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Planning to homeschool in Ohio? The state of Ohio is considered a moderate state to homeschool in. This means that compared to some other states it is fairly strict. Here is some information to help you navigate homeschooling in Ohio.
*This post is in no way offering you legal advice. This is based on MY personal experience. I have been homeschooling in Ohio since 2009. *
The state of Ohio is considered a moderate state to homeschool in. This means that compared to other states it is fairly strict. I have only homeschooled in Ohio but honestly, haven’t found the laws that bad or restrictive. Here is some information to help you navigate homeschooling in Ohio.
Homeschooling Laws in Ohio
Homeschooling in Ohio includes any child who is six on or before September 30th, through the age of 18. Children younger than this age are not considered school age and do not require notification.
Ohio law states that the homeschool parent must have a high school diploma or GED. They also must agree to teach their child the following subjects: Language, reading, spelling, writing, geography, history of the United States and Ohio, government, math, science, health, physical education, fine arts (including music), first aid, safety, and fire prevention. These subjects can be taught using a variety of materials including regular curriculum, field trips, library materials, and any other material the parent deems suitable.
Ohio homeschool law states that the child must have 900 hours of instruction. The number may sound high, but don’t let it stress you out. Instruction hours can include anything really, 4-H, cooking, cleaning (home ec), field trips, homeschool classes, family trips to museums, zoos, and actual school work 🙂
Notification Forms and Paperwork for Homeschooling in Ohio
If you live in Ohio, there are a few things you have to do in order to homeschool. The first thing you will have to do is fill out notification paperwork. You can download a copy of the Ohio homeschool forms here. Once the form is filled out, you will need to turn it into the superintendent of your local school district.
Along with the notification form, you have to turn in an outline of your intended home education plans. Do not stress yourself out over this. It can be something as simple as a letter stating what you plan on studying with your child. It can include a list of the textbooks and curriculum publishers if you plan on using these types of homeschool programs. For some of the sections of your outline, you can simply list “books from library”.
After you turn all of your paperwork in you will receive a letter excusing your children from public school attendance. This letter should be put into a safe place. It is good for one year, and one year only! You can see a sample Ohio Homeschool notification form here.
Record Keeping and Assessment
In addition to turning in the notification form, you will also have to have your child assessed at the end of each school year. There are two options when it comes to turning in your yearly mandatory assessment. These two options are testing or a portfolio review. We are going to start with testing.
Testing Options for Homeschoolers in Ohio
When it comes to testing, there are a couple of different options. I use Family Learning Organization. Through this company, I order my children’s test, and then I test them in my home. I am considered the “proctor” and they are the “administer”.
If you are a member of a large homeschool group, you may be able to test with them. Bob Jones University offers testing services for homeschoolers. You can find out more information about that here.
You can also test locally with your public school or a nearby Christian School. Regardless of which testing option you use, you will get your results in the mail. The results are private. You turn the composite score only into the superintendent when you notify for the following year. We test our oldest two girls and share why we choose this route in this post.
Obtaining a Portfolio Review
This is your other assessment option. A portfolio will consist of samples of your child’s work through the year. You can divide it up by quarter/month/subject I have done it a few different ways, and I have found sorting by subject easiest. You want to put in pieces of your child’s best work. Tests, handwriting samples, pamphlets from field trips, list of books you’ve read, science journals, etc can be included. At the end of the year, a teacher will look over the portfolio and sign your assessment form stating that your child completed an appropriate grade level of work.
Most of you will probably know a teacher who would be willing to review and sign off on our child’s portfolio, however, if you don’t there are organizations out there who will review it for you for a small fee. You can find a list of Ohio homeschool assessors by the county at CHEO. There are also local individuals who review portfolios each year at curriculum fairs or homeschool meetings for a fee. We have used Ohio Homeschool Assessment for my special needs son and have been very pleased with the service.
For more information about recordkeeping check out this post. Also, I am giving my opinion on homeschooling in Ohio. I encourage you to read the rules and regulations yourself here. And, for any legal questions or concerns, I highly recommend HSLDA.
My friend Renee wrote an awesome book all about Homeschooling in Ohio. It is a great resource if you plan on homeschooling in the Buckeye state!
Ohio homeschooling parents also has a primer to help you get started homeschooling in Ohio. Be sure to check out frequently asked questions and more on their site.
Do you homeschool in Ohio? Have you found it difficult? If not, how does your state compare?
I’m ready to start!
Yes, you can! Any licensed teacher in Ohio can sign off on any portfolio!
On your own portfolio assessment? I don’t believe you can. But, I’m not sure about that.
Thanks for your article! I am a licensed teacher in Ohio, as well as my husband….can i sign off on the portfolio assessment?
