Home Schooling

Home schooling is governed by General Laws chapter 76, § 1. For children of compulsory school age (6–16), home schooling requires advance approval by the district in which the child lives, under the policy that the school committee has adopted. Home schooling is provided by or at the direction of a child's parent, instead of enrolling the child in a public or private school; home schooling is not remote learning provided by a school district. The requirements that apply to public schools, such as educator licensing or structured learning time, do not apply to home schooling.

Home schooling plans are reviewed and approved by the school district where the child resides. Parents planning to educate their child at home must notify the district in which they live as the first step in the approval process (see home school application). Notification alone does not authorize a parent to begin home schooling. Removing a child from school without an approved home schooling plan would cause the child to become truant.

Once the school district receives the homeschool application, the school district evaluates it and then either approves it, requests modification or additional information, or disapproves the proposed plan.The home schooling plan is reviewed for the content, instructional materials, duration and frequency of instruction, methods of instruction, evaluation, and whether it enables the child to make adequate progress in the areas that Massachusetts identifies as essential. The school district will communicate its decision to the parent, preferably in writing, within a reasonable period after receipt of the parent's home schooling plan.

Under Massachusetts law, home-schooled students have a right to special education services. In addition, the school district is required to evaluate students suspected of having a disability and re-evaluate students eligible for special education services consistent with federal and state requirements. 

If you have any additional questions regarding Home Schooling in Massachusetts, visit https://www.doe.mass.edu/homeschool/ or contact the Superintendent's Office.