school decides your child's grade and what work it takes. No law makes a school take home education work. Ask the district for its written rule first. 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1(e), (h.1) · the state's own guide (PDF)

My child has an IEP or needs special education. Can we still homeschool?

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Yes. One extra step is added for a home education program. It is for a child named as needing special education services. A child named only as gifted or talented is not covered. Your program must meet the child's needs. A special education teacher certified by the state must agree to it in writing. A licensed clinical or certified school psychologist may agree instead. That written note is filed with the affidavit. You may also ask the district for services. If it agrees, they happen at a public school or a licensed private school. Neither side can be made to agree. 24 P.S. § 13-1327(d)

Does my child need a work permit?

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Yes, the same as any other Pennsylvania child. Your school district gives out the permit and keeps the record. The state office says a child of 16 or 17 may work in school hours. There are still caps on hours, and a night-time rule. That is the office's reading. It is not a line in the home education law. the state's own guide (PDF)

What happens when my child turns eighteen?

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The duty to be taught ends at eighteen. A program may carry on after that. School age runs until your child finishes high school. It ends at the close of the term in which your child turns 21. If you want the state's own diploma, keep filing through the last year. The state office says this too. A last year with no affidavit and no evaluation means no state diploma. 22 Pa. Code § 11.12 · the state's own guide (PDF)

Do I have to keep a high school transcript?

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No law asks for one. The home education law never uses the word transcript. That is the record of the courses and grades of a high school year. The state office puts forward keeping one. Colleges read it, so most families keep one. What it holds is on the Pennsylvania high school and diploma page. the state's own guide (PDF)

Is there a homeschool compliance planner for Pennsylvania?

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Compliance means meeting what your state asks, on time. Trellis is a planner that keeps the record behind each Pennsylvania date. It counts your 180 days, or your hours, as your children check work off. It holds the work, the reading and the test scores your year ends with. Trellis never files a paper for you. The card below starts your family's records.

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