Hi Erin! As far as whether or not you need to get a GED or if your diploma would be enough, I would highly recommend you contact some of the professionals at Christian Home Educators of Ohio, or HSLDA on this question. I honestly don’t know. Sorry! As far as your children go, many parents opt for the GED and many parents opt to create their own transcripts and diploma (as your mother did). I believe that would be for you to decide. If you need help homeschooling high school I recommend my friend Ann’s FB group. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ItsNotThatHardtoHomeschoolHighSchool/
Wow, thank you for your extremely diligent explanation (that is actually LONGER than my blog post….) As the article states “I am giving my opinion on homeschooling in Ohio. I encourage you to read the rules and regulations yourself here. And, for any legal questions or concerns I highly recommend HSLDA. ”
I was in no way offering legal advice, nor was I expecting someone to pick apart every statement that I made. I will however, leave the comment as I am sure others would benefit from your much more enhanced explanations. My blog is conversational in nature, NOT one of a legal professional or someone who claims to know it all 😉
Thank you for your time!
My oldest is 4 and I really want to homeschool him but I’m so nervice. I’m new to Ohio and to me this is a lot to take in. I was homeschooled k-12 but I grew up in Illinois. Illinois has no regulations at all. The downside is that my “diploma” is nothing more then a piece of paper my mother printed of her computer, and doesn’t mean much outside of Illinois. Will I need to get my GED in order to homeschool here in Ohio? Also, will my kids need to get their GED, or will they get some sort of proof of their education?
I appreciate someone trying to provide encouragement and information to homeschool, but unfortunately there is quite a lot of incorrect legal information in this post, so I wanted to go through and clarify or correct some things. Please read this in the way I intend – not as an attack on your words, but as an important clarification, to preserve and protect the homeschooling freedoms we in Ohio have, thanks to those who went before us just 30 years ago. I will go in order of things I noticed:
1) We do not “agree to teach their child the following subjects:”. It’s much more nuanced than that, and for specific reasons to maintain our homeschool freedom. In Ohio law (OAC section 3301-34-03) we give an assurance to a series of topics or subjects to be covered, “except that home education shall not be required to include any concept, topic, or practice that is in conflict with the sincerely held religious beliefs of the parent.” A religious belief doesn’t always mean “denominational group religion”. It can just mean a deeply held belief to which you live your life. And if you have such a conflict with any of the topics, you are not required to state your objection. Also, this section was written with the understanding that these topics would be covered sometime within the course of compulsory education. You don’t need to cover, for example, Ohio history, as a subject every year. The schools cover it about twice in 13 years.
2) Concerning the curriculum addendum, you stated: “but honestly all you have to list is the title of your textbooks. You can also make copies of the table of contents for all your books if you want. ” Not only is a table of content MUCH more detail than you are required by law to provide – it could actually be a violation of copyright to photocopy table of contents. HSLDA has stated in an alert in 2015 that they do not recommend this course of action (after so many people started doing what you suggest, that Columbus City Schools started demanding this illegal level of detail from every homeschooler in their district. HSLDA intervened and pressured them to stop the harassment).
Second, the curriculum addendum must also include a curriculum plan and cannot just be a list of book titles (it doesn’t need to include any book titles at all, however). The addendum needs to cover both items 6 and 7 on the OAC – one is a curriculum outline plan, and the other is “List of textbooks, correspondence courses, commercial curricula, or other basic teaching materials that the parent intends to use for home education.” Notice that word “or” in there – you do NOT need to list textbooks. You can simply list any basic teaching materials. Some families don’t use any textbooks or commercial curricula, and that’s absolutely fine. Also, both items 6 and 7 on the law code finish with the statement, “This list is for informational purposes only.” These lists are not for approval purposes. You provide the information covering items 6 and 7, however you see fit, and you have complied with the law. But both a plan and materials list must be included.
3) You stated: “After you turn all of your paperwork in you will receive a letter approving you to homeschool.” This is not accurate, even though some schools are ignoring Ohio law and calling this an approval. In Ohio, we are not an approval state – we are a notification state. Once you notify, you are in compliance with the law. After your notification paperwork has been received, the local district superintendent has 14 calendar days within which to send a letter stating that your child is excused from compulsory attendance: from the OAC 3301-34-03: “(C)(1) If the superintendent, upon review of the information, determines that it is in compliance with all requirements set forth in paragraph (A) of this rule, the superintendent shall notify the parent(s) in writing that the child is excused from school attendance for the remainder of the current school year.”
If the superintendent thinks your paperwork is incomplete, he or she can only request additional information prior to issuing the excusal – this is very rare, and can go back and forth, particularly if your superintendent likes to be a bully – but it’s not a denial. This is not an approval process. Your right to homeschool is a state right which is already approved simply by right of being a resident in Ohio. You simply notify the school that you are exercising this right. If we want the schools to continue following the law and not making moves to remove our hard-earned rights (fought for just 30 years ago), we as homeschoolers should insist on using correct language, holding the districts to following the law just as we ourselves do.
