Filling out the Home Education Notification Form

Jul18

photoIt’s getting close to the beginning of school!

In order to home school here in the great state of Ohio, you must submit the necessary paperwork in order for your child(ren) to be excused from compulsory attendance. The notification form can seem a bit intimidating, but once you have gone through this step-by-step explanation you will realize it wasn’t too difficult afterall. Please have the Ohio Home Education Notification form in front of you for reference. This is not legal advice- please contact HSLDA or a state/local home school organization if you have questions.

A. This is just the introduction- no need to put anything here.

(1) Fill in the upcoming school year- for example if you are going to teach your child in the fall you would write the current school year.

(2) Write your name and address. There is no need for you to fill in your telephone number.

(3) If you are not going to be teaching your child the majority of their school work, then you will need to list the person’s name here. For instance, if you work and your mother is going to do the teaching, you would list her name and address. The phone number is not needed.

(4) Full name and birthdate of your student(s) is listed here. Grade level is not necessary.

(5) Put a check mark on the line that shows you will be providing an education in each of these subject areas.

(6) Place a check mark on the line for the outline of intended curriculum.You have the freedom to change your mind once school begins. The school just wants to see that you have planned what you will be doing. You want to have a list of the concepts/ topics you intend to cover for the year. Please see an example of what I have submitted in years past  Each person’s list may look different based upon what you have planned. Each academic year will most likely look different. I suggest you have broad categories as this will give you the freedom to choose several types of curriculum should one not work out as you had planned. Here are examples for you to see: Elementary Intended Course of Study  High School Intended Couse of Study

(7) Check this line. Be sure to include a list of books, DVD’s and other curriculum that you intend to use for the year.  Titles of library books that I intend to use are listed here because I know that we will be using those for school.  Again, if the curriculum is not working out, you may choose something different during your school year. Here are two examples of what I have sent in previous years. Elementary Intended Curriculum   High School Intended Curriculum . I also have another blog post that gives you more specific details if you need clarification for lines 6 and 7.  outline of topics and curriculum

(8) Check this line with confidence! We all educate our children beyond the 900 hours the state requires. Education is not only limited to sit-down-at-the-table time and bookwork. This includes co-ops, playing outside (physical education), helping watch brothers and sisters (health- family life, safety), going to a library program (language arts, science, social studies, etc.), going grocery shopping (math, health), participating in a local park program (science), symphonies and plays (fine arts),etc. I documented these activities in my lesson plans by writing what we did.

(9) Check this line because you are qualified to educate your child(ren), but read this section to make sure you do meet the  qualifications to be able to home educate your child(ren).

(10) Lastly, sign your form that signifies that you have completed it and will abide by the requirements that were stated on the notification form.

Many people include a cover letter stating their intention to home school and a list of all the paperwork that is being included. If this is your first year to home school you do not need any type of evaluation (portfolio assessment or standardized test). This will be added after your first year is completed.

Congratulations! You have completed the form you and are that much closer to officially home schooling!

16 thoughts on “Filling out the Home Education Notification Form”

    • Hi Jenny,
      That’s a great question! When I have used library books I choose a couple of titles that I know I will be using and list them under that heading and the also write that I will be using a variety of library books and other resources. Here is an example:
      Science
      Volcanoes, Janice Van Cleave
      Earthquakes,Janice Van Cleave
      Magic School Bus Blows its Top, Joann Cole
      Volcanoes, Bill Nye the Science Guy
      Various library books and other resources (You could state curriculum here as well- maybe you are going to use an online game and a DVD, the wording is up to you.)

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  2. Hello Lisa,

    I am new to the state of Ohio, and new to homeschooling. I will be doing Kindergarten with my daughter who is 5-years old. She will not turn 6-years old until February. It is my understanding of Ohio Revised Code, 3321.01 that I do not have to notify the school district of my intent to homeschool. Am I correct in this understanding. I want to make sure that we get off to a good start.

    Thank you,

    Joy Jones

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    • Hi Joy,
      Welcome to Ohio! Yes, that is correct; you do not need to notify the school district until your daughter has turned 6. Most school districts have September 30 as the cut-off date, although I have heard of some being August 31. Since your daughter’s birthday is in February you will notify next fall. Compulsory attendance is age 6-18 in Ohio.

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  6. Thank you so much for all the information you share here. This month, I need to withdraw my children from a virtual academy to homeschool them. This will happen before the scheduled OAA/Diagnostic Tests. Will I need to submit any evaluations to my district when we finish this curent school year?

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    • Hi Veronica,
      Thank you for the encouragement about my blog. It’s nice to know I am helping!
      Yes, you will need to have some type of assessment done if you are going to continue to homeschool them next year and you live in Ohio. You can either do a portfolio review (written narrative assessment), which I can do for you or you can do testing with a nationally normed test such as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) or the California Achievement Test (CAT). All of these tests can be ordered online and will be sent directly to you. The criteria for administering the tests are all a bit different so be sure and read them carefully before ordering. If you have any further questions feel free to ask.
      ~Lisa

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  8. My son turned 18 this past April and has completed 4 years of high school at home, do I still have to send in an assessment and notification this fall since he is an adult now?

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    • Hi Brian,
      That’s a great question! No, you do not need to notify the school district for several reasons. 1) He is already 18 and the compulsory age in Ohio is age 6-18 (typically beginning kindergarten or first grade through entering 12th grade). Since you have finished homeschooling, there is no “exit assessment” for him. You do not need to notify the school to let them know he is finished either. You only notify if you are continuing. Congratulations to you and your son on completing high school. That is quite an accomplishment!You now both join the ranks of homeschool alumni. 🙂

      ~Lisa

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