Homeschooling in New York.

Regulation level

High. You send a yearly notice, a home instruction plan, four quarterly reports and an annual assessment to your school district.

Statute citation

Commissioner's Regulations, 8 New York Codes, Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) § 100.10, under New York Education Law §§ 3204, 3205, 3210 and 3212.

Compulsory attendance age

A child who turns 6 by December 1 must start that school year and continue through the school year in which they turn 16. Districts may require unemployed 16-year-olds to continue through the year they turn 17. (Education Law § 3205)

Who you notify

Your school district superintendent, in writing. The New York State Education Department (NYSED) sets the rules but doesn't receive your paperwork.

Notice of intent

Send it by July 1 each year. If you start home instruction or move into the district midyear, send it within 14 days. The district then has 10 business days to send you the regulation and a plan form.

Home instruction plan

Return your Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP) within 4 weeks of receiving the form or by August 15, whichever is later. It lists your child's name, age and grade, materials for each subject, quarterly report dates and who teaches.

District review

The district replies within 10 business days or by August 31, whichever is later. If it finds gaps, you revise within 15 days or by September 15. You can ask the board of education to review a dispute, then appeal to the state.

Quarterly reports

Four a year, on the dates in your plan: hours taught, material covered in each subject, a grade or short narrative per subject, and an explanation for any subject where less than 80% of the planned material was covered.

Annual assessment

Filed with the fourth quarterly report. Grades 1–3: a standardized test or a written narrative. Grades 4–8: a test, with a narrative allowed no more than every other year. Grades 9–12: a test every year.

Approved tests

Iowa Test of Basic Skills, California Achievement Test, Stanford Achievement Test, Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, Metropolitan Achievement Test, a state test, or another test NYSED approves. You choose the test.

Who gives it

Public school staff, a nonpublic school that agrees, or a New York State–certified teacher or other qualified person the superintendent approves, at home or another reasonable place. A narrative evaluator interviews your child and reviews a portfolio. You pay outside costs.

Adequate progress

On a test, a composite result above the 33rd percentile on national norms, or one year of growth. If results fall short, the program goes on probation for up to two school years with a remediation plan.

Required subjects

Set by grade band. Grades 1–6 include arithmetic, reading, spelling, writing, English, geography, U.S. history, science, health, music, visual arts and physical education. Grades 7–12 have unit requirements in English, social studies, math, science and more.

Instruction hours

The equivalent of 180 school days: 900 hours a year in grades 1–6 and 990 hours a year in grades 7–12.

Records required

Keep attendance records and share them if the district asks. If you use a written narrative, keep a portfolio of your child's work for the evaluator. No retention period is set.

Parent qualification

No degree or teaching license is required. State law says instruction must come from a competent teacher and be substantially equivalent to public school instruction, without defining competent. (Education Law § 3204)