Currently, all 50 states have passed homeschooling laws. Some states have more regulations than others. Where does Washington State rank?
- Due to the many requirements in our law such as parental qualifications, annual registration with the school district, mandatory testing/assessment, and record keeping, Washington State ranks in the top twelve for most regulated states (source Home School Legal Defense Association). This may come as a surprise to some. Nine states require no reporting at all.
However, these requirements are not a hindrance to parent taught education of their children. In fact, Washington’s law is very workable and includes an excellent description of what it calls “home- based instruction”:
- Home-based instruction, “… consists of planned and supervised instructional and related educational activities, including a curriculum and instruction in the basic skills of occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of an appreciation of art and music, provided for a number of hours equivalent to the total annual program hours per grade level established for approved private schools under RCW 28A.195.010 and 28A.195.040. RCW 28A225.010 …”
- All home educating parents should desire and purpose to help their children master all of these educational elements.
We strongly encourage home educators to become familiar with our state laws and to know their rights. For your benefit, these laws are provided and discussed for your study in the various CHN web pages in this section.
- Option I: Independent Homeschooling
- Option II: Homeschooling under Private School Extension Programs
- Overview of the Homeschool Laws
There is no evidence that homeschooling success or freedom is linked to government regulations. However, to the benefit of homeschoolers, state laws make it is clear what is homeschooling and what is not.
- The information CHN provides is not meant to be used for legal advice. If you need legal advice, please contact a lawyer or Home School Legal Defense Association at www.HSLDA.org or you can call them at 540-338-5600.
NOTE: Children enrolled in public school programs such as
- on-line programs,
- virtual schools,
- independent study programs,
- alternative learning programs (ALP’s),
- or parent partnership programs (PPP’s)
are considered, by law, to be full time public school students
and DO NOT come under the home-based instruction law.
Enrollment in these secular programs is actually enrollment in public school.
- This allows the public school to have authority over the student to impose state assessments,
- district/state approved curriculum,
- and supervision of the student-learning plan by a state employee or school district.
CHN, instead, exists to support families whose education is primarily administered and controlled by parents privately.