Homeschooling in California: the law and how to start

Yes, although California's Education Code never uses the word "homeschool" as a separate legal category. Instead, families fit home education into one of the exemptions from compulsory public school attendance. The California Department of Education (CDE) lists these ways to school at home:

• Home-based private school. You establish your own private school, file the annual Private School Affidavit (PSA) and keep the records a private school must keep. This is the most common route for independent homeschoolers.
• Private school satellite program (PSP). You enroll your child in an existing private school that supports home-based learning. The PSP files the affidavit and keeps the official records; you teach at home.
• Credentialed private tutor. A tutor (or parent) who holds a valid California teaching credential for the grade taught can instruct the child under § 48224, which sets minimum daily hours and days per year.
• Public charter school or public independent study program. Your child stays enrolled in a public school but learns at home. Legally this is public school, not homeschooling, so the school's rules — including state testing — apply.

A California appeals court in 2008 (*Jonathan L. v. Superior Court*) recognized that home schooling can qualify as a private school under state law.

For a home-based private school:

• Choose a name for your school and decide who will teach.
• File the Private School Affidavit (sometimes called the R-4) through the CDE's online filing system. It is signed under penalty of perjury. The statutory filing period is October 1–15, but the system opens on August 1 and stays open through the school year, so a new school can file when it starts. If you file early (from August 1), you do not file again in October.
• Withdraw from public school. Once your affidavit is filed, tell your child's current school in writing that your child is now enrolled in your private school, and keep a copy. The school may send records to your school on request.
• Refile every year you continue. Returning filers can use last year's confirmation code to prefill the form.

If you use a satellite program instead, you enroll with the PSP; it files the affidavit, requests records from the old school and tells you what it expects from you.

The CDE notes that filing an affidavit does not mean the state approves or licenses your school. The local school district named on the affidavit decides whether a child meets the exemption from compulsory attendance.

A private school must offer instruction in the several branches of study required in public schools, and teaching must be in English. Those branches are set out in Education Code § 51210 for grades 1–6 and § 51220 for grades 7–12, and cover areas such as English, mathematics, social sciences, science, fine arts, health and physical education.

California does not set a minimum number of days or hours for a home-based private school. The credentialed private tutor option is different: § 48224 requires at least three hours a day for 175 days a year.

There is no state testing or portfolio review for children in a home-based private school or a PSP. Charter and public independent study students are public school students and take state assessments through their school.

As a private school you must keep an attendance register that records every absence of a half day or more. Private schools are also expected to keep records of the courses of study offered and of the names, addresses and qualifications of the instructors. Keep these records, along with samples of work, in case the school district asks whether your child meets the exemption.

Because your home-based private school is a private school, it sets its own graduation requirements and issues its own diploma and transcripts. Keep a clear record of courses, credits and grades from grade 9 onward — colleges and employers will ask for them. If you use a PSP, the PSP usually issues the transcript and diploma.

California community colleges can admit high school–age students to take college courses, which can count toward both high school and college credit. For a home-based private school, you sign the paperwork as the school's administrator. Ask the college about its admission process for homeschooled students.

California has no law guaranteeing homeschoolers access to public school classes or sports. High school sports are governed by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), whose eligibility rules are tied to enrollment in a member school, so students in a home-based private school generally cannot play on a public school team. Students in a charter or independent study program may have options through their school. Homeschool leagues and club teams are the usual alternatives.

If you think your child has a disability, contact your local school district. Under the federal IDEA, districts must locate and evaluate children who may need special education, including those in private schools; ask what services, if any, the district offers private school students.

California has several statewide homeschool organizations, including the HomeSchool Association of California and the Christian Home Educators Association of California, as well as many regional support groups and co-ops. Public libraries, museums and state parks offer programs that work well for homeschoolers.

California has no education savings account or voucher program for homeschoolers. Families who want public funding for curriculum often enroll in a charter or independent study program, but that makes the child a public school student.