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Homeschool education plans by state: who actually has to file one (with a free template for all 50)
Only seven states require homeschoolers to file an education plan, and about a dozen more want nothing more than a list of subjects. Here's who actually has to file one, what a district looks for when it reviews one, and a template built from your own state's rules.
Homeschooling is regulated state by state, and the paperwork varies more than almost anything else about it. Some families file nothing at all. A few file a full curriculum and wait for a superintendent to approve it before they can begin.
This post sorts out which group you’re in, then gives you a plan template built from your own state’s subject list, deadlines and assessment rules — pick your state from the dropdown and the document rewrites itself.
Is an education plan actually required?
Homeschooling is regulated entirely at state level, and the fifty states plus DC fall into four rough groups. Only the last one involves the document most people picture when they hear “education plan.”
No notice at all — about 10 states
You don’t tell anyone. No form, no plan, no approval. Some of these states still name required subjects or a minimum number of instructional hours — Missouri wants 1,000 hours a year, Texas wants a written curriculum — but nothing is filed with a district or the state.
States: Alaska, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Texas
Notice only — about 18 states
A one-page notice of intent, usually annually, usually names and birthdates and an address. No curriculum, no approval. Ohio moved into this group in 2023 when it dropped its curriculum outline; Utah simplified its affidavit into a notice in 2025.
States: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Notice plus assessment — about 16 states
You file a notice and then, once a year or on a grade cycle, show progress — a standardized test, an evaluator’s letter, or a portfolio review. Most of these still don’t want a curriculum up front. Nevada is the exception in this group: an educational plan goes in with the notice.
States: Colorado, DC, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia
Notice plus a plan, sometimes approved — 7 states
This is the real thing. New York’s IHIP, Pennsylvania’s objectives by subject area, and Nevada’s educational plan are filed. Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Louisiana and South Carolina’s district route go further and require review or approval before you begin.
States: Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina (district option)
A middle category is worth naming because it causes confusion: about a dozen states put a list of subjects or a short description inside the notice. Virginia’s “curriculum description” is exactly that — a list, not lesson plans. Mississippi asks for a simple description of the type of education. Tennessee’s independent-school notice carries a curriculum overview and your intended hours. People call these plans, and they’re a paragraph.
Your state’s requirements and a sample plan
Pick your state below. The panel shows what gets filed, with whom and by when, what subjects your state names, and what it asks for by way of assessment and records. The document underneath is a sample plan assembled from those same facts — the subject headings are your state’s own list, not a generic one.
Anything in square brackets is yours to fill in. That’s deliberate: a plan that names a curriculum you aren’t actually using is worse than a plan with blanks in it, because your quarterly reports and year-end assessment have to match what you wrote.
A written plan or set of objectives is filed with your notice. The whole document below is in play — fill in every section.
- File with
- Your district superintendent (the NYC Department of Education if you live in New York City)
- Deadline
- Notice of intent by July 1; IHIP by August 15 or within four weeks of receiving the form, whichever is later
- Days and hours
- 900 hours a year for grades 1–6; 990 hours for grades 7–12; the equivalent of 180 days.
- Assessment
- Grades 1–3: narrative or standardized test. Grades 4–8: a standardized test every other year, narrative in between. Grades 9–12: a standardized test every year. Pass = above the 33rd percentile or one year's growth.
- Instructor qualifications
- No credential — a competent instructor.
- Records to keep
- Quarterly reports giving hours taught, material covered in each subject, and a grade or narrative evaluation per subject.
Worth knowing: The IHIP is the archetypal state-filed education plan: child's name, age and grade; your syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks or plan of instruction; the dates your quarterly reports will arrive; and the instructor's name.
Requirements summarised from HSLDA’s state guides, August 2026. Homeschool law changes — check HSLDA’s New York page and your state education department before you file. This is a starting template, not legal advice.
Fill these in and they drop into the plan
Optional — everything stays in your browser. Leave them blank and the plan keeps bracketed placeholders instead.
HOME EDUCATION PLAN
2026–2027 school year · New York
Student [student's full legal name]
Date of birth [date of birth]
Grade level [grade level]
Parent / instructor [parent / instructor full name]
Address [street address, city, state, ZIP]
Filed with Your district superintendent (the NYC Department of
Education if you live in New York City)
Filing deadline Notice of intent by July 1; IHIP by August 15 or within
four weeks of receiving the form, whichever is later
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. STATEMENT OF INTENT
I am the parent of [student's full legal name], and I am providing home
instruction for the 2026–2027 school year in accordance with New York law.
This plan describes the course of study, the instructional schedule, the
method of assessment and the records I will keep.
2. INSTRUCTOR QUALIFICATIONS
No credential — a competent instructor.
Instruction will be given by [parent / instructor full name]. [State your
highest level of education, and attach a copy of your diploma or transcript
if your state asks for one.]
3. INSTRUCTIONAL SCHEDULE
900 hours a year for grades 1–6; 990 hours for grades 7–12; the equivalent
of 180 days.
Instruction runs [start date] through [end date], [days] a week, roughly
[hours] a day. Attendance is recorded daily.
4. COURSE OF STUDY
The subjects below are the ones New York law names. Add anything else you
teach.
This list covers grades 1–6 plus the four subjects required every year at
every grade. Grades 7–8 and 9–12 have their own credit-based lists.
