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Homeschooling in New York

Homeschool rules in New York, in plain English

New York families who homeschool must send a yearly written notice to their local school district superintendent, by July 1 or within 14 days of starting. They must also file an Individualized Home Instruction Plan, four quarterly progress reports, and a yearly assessment, and give instruction in required subjects for the required hours. Parents do not need a teaching certificate or degree.

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This explains each state's homeschool rules in plain English, from the state's own published sources. It isn't legal advice, and we aren't lawyers. Laws change and every family is different, so check with your state, your school district or a lawyer before you rely on it.

How much it asks
Detailed: notices plus tests or reviews
School age
6 through 16. In New York City and any district that has raised the age, 6 through 17.
Time
180 days a year or 900 hours a year

Home instruction under the state home instruction regulation

Parents who teach their child at home themselves or with help from other instructors. This is the route the state sets out for home instruction. The parent does not need a teaching credential or degree.

  1. By July 1 each yearPaperwork

    Send your notice of intent

    Write to the superintendent of your school district of residence saying you will educate your child at home. Include your name, your child's name and date of birth, and your address. The letter is a notice, not a request for permission. Keep a copy and proof of delivery.

  2. Within 14 days of startingPaperwork

    Starting mid-year or moving in

    If you begin home instruction after the school year starts, or move into the district after it starts, send the notice within 14 days of starting home instruction in the district.

  3. Within 10 business days of your noticePaperwork

    Receive the district's packet

    The district must reply within 10 business days by sending you a copy of the state home instruction regulation and a blank Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP) form for each child.

  4. Within four weeks of receiving the district's form, or by August 15, whichever is laterPaperwork

    File the Individualized Home Instruction Plan

    For each child, list the child's name, age and grade; the textbooks, syllabi, curriculum or plan of instruction for each required subject; the dates your quarterly reports will be sent; and the names of everyone who gives instruction. You may begin teaching before the district accepts the plan. The district must tell you in writing if the plan complies.

  5. Ongoing through the school yearWhat to teach

    Teach the required subjects and hours

    Cover the subjects listed for your child's grade band. Provide the hours of instruction the state sets for the year. Instruction may take place in the evening or on weekends. Field trips and hands-on learning can count, but keep records that describe what was done.

  6. Ongoing through the school yearRecords

    Keep attendance records

    You keep the attendance record yourself. You do not file it routinely, but you must make it available to the district when asked.

  7. Four times a year, on the dates in your planRecords

    File quarterly reports

    Each report lists the total hours of instruction for the quarter, the material covered in each subject, and either a grade or a written narrative for each subject. If less than 80 percent of the material planned for a quarter was covered in a subject, add a short written explanation.

  8. With the fourth quarterly report, by the date in your plan (New York City asks for June 30)Testing

    Choose and file the annual assessment

    Choose either a commercially published standardized test from the state's approved list, such as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, Stanford Achievement Test, California Achievement Test, Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, or Metropolitan Achievement Test, or a written narrative evaluation if the child's grade allows it. Send it with your fourth quarterly report.

  9. After the annual assessment, if neededTesting

    If the assessment falls short

    A test score is adequate if the composite is above the 33rd percentile on national norms or shows one academic year of growth. If it is not, the program is placed on probation for up to two school years. You must then submit a written plan to fix the gaps, which the district reviews and may ask you to change.

Subjects to teach

  • Arithmetic or mathematics
  • Reading
  • Spelling
  • Writing
  • English language
  • Geography
  • United States history
  • New York State history and the United States and New York constitutions (at least once in grades 1 through 8)
  • Science
  • Health education, including instruction to discourage misuse of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs
  • Music
  • Visual arts
  • Physical education
  • Practical arts and library skills (grades 7 and 8)
  • Art and music (grades 7 through 12)
  • Bilingual education or English as a second language where needed
  • Grades 7 and 8 also require English, history and geography, science and mathematics units
  • Grades 9 through 12 require English (four units), social studies (four units including American history, government and economics), mathematics (two units), science (two units), art or music, health, physical education, and electives

Tests and reviews

Each year, file an annual assessment with the fourth quarterly report. Choose either a standardized norm-referenced test from the state's approved list, or a written narrative evaluation. A narrative must be written by a New York State-certified teacher, a home instruction peer review panel, or another person chosen by you and approved by the superintendent. The evaluator must interview the child and review a portfolio of the child's work and state whether the child is making adequate progress. Narratives are allowed for grades 1 through 3, and for grades 4 through 8 every other year. Standardized tests are required every year in grades 9 through 12. State tests used for individual students are acceptable, but the child is not required to take them.

Records to keep

  • Notice of intent letter and proof of delivery
  • Individualized Home Instruction Plan for each child
  • Attendance record showing hours and days of instruction, available to the district on request
  • Four quarterly reports with hours, material covered, grades or narratives, and any explanation for less than 80 percent coverage
  • Annual assessment: test results or written narrative and the portfolio it was based on
  • Samples and work showing coverage of required subjects
  • Copies of everything you file

About time

The state asks for the substantial equivalent of 180 days of instruction each year. Hours are 900 a year for grades 1 through 6 and 990 a year for grades 7 through 12. Hours are counted in total per quarter on each report, not per subject, though the state recommends listing hours by subject in high school.

Also good to know

  • The district may ask to meet with you about home instruction, but it may not deny home instruction if you decline the meeting.
  • A student who turns 16 (or 17 in New York City) during the school year is of compulsory age for the whole school year, so the plan must cover the full year.
  • Districts do not review the plan for students past compulsory age.
  • Children who turn 6 on or before December 1 must start that September; those who turn 6 after December 1 must start the next September. Five-year-olds may be homeschooled, but New York City says the plan, reports and assessment are required only if special education services are requested.
  • In New York City, send the plan, quarterly reports and assessment by email to the homeschool office at the address the city publishes. Keep your confirmation emails.
  • Students who finish home instruction may ask the district superintendent for a letter confirming the program met the state rules. The superintendent may decline, and the state does not issue a high school diploma through home instruction.
  • State tests such as the program evaluation tests are not appropriate for the annual assessment.

What we couldn’t confirm

  • How long families must keep records. No official source I read states a number of years.
  • Whether a home-instructed student can enroll part time or return to public school, and how credits transfer. I did not confirm the official rules.
  • Special education services for homeschooled students beyond the New York City note. I did not confirm the statewide rules.
  • Whether patriotism and citizenship, highway safety, and fire prevention instruction are required at every grade level. Secondary sources say so, but I did not confirm this in the official text.
  • Whether home visits are allowed during probation, and how much notice is required. A secondary source says three days' written notice, but I did not confirm it.
  • Whether immunization records are required. A secondary source says no, but I did not confirm it.
  • A pending state bill (S4037-A, 2025-2026 session) would lower the compulsory age to 5. It has not been enacted based on sources I read, so the age range above is current law.

From New York’s own sources

Last checked against these sources on November 7, 2026. We check every state each week.

How Study Naturally helps in New York

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  • Set each child’s lessons, in the subjects you teach
  • A patient tutor teaches every child at their own level
  • A learning record counts days and time against what the state asks
  • Print it, save it as a PDF, or download a spreadsheet for your files

Homeschooling in New York

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