How to Start Homeschooling in Washington

Yes. Washington's compulsory attendance law, RCW 28A.225.010, lists home-based instruction as one of the ways a child can meet the attendance requirement. Under RCW 28A.200.010(2), parents who carry out the duties in that section are presumed to be providing home-based instruction.

Washington also has a separate path through private school extension programs under RCW 28A.195.010. In an extension program, you teach your child at home under the supervision of a certificated employee of an approved private school.

Washington's compulsory attendance law applies to children who are eight years of age and under eighteen, under RCW 28A.225.010.

There is one detail to know for younger children. Under RCW 28A.225.015, if you enroll a six- or seven-year-old in public school, the child is required to attend. A parent can formally remove a child under eight from enrollment, as long as a petition has not been filed against the parent. So if your six- or seven-year-old is enrolled now, formally withdraw them before you begin homeschooling. If your child has never been enrolled, compulsory attendance begins at age 8.

Here is the process, one step at a time.

Step 1: Confirm your instructor qualification. Washington requires the teaching parent to meet one of these, under RCW 28A.225.010(4): (a) supervision by a certificated person; (b) at least 45 college-level quarter credit hours, or the equivalent in semester hours, or completion of a course in home-based instruction at a postsecondary institution or a vocational-technical institute; or (c) being deemed sufficiently qualified by the superintendent of your local school district. The statute does not limit the 45 credits to a particular field.

Step 2: File your Declaration of Intent. File a signed declaration with the superintendent of the public school district where you live, or of a district that accepts the transfer, by September 15. The declaration includes the name and age of your child and whether a certificated person will supervise the instruction. It must be written in the format prescribed by OSPI, and OSPI publishes a Declaration of Intent form on its home-based instruction page. Keep a copy.

Step 3: If your child is currently enrolled, withdraw them. Your Declaration of Intent is the required filing; state law does not require a separate withdrawal letter to the school. Request your child's records so you have a complete file. If you start partway through the year, file your Declaration of Intent within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester, or semester.

Step 4: Start teaching. Cover the required subjects and provide instruction for the annual hours set for approved private schools: 1,000 hours for grades 1 through 12, and 450 hours for kindergarten.

Step 5: Complete an annual test or assessment. Each year, either have a qualified individual give your child a standardized achievement test approved by the State Board of Education, or have a certificated person currently working in education write an assessment of your child's academic progress. There is no minimum score. Keep the result in your child's permanent records.

Step 6: Refile your Declaration of Intent each year. The declaration is due annually by September 15.

The one document you file is a signed Declaration of Intent to provide home-based instruction. It goes to the superintendent of the public school district where you live, or of a district that accepts the transfer. It includes the name and age of your child and whether a certificated person will be supervising the instruction. This filing is governed by RCW 28A.200.010(1)(a).

The declaration must be written in a format prescribed by the superintendent of public instruction. OSPI provides a Declaration of Intent form on its home-based instruction page. Keep a copy of what you file.

File by September 15 of the school year, or within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester, or semester. Under RCW 28A.200.010(2), not carrying out these duties is treated as a child's failure to attend school without valid justification, so mark the date on your calendar.

Washington requires instruction in 11 subject areas: occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of an appreciation of art and music (RCW 28A.225.010(4)). History is listed separately from social studies in the statute.

That is a longer list than many states have. The reassuring part: you choose the curricula, materials, and methods. There is no curriculum approval process. The law also recognizes that home-based instruction is less structured and more experiential than a classroom, and says the nature and quantity of home-based activities are to be liberally construed (RCW 28A.225.010(5)). Occupational education can mean career exploration, cooking, or budgeting. Art and music appreciation can happen through lessons or drawing at the kitchen table.

Washington measures home-based instruction in total annual hours, equivalent to those set for approved private schools: 1,000 hours for grades 1 through 12, and 450 hours for kindergarten. There is no separate requirement for a number of days or hours per day.

The law says the nature and quantity of home-based instructional and related educational activities are to be liberally construed (RCW 28A.225.010(5)). Washington does not require you to keep an attendance log, though a simple log can help you see how your year is adding up.

Every child in home-based instruction in Washington is tested or assessed every year under RCW 28A.200.010(1)(c). You pick the method.

Option 1: Standardized test. A qualified individual gives your child a standardized achievement test approved by the State Board of Education. OSPI links the Board's list of approved tests. There is no minimum score.

Option 2: Written assessment. A certificated person who is currently working in the field of education writes an annual assessment of your child's academic progress. This option can work well for children who do not test well.

Either way, the test or assessment becomes part of your child's permanent records. You do not send it to the district. If the result shows your child is not making reasonable progress consistent with his or her age or stage of development, the law asks you to make a good faith effort to remedy any deficiency. If your child transfers to another school, you forward test scores or assessments, immunization records, and any other records you keep (RCW 28A.200.010(1)(b)).

Washington gives you more than one way to educate your child at home. Home-based instruction under RCW 28A.200 is one. You file a Declaration of Intent, meet one of the instructor qualifications, and manage instruction and assessment yourself. The subject, hour, and assessment requirements are the same whichever qualification you use.

A separate option is a private school extension program under RCW 28A.195.010. You teach your child at home under the supervision of a certificated employee of an approved private school, and that person evaluates your child's progress. You do not need your own instructor credential. Your child is enrolled in the private school, so you do not file a declaration of intent and the annual testing rule for home-based instruction does not apply. The school's program follows the private school standard of 180 school days or the equivalent annual hours (1,000 hours for grades 1 through 12, 450 for kindergarten). State law does not require you to keep your own attendance or grade records or to send results to the district.

Some Washington public school districts also offer Alternative Learning Experience (ALE) programs. Students in those programs are enrolled in public school, which is a different arrangement from homeschooling.

September 15 is your most important date. If you start mid-year, file within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester, or semester.

Check the 45-credit pathway. The statute calls for 45 college-level quarter credit hours or the equivalent in semester hours, and it does not limit them to a particular field. You do not need a degree.

Know a certificated teacher? Consider supervision. Under RCW 28A.225.010(4)(a), supervision means the certificated person and the parent plan objectives together, the certificated person has an average of at least one contact hour per week with the child each month, and the certificated person evaluates the child's progress. One certificated person may supervise no more than 30 children.

The superintendent pathway. Under RCW 28A.225.010(4)(c), your local superintendent may deem you sufficiently qualified. If that does not work out, the approved course pathway or certificated supervision are other routes.

Co-ops. Washington law describes home-based instruction as a parent instructing his or her child only. If your co-op involves parents teaching other families' children, check with OSPI how that fits.

Your child can take public school courses part-time. Under RCW 28A.150.350, school district boards shall permit enrollment and provide ancillary services for part-time students, including homeschooled students, who would otherwise be eligible for full-time enrollment. Running Start (RCW 28A.600.310) includes eligible 11th and 12th grade students in home-based instruction.

Plan your transcript. Keep course lists and grades during the high school years so your student has a clear record for college applications.