4.1 ARITHMETIC
Objectives: Master grade-level number sense and operations, apply
them to word problems, and explain the reasoning behind an answer
rather than only producing it.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.2 READING
Objectives: Read grade-level text accurately and fluently, retell
what was read, and answer literal and inferential questions about
it.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.3 SPELLING
Objectives: Spell grade-level words correctly in isolation and in
the student's own writing, working through a weekly list and a
Friday check.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.4 WRITING
Objectives: Write daily for a range of purposes — narrative,
informative and opinion — and revise a piece from first draft to
finished copy.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.5 ENGLISH
Objectives: Read grade-level text fluently, write clearly for
different purposes, and use correct spelling, grammar and
punctuation in daily written work.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.6 GEOGRAPHY
Objectives: Locate and describe continents, countries, states and
major physical features, and read maps, globes and atlases with
confidence.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.7 UNITED STATES HISTORY
Objectives: Study major people, events and eras in chronological
order, connecting causes to consequences and placing events on a
timeline.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.8 SCIENCE
Objectives: Investigate topics in life, earth and physical science
through reading, observation and hands-on activity, and record
findings accurately.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.9 HEALTH
Objectives: Learn nutrition, hygiene, body systems, personal safety
and healthy habits at an age-appropriate level.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.10 MUSIC
Objectives: Listen to and discuss music from several periods and
traditions, learn basic notation, and take part in singing or
instrumental practice.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.11 VISUAL ARTS
Objectives: Practice drawing, painting and other visual media, and
look closely at works of art from a range of periods and cultures.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.12 PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Objectives: Take part in regular physical activity that develops
strength, coordination and endurance, with a log of activities and
duration.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.13 PATRIOTISM AND CITIZENSHIP
Objectives: Learn the structure and purpose of local, state and
federal government, the rights and duties of citizens, and the
founding documents.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.14 HEALTH EDUCATION ON ALCOHOL, DRUGS AND TOBACCO
Objectives: Learn nutrition, hygiene, body systems, personal safety
and healthy habits at an age-appropriate level.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.15 HIGHWAY SAFETY
Objectives: Learn fire, road, water and home safety rules, and what
to do in an emergency.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
4.16 FIRE SAFETY
Objectives: Learn fire, road, water and home safety rules, and what
to do in an emergency.
Materials: [name the curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, programs and
library resources you will use for this subject].
Methods: Direct instruction, guided practice, independent work,
reading and discussion, with hands-on activities where they fit.
Evidence of progress: Dated work samples kept in the portfolio, plus
periodic review of completed work.
5. ASSESSMENT AND PROGRESS
Grades 1–3: narrative or standardized test. Grades 4–8: a standardized test
every other year, narrative in between. Grades 9–12: a standardized test
every year. Pass = above the 33rd percentile or one year's growth.
[Name the specific method you intend to use — the test, the evaluator, or
the portfolio review — and when it will happen.]
6. RECORDS MAINTAINED
Quarterly reports giving hours taught, material covered in each subject, and
a grade or narrative evaluation per subject.
In addition I keep a daily attendance log, dated samples of work in each
subject, a list of books read, and copies of everything filed with the
district.
7. NOTES SPECIFIC TO THIS STATE
The IHIP is the archetypal state-filed education plan: child's name, age and
grade; your syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks or plan of instruction;
the dates your quarterly reports will arrive; and the instructor's name.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Signed ____________________________________
Print name [parent / instructor full name]
Date ____________________
Template from TinyClimbs. Verify current New York requirements before filing
— homeschool statutes change, and districts differ in what they ask for.What a good plan actually contains
Districts that review plans are looking for a small number of concrete things. Vagueness is what gets a plan sent back, not brevity.
- Every subject your state names. This is the single most common failure. New York, for instance, requires patriotism and citizenship, substance-abuse instruction, fire safety and highway safety every year at every grade. Reviewers check for them, and generic plans leave them out.
- Real materials. “A variety of resources” reads as evasion. “Singapore Math 3A and 3B, supplemented with generated drill worksheets” reads as a plan.
- Hours or days that match the statute. If your state says 900 hours, say 900 hours and show roughly how they distribute across the year.
- One named assessment method. Not a list of options copied from the regulation — the one you intend to use, and when.
- Your qualifications, stated plainly. Most states need nothing more than a high school diploma, and several need nothing at all. Say what you have.
For the materials line, in-browser generators are worth naming because they produce dated, printable work you can drop straight into a portfolio. The TinyClimbs math worksheet generator, math path puzzles, spelling tests and word problems all print with a date, and the wider printable library covers most elementary subjects. Portfolio states — Florida, Maryland, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, DC — care a great deal about contemporaneous dated work.
Recent changes worth knowing about
- Ohio, 2023. The curriculum outline requirement is gone. Notification now carries only an assurance that you will teach the required subjects.
- Vermont, July 2023. The minimum course of study description was dropped from the enrollment notice.
- Utah, May 2025. The affidavit was replaced with a one-time notice of intent.
This is exactly why the tool links out per state rather than presenting itself as current law. Guides that don’t get updated are how people end up filing a curriculum outline in Ohio three years after it stopped being required.
Write one anyway, even if your state doesn’t ask
If you’re in Texas or Idaho or Michigan, nobody is going to read your plan. Write it anyway, for three reasons.
- It’s your evidence if anything ever comes up. Texas doesn’t require a filing but does require a written curriculum; a truancy question is answered fastest by a document that already exists.
- It survives a move. Going from Texas to New York mid-year with no records is a genuinely bad week.
- It makes the year work. Writing objectives per subject in August is the cheapest planning you will do all year, and it’s the thing you’ll reread in February when a subject has quietly stalled.
Sources
State requirements above are summarised from HSLDA’s per-state compliance guides as of August 2026: Homeschool Laws by State, the individual “How to comply” guides for each jurisdiction, and HSLDA’s homeschooling FAQs. Each state in the tool links to its own page. Your state education department is the authority on current requirements, and nothing here is legal advice.