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hayway hearth

Pennsylvania homeschool laws and recordkeeping

Reviewed against primary sources 2026-07-26 · next review due 2026-10-26

Pennsylvania is one of the most structured states. A parent supervisor files an affidavit with the district before starting and every August 1, teaches required subjects for 180 days or 900 elementary / 990 secondary hours, keeps a portfolio with a contemporaneous log and work samples, and submits an outside evaluator's written report by June 30 each year. In exchange, recent law gives home education students real access to district courses, cocurriculars, and career and technical programs.

LEGAL STATUS

Home education is a distinct compulsory-attendance pathway codified at 24 P.S. 13-1327.1, alongside the private-tutor pathway at 24 P.S. 13-1327 and 22 Pa. Code 11.31. The district does not approve the program in advance: filing the required affidavit satisfies compulsory attendance. If a hearing later determines the program non-compliant, the supervisor and spouse become ineligible to run that child's program for 12 months from the determination.

What Pennsylvania requires

Affidavit filing

Before starting, and by August 1 every year after, the supervisor files a notarized affidavit or unsworn declaration with the resident district superintendent. It must include the supervisor's name, each child's name and age, the program address and phone, the subjects to be taught in English with education objectives, evidence of required immunization and of receipt of required health and medical services, and a certification signed by the supervisor that the supervisor, all adults living in the home, and persons with legal custody of the children have not been convicted of the criminal offenses listed in Section 111(e) of the School Code within the preceding five years.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(b)(1)

Compulsory ages

Compulsory school age runs from no later than age 6, whenever the parents choose to enroll the child, until age 18 or high school graduation, whichever comes first. Kindergarten itself is not compulsory.

Source: 22 Pa. Code 11.13

Instruction time

A home education program must provide at least 180 days of instruction, or 900 hours per year at the elementary level and 990 hours per year at the secondary level. The statute sets an annual total, not a daily or weekly schedule.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(c)

Required subjects

Elementary programs must cover English including spelling, reading, and writing; arithmetic; science; geography; United States and Pennsylvania history; civics; safety education including fire prevention; health and physiology; physical education; music; and art. Secondary programs must cover English language, literature, speech, and composition; science; geography; social studies including civics, world history, and United States and Pennsylvania history; mathematics including general math, algebra, and geometry; art; music; physical education; health; and safety education.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(c)

Portfolio

The supervisor keeps a portfolio of records and materials: a log made contemporaneously with instruction listing reading materials by title, plus samples of writings, worksheets, workbooks, and creative materials. In grades 3, 5, and 8 the portfolio must also contain results of a statewide or nationally normed standardized test in reading or language arts and mathematics.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(e)(1)

Annual evaluation

Each year a qualified evaluator, who cannot be the supervisor or the supervisor's spouse, reviews the portfolio and certifies in writing whether an appropriate education is occurring. Qualifying evaluators are a licensed clinical or school psychologist, a Pennsylvania-certified teacher or equivalent nonpublic-school personnel with at least two years of experience grading the required subjects at the matching grade level, or a person with other qualifications given prior consent by the district superintendent. The supervisor submits the evaluation to the superintendent by June 30.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(e)(2)

Cocurricular and dual-enrollment rights

Since the 2023-24 school year, the resident district must allow a home education student to participate in cocurricular activities that combine extracurriculars with a required academic course, enroll in district academic courses up to at least one quarter of the school day, and access career and technical education programs. The district reports grades to the supervisor for the portfolio and provides transportation when an existing bus route covers it; districts may adopt priority policies where seats are limited.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(f.2) to (f.4); Act 55 of 2022

Diplomas

A supervisor may issue a home education diploma once the statutory grade 9 to 12 course minimums are met (four years of English; three each of mathematics, science, and social studies; two of arts and humanities) and the twelfth-grade evaluator certifies completion, or the student may receive a diploma from a state-approved diploma-granting organization, which must renew its approval every three years.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327.1(d), (d.1); PDE Home Education and Private Tutoring page

Private tutoring alternative

A family may instead satisfy compulsory attendance with a private tutor: a Pennsylvania-certified teacher who provides the majority of instruction to children of a single family for a fee, meeting the same day, hour, and subject minimums. Before tutoring begins, the tutor must file a copy of the Pennsylvania certification and the required criminal history record with the resident district superintendent; beyond that filing, no case-by-case district approval is required.

Source: 24 P.S. 13-1327; 22 Pa. Code 11.31

Where hearth fits

hayway hearth is in development, and for Pennsylvania families it is planned to track the 180-day or 900/990-hour log against each required subject, organize the portfolio with its contemporaneous reading log and grade 3/5/8 test results, and surface the August 1 affidavit and June 30 evaluation deadlines. It will not file the affidavit or evaluation with the district, and it will not represent any record as satisfying Pennsylvania law on a family's behalf.

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Primary sources

This page is informational, not legal advice. Requirements change; verify against the linked primary sources or your district before acting.