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My family began homeschooling back in 1993. It is so hard to believe that I am down to just one student for this coming school year!

I have loved homeschooling each one of my twelve children over the years. It is a little sad to realize that the end of my homeschooling career is quickly coming to a close.

There have been many people who have asked me how to start homeschooling over those years. With the pandemic, more people are asking these days.

The quick answer is you start homeschooling by learning your state’s homeschool rules, laws, and regulations.

How to Start Homeschooling in New York

The first step to homeschooling is to find out your state’s exact laws.

You may be shocked when you see how extremely different each state’s homeschooling laws are!

For example, you don’t need to keep elaborate records or even notify anyone if you want to homeschool your children in the state of Alaska.

On the other hand, you will need to keep and mail-in extensive records throughout the year if you want to homeschool in New York.

New York is one of the most regulated states homeschool in.

Homeschool Legal Defense Association has a complete list of exactly what is legally required of homeschooling families in each state.

How to Start Homeschooling in New York

#1 – The very first step to homeschooling in the state of New York is to simply write a Letter of Intent, and mail it to your local school district superintendent by July 1st, or within 14 days after establishing your homeschool.

New York State's school year runs from July 1st through June 30th.

This is a very basic, to-the-point letter. Don’t overthink it. Just write your student’s name, age, and grade level.

#2 – Prepare an I.H.I.P. and mail a copy to your local school district.

Prepare an I.H.I.P. and mail a copy to your local school district. An I.H.I.P. is an Individualized Home Instruction Plan. This is what you plan on teaching throughout the school year, and which resources you plan on using to complete it.

You need to submit an I.H.I.P. for each child in your family to the school district by August 15th, or within four weeks of the receipt of the IHIP form from the school district, whichever is later.

New York State requires you to submit your child’s name, age, and grade level; a list of your syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks, or plan of instruction; dates for submission of quarterly reports; and the name of whoever is giving the instruction.

You will need to submit a separate one for each child attending your homeschool.

#3 – Meet State Requirements on Hours, Days, and Subjects to be Taught

Make sure that your New York State homeschool meets each of the state requirements of how many days and hours your students must be in school. You also will need to meet any and all of the subject requirements.

#4 – File Quarterly Reports

You will need to submit a quarterly report for each child in your homeschool. Each individual report should include the number of hours of instruction during the quarter, a description of the material covered in each subject, and a grade or narrative evaluation in each subject.

#5 – Annual Assessments

New York does require annual assessments, but this can be done through standardized testing and/or written narrative evaluations, depending on the grade level of each child.

Keep Good Records

I strongly suggest that you keep good records of each one of your student’s schoolwork.

I also advise you to always send your reports and notices to your local school district through certified mail so that you always have proof that you did your part.

I have only touched on the rules and regulations of homeschooling in New York State.

No matter which state you are planning to homeschool in, you will want to make sure you know all of the rules and regulations.

Read about all of your state's rules and regulations over at HSLDA.ORG.

My Family’s Homeschool

Now that you know the rules, laws, and regulations to get started homeschooling, it’s time to actually get started! The internet is overflowing with free resources to get you started.

Here are just a few websites to help get you started homeschooling:

SchoolhouseTeachers

Schoolhouse Express

Homeschool Share

Easy Peasy

Ambleside

YouTube is a plethora of homeschooling resources!

Start Your Free Trial – Reading Eggs

Homeschool the Classics With Cheap and Free Kindle Books

CTCMath

Time4learning

How to Homeschool Your Children When you have a Chronic Illness and Pain

I have been using some amazing online resources with my homeschool for quite a few years. Although these aren’t free, they are extremely affordable for homeschooling families!

Read more OVER HERE – How to Homeschool Your Children When you have a Chronic Illness and Pain.

Thinking About Homeschooling

Are you thinking about homeschooling? I know the very thoughts of taking the plunge and jumping in with both feet can be very overwhelming.

Take a deep breath.

If you are thinking about homeschooling, just do it.

Don’t let fear keep you from giving it a try.

I think you will love it, but even if you find out that homeschooling isn’t right for your family, just remember, you can turn right back around and go back to the public school or private school where you started.

Choosing to give homeschooling a try doesn’t lock you into it forever!

So, go for it!

Leave a comment and let me know how it goes!