Which Homeschool Option Is Right in California?

If you want maximum independence, the home-based private school path through a Private School Affidavit is usually the cleanest fit. It is the classic California homeschool path and the one most associated with freedom.

If you want administrative help, extra privacy, or a ready-made community, a Private School Satellite Program often fits better. It is still a private homeschool path, but with more structure around it.

If you need to preserve IEP services, want public funding, or want a teacher and a school system involved, charter independent study is often the strongest fit. The tradeoff is more oversight, public-school rules, and limits on curriculum.

Private tutor exists too, but for most families it is not the practical option because it requires a credentialed teacher and a much more rigid structure than the other paths.

So the easiest shortcut is this: freedom points toward PSA, support points toward PSP, public-school services point toward charter, and highly specialized tutor-led instruction points toward private tutor.