Florida Homeschool Laws
Homeschooling in Florida
How do I start homeschooling?
According to Florida homeschooling authorities, families who establish a home education program should:
- File a notice of intent with the local superintendent’s office.
- Choose the curriculum, in the state of Florida, this is up to the parent to choose.
- Maintain a portfolio of educational records and preserve them for two years.
- Provide annual student evaluations to the superintendent.
- File letter of termination and annual evaluation upon completion of homeschool program.
Homeschoolers in Florida have two basic options for teaching their children at home:
- Homeschooling under the homeschool statute
- Enrolling in an umbrella school
Modify™ can help you with your tracking, portfolio and record keeping. Download the app today.
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Homeschool Laws
According to Florida Statute 1003.21, compulsory school attendance is required for ”all children who have attained the age of 6 years or who will have attained the age of 6 years by February 1 of any school year or who are older than 6 years of age but who have not attained the age of 16 years.” In addition, “children who will have attained the age of 5 years on or before September 1 of the school year are eligible for admission to public kindergartens during that school year under rules adopted by the district school board.”
Per the Florida Department of Education, “home education is a parent-directed educational option that satisfies the requirement for regular school attendance.” A “home education program” means “the sequentially progressive instruction of a student directed by his or her parent in order to satisfy the attendance requirements of s. 1002.41, s. 1003.01(13), and s. 1003.21(1)” (s. 1002.01). According to the Florida Department of Education, “Students have the opportunity to explore and learn at their own pace, in any location or at any time.”
Homeschool Requirements
Florida homeschool requirements you must satisfy when you homeschool:
- Begin homeschooling by age 6.
- File the required Letter of Intent to establish and maintain a home education program with the district school superintendent of the county of residence.
- Submit annual evaluations to the school district of residence.
- “File a written notice of termination upon completion of the home education program with the district school superintendent, along with the annual evaluation […] within 30 days of termination (s. 1002.41).”
- Stay current with homeschooling laws and requirements.
Record Keeping
Parents must maintain a homeschool portfolio for all students they are teaching at home. For Florida homeschoolers, this portfolio should include a log of educational activities the student participates in and samples of workbook pages, writings, quizzes, or other creative materials.
Parents must provide an annual educational evaluation of the student’s progress to the superintendent. This evaluation can include:
- a certified FL teacher’s review of the student’s portfolio
- a state-normed test administered by a certified FL teacher
- a state-normed test administered at an approved testing center
- a state-approved psychologist’s assessment
- another agreed-upon evaluation method between the parent and superintendent
In addition to the required record keeping, we also recommend you do some personal record keeping to provide verification of education.
- Attendance
- Immunization records
- Lists of texts and workbooks used
- Student schoolwork samples and/or portfolios
- Test and evaluation results
- Correspondence with school officials
Modify™ offers a easy and reliable place to track the necessary things and keep records for your students.
Graduation requirements
Florida diploma requirements.
Parents determine when their student has fulfilled graduation requirements and can issue their own homeschool diploma; students of private/online schools may receive diplomas from those institutions.
Florida high school testing requirements.
Homeschool students are not subject to testing requirements for graduation.
Florida high school transcripts.
Homeschool parents may create their own student transcripts, and may include any information they deem pertinent to colleges, military, and/or future workplace organizations. Download the Modify™app to create official transcripts.
Florida high school course credits.
Parents determine when their student has fulfilled graduation requirements; for the purpose of creating transcripts, some homeschool parents do assign credits to individual courses.
GED eligibility
The same requirements for eligibility apply to homeschoolers as to public school students.
Modify™ helps homeschoolers to keep all necessary records and transcripts.
REFERENCE GUIDE:
Homeschool laws can change often, so please check for updates at the Florida Education website.
Note: All information on this site is provided with no guarantee of accuracy. Modify™ is not responsible for any errors, omissions, or outdated information, or for the results yielded through use of this information.
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