4) You state: “You want to turn this in anytime between June 1st, and the first day of school in your district.” This is a guideline or a good idea, but it is not a legal requirement. There is no due date by which you must notify of your intent to homeschool. You can do so before the current school year is out – although it’s not recommended because the schools might get confused – and you can do so anytime throughout the year. Ohio code was specifically written this way to allow homeschooling to begin at any point in the year – not just prior to the beginning of a school year. It’s generally recommended for notifications to come in before the school starts, if you can (and if your assessor has gotten your assessment scheduled early enough in the summer) but this is not a legal requirement. Additionally, if a homeschooler has chosen to file as in the original Ohio homeschool code way, as an “08” school, there is a due date for filing, but this is Sept. 30. This is usually a month or more AFTER the start of a district’s school year. For all of these reasons, there is no due date of “before the first day of school” in Ohio law. The only requirement in Ohio law is “annual”. Notification must be annual – it is silent on a time frame of when that must occur.
5) Concerning the standardized testing assessment option. You stated: “You can turn these in with your notification papers.” You do not need to turn in tests with your notification papers, nor is this recommended to do so. Ohio law states we turn in the composite score only. CHEO, HSLDA, and Ohio Homeschooling Parents among other homeschool advocacy groups like PEACH, provide a law-aligned form for the parent to write in the test’s composite score. From OAC 3301-34-04: “(b) Results should demonstrate reasonable proficiency as compared to other children in the district at the same grade level. Any child that has a composite score at or above the twenty-fifth percentile shall be deemed to be performing at a level of reasonable proficiency.” The composite score number is all that is needed, therefore the forms provided by homeschooling advocacy groups only have a space for this number.
6) Concerning the portfolio assessment option – you stated: “At the end of the year, a teacher will look over the portfolio and sign your assessment form stating that your child completed an appropriate grade level of work.” This is incorrect. By law the assessor’s job is NOT to see that your child has completed an appropriate grade level of work. There are no declared grade levels with the district in Ohio homeschooling -we notify annually by birthdate only. The assessor does not promote to a new grade level nor anything else to do with school grade levels. They simply affirm that the child is progressing in accordance with his or her own level of ability. Any assessor who tries to assess a child according to institutional school grade levels, is not understanding their responsibility according to Ohio code: OAC 3301-34-04 (02) states: “a portfolio of samples of the child’s work has been reviewed and that the child’s academic progress for the year is in accordance with the child’s abilities.” Advocacy groups recommend seeking out assessors who are homeschool parents or retired homeschool parents themselves, so that you know you will be going to an assessor who understands that homeschooling need not ever look like the institutional, grade/age model. Also, you likely know this but as stated it seems like you are saying the way you suggest making a portfolio is the required way. That’s just one way to make a portfolio. Some people make scrapbook-worthy books, other people have nothing but photo albums. (Such as unschoolers.) Every assessor will have his or her own preferences. It’s best to interview assessors and find one that fits your needs and style.
Thank you for reading. I have a passion for accurate homeschooling information in Ohio to be spread, because the rights won by homeschoolers just a generation before us are increasingly coming under attack, so we must know the law and stand firm in it. If we allow the misinformation spread by the schools to seep into our thinking, and spread this incorrect information on to others, we will lose our rights. Many people lost children, ran and hid from neighbors, faced harassment and jail time, some even died, in fighting for those rights in the 1980s.
Here is the link to Ohio law. http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/3301-34
HSLDA is definitely a great source as well. Michael Donnelly, the rep for Ohio, is a friend of mine, and is passionate about maintaining our rights also. I’m glad to see you recommend them.
If you want to join a parent advocacy forum, I run the largest Ohio homeschooling group on Facebook, called Ohio Homeschooling Parents. I’d love to have you join us!
Hmm, I’m not sure? Can you call and verify that they’ve recieved it? In my county I’ve never sent anything certified we get our letter within a few days. Shoot me an email (contact button) if you need to!
We are about to start our 2nd year of homeschooling. I have submitted all the required info and forms to the school and I ‘ve haven’t recieved my letter of approval from the school. It has been almost 4 weeks since I submitted. I know I need to send a certified letter to school requesting my approval letter, but I’m at a loss for words. Any suggestions on what to say in my letter? Thanks!
Thank you! I enjoyed it. I mentor a lot of new homeschoolers locally so having this resource will be very beneficial! Did you check the link up I shared on the post? Maybe Washington is listed there.
Thank you for putting together such a wonderful resource for homeschooling care givers in Ohio. I hope to be able to find a ‘real mom’ version of this same thing for Washington when the time comes to make our decision.
P.s. Thank you for sharing at the #SHINEBlogHop this week.
So glad you could glean from the post. The thought of homeschooling in Ohio stressed me out at first, but I agree that I think it is pretty easy. Our neighbors across the river in Kentucky though have to do NOTHING other than notify district, so when compared to that…..we are pretty moderate.
Awesome! Thanks for sharing 🙂
We just finished our first year of homeschooling in Ohio and will be doing an assessment next week for our portfolio review. Thus far it’s been a breeze as far as legal concerns…I’d say this state is rather homeschool-friendly! Then again, the only thing I have to compare it to is my own experience as a child in Oregon in the early 90s…back then things were NOT homeschool-friendly! 😉 Thanks for the info!
This is great info..although we live in FL, I can share this in my FB homeschool group! Thanks 🙂