West Virginia Homeschool Requirements Checklist
Everything you need to do to homeschool legally in West Virginia, based on W.Va. Code 18-8-1(c). West Virginia is classified as Moderate regulation.
This is the general checklist for Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment, the most common of West Virginia's 3 pathways. Our free wizard customizes this for your family, including grade, pathway, enrollment status, and IEP.
Your compliance checklist
Do first
File your Notice of Intent
Submit to county superintendent. Deadline: upon commencing home instruction; if the child is enrolled in a public school, on or before the date home instruction is to begin. Conditions: The statute allows the notice to go to the county superintendent or the county board. A new notice of intent is required after moving to a new county; notice of termination is required when home instruction ends.
Deadline: upon commencing home instruction; if the child is enrolled in a public school, on or before the date home instruction is to begin
Send a withdrawal letter
If your child is currently enrolled in school, send a withdrawal letter to county superintendent or county board. Conditions: The statute allows the notice to go to the county superintendent or the county board. A new notice of intent is required after moving to a new county; notice of termination is required when home instruction ends. What the statute requires is the notice of intent to the county superintendent or county board on or before the date home instruction begins; it does not require a separate letter to the school. The notice of intent goes to the county superintendent or county board; the statute does not address a separate letter to the school.
Deadline: Before you start (if enrolled)
Ongoing
Teacher qualifications: what applies to you
A post-secondary degree or certificate from a qualifying institution also satisfies the requirement.
Deadline: Before you start
Required subjects
reading, language, mathematics, science, social studies
Review instructional-time requirements
Check the cited source for the school-term or instructional-time rule that applies to your pathway.
Show your child's progress
Standardized test or Portfolio review or Teacher evaluation or Other approved method — annually. At grades: 3, 5, 8, 11. Minimum: 4th stanine or above, or showing improvement from prior year. Conditions: Applies to the subsection (c)(2) home-instruction exemption. Portfolio review is by a certified teacher; other assessments require mutual agreement when using that option. The assessment is obtained every year; results are submitted to the county superintendent at grades 3, 5, 8 and 11. Applies to the standardized test option; other options use their own acceptable-progress standard.
More details
Process: Additional evidence of appropriate instruction required. Timeline: If the annual assessment fails to show acceptable progress, a remedial program is initiated; if acceptable progress is not achieved for a second consecutive year, additional evidence is required. Consequence: Submit to the county superintendent additional evidence that appropriate instruction is being provided
Submit at grades 3, 5, 8, and 11 (by June 30) progress reports
Submit at grades 3, 5, 8, and 11 (by June 30) progress reports to county superintendent. Conditions: Only at grade levels 3, 5, 8, and 11, as applicable.
Filing requirements
- What to file
- simple notice
- Send to
- county superintendent
- Deadline
- upon commencing home instruction; if the child is enrolled in a public school, on or before the date home instruction is to begin
- How often
- one time
W.Va. Code §18-8-1(c)(2)
Ongoing requirements
Required subjects
- ✓reading
- ✓language
- ✓mathematics
- ✓science
- ✓social studies
Varies by pathway. Option 1: School Board Approval Pathway: ["Not listed in the law; the county board approves the program, and the instructor must be qualified in the subjects taught in West Virginia public elementary schools"]; Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment: ["reading","language","mathematics","science","social studies"]; Option 3: Learning Pod or Microschool: ["reading","language","mathematics","science","social studies"]
W.Va. Code §18-8-1(c)(2)
Testing and assessment
Varies by pathway. Option 1: School Board Approval Pathway: undefined; Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment: ["State public school testing program","Portfolio review by certified teacher with written narrative","Alternative assessment mutually agreed upon with county superintendent"]; Option 3: Learning Pod or Microschool: ["State public school testing program","Portfolio review by certified teacher with written narrative","Alternative assessment mutually agreed upon with county superintendent"]
- Accepted types
- Standardized test, Portfolio review, Teacher evaluation, Other approved method
- Frequency
- annually
- At grades
- 3, 5, 8, 11
- Minimum score
- 4th stanine or above, or showing improvement from prior year
If scores fall short:
- Process: Additional evidence of appropriate instruction required
- Timeline: If the annual assessment fails to show acceptable progress, a remedial program is initiated; if acceptable progress is not achieved for a second consecutive year, additional evidence is required
- Consequence: Submit to the county superintendent additional evidence that appropriate instruction is being provided
See our full assessment guide for West Virginia for details.
W.Va. Code §18-8-1(c)(2)
Reporting
Varies by pathway. Option 1: School Board Approval Pathway: null; Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment: "county superintendent"; Option 3: Learning Pod or Microschool: "county superintendent"
- Progress reports
- at grades 3, 5, 8, and 11 (by June 30) reports to county superintendent
W.Va. Code §18-8-1(c)(2)
Instructor qualifications
Varies by pathway. Option 1: School Board Approval Pathway: null; Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment: true; Option 3: Learning Pod or Microschool: true
The instructor must have a high school diploma or GED.
Alternatives: High school equivalency; Post-secondary degree or certificate from a regionally accredited institution; Post-secondary degree or certificate from an institution authorized by the West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education or the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission
Documentation of qualifications is required.
W.Va. Code §18-8-1(c)(2)
Other ways to homeschool in West Virginia
This checklist covers Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment, the most common pathway. West Virginia offers 3 different ways to homeschool, each with different requirements:
- •Option 1: School Board Approval Pathway : You ask the county board of education to approve home instruction (W. Va. Code 18-8-1(c)(1)). Instruction takes place in your home or another place the county board approves, for a time equal to the instructional term in W. Va. Code 18-5-45, and is given by a person the county superintendent and county board judge qualified to teach the subjects required in public elementary schools. If the county board denies the request, it must give you its reasons in writing. When the county superintendent asks, you provide the county board with information and records on attendance, instruction, and progress. This option does not set a filing deadline or a specific annual assessment.
- •Option 2: Notice of Intent with Annual Assessment(this checklist) : You give the county superintendent or county board a notice of intent when you begin home instruction (on or before the start date if your child is enrolled in a public school). No board approval is needed. Each year your child gets an academic assessment, such as a standardized test (acceptable progress is a mean score within or above the 4th stanine, or improvement from the prior year), the state public school testing program, a portfolio review by a certified teacher, or another assessment you and the county superintendent agree on. Assessment results are submitted at grades 3, 5, 8, and 11, and you keep copies of each assessment for three years. The person teaching needs a high school diploma or equivalent, or a qualifying postsecondary degree or certificate.
- •Option 3: Learning Pod or Microschool : You organize or join a learning pod (a voluntary association of parents grouping their children together) or enroll your child in a microschool (started by one or more teachers or an entity, and charges tuition). You give the county superintendent or county board a notice of intent when participation begins. The instructor and assessment requirements are the same as Option 2. Established by SB 268 (2022).
Our wizard helps you choose the right one. Compare all pathways for West Virginia
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Get your personalized checklist
This is the general checklist for the most common pathway. The wizard customizes it for your family's specific situation, including grade, pathway, and IEP status.
Get your West Virginia checklistRequirements sourced from W.Va. Code 18-8-1(c). Last reviewed October 2026