2026–2027 Homeschool Laws and Requirements
How to Homeschool in Florida
Yes, you can homeschool your child in Florida. You do not need a teaching certificate or a state-approved curriculum; you choose your subjects, your materials and your schedule, and the law names no subjects and no hours. Florida asks for a short notice when you begin, a portfolio you keep at home, and one evaluation a year.
Updated 9 October 2026 · Sources read 8 October to 9 October 2026
Free printable guide
The Florida homeschool quick reference, 2026–2027
Two pages to keep: what Florida requires, the dates, and the official links, checked for the 2026–2027 school year. Open it here first, then download it.
What Florida homeschool law requires
The whole list for the 2026–2027 school year, from section 1002.41 of the Florida Statutes:
| Requirement | What Florida asks | Where it says so |
|---|---|---|
| Notice | A signed written notice of intent to the district school superintendent within 30 days of starting, with each child's full legal name, address and birthdate; the district registers the program at once and may ask for nothing more. When you finish, a notice of termination with the final evaluation within 30 days. | Fla. Stat. § 1002.41(1) |
| Portfolio | A log of educational activities and samples of your child's writings, worksheets, workbooks or creative materials, kept for two years and open to the superintendent's inspection on 15 days' written notice. | Fla. Stat. § 1002.41(1) |
| Evaluation | One evaluation a year, filed with the superintendent, by one of five routes: a Florida-certified teacher's review of the portfolio and a talk with your child, a nationally normed test given by a certified teacher, a state student assessment test, a licensed psychologist's evaluation, or another valid measure you and the superintendent agree on. It falls due a year from the date of your notice. | Fla. Stat. § 1002.41(1) |
| Subjects, hours, teacher | No required subjects, no hour or day count, no teacher qualification and no curriculum approval. The section bars a district from asking for more than it lists. | Fla. Stat. § 1002.41 |
| Ages | From six (a child who turns six by February 1 counts) to 16. | Fla. Stat. § 1003.21(1) |
How to start homeschooling in Florida
- Write the notice of intent: each child's full legal name, address and birthdate, signed by you, and send it to your district school superintendent within 30 days of starting. The district registers the program at once and may ask for nothing more.
- Withdraw your child from the public school, with a copy of the notice in hand.
- Start the portfolio on day one: a log of educational activities and samples of your child's writings, worksheets, workbooks or creative materials, kept for two years. Faith Schooling's dated textbook pages are the samples.
- Choose your materials and plan the year. Florida names no subjects and counts no days or hours; the free Homeschool Rhythm Builder turns your week into a printable plan whose record goes in the log.
- Arrange the yearly evaluation before the anniversary of your notice, by one of five routes: a Florida-certified teacher's review of the portfolio and a talk with your child, a nationally normed test given by a certified teacher, a state student assessment test, a licensed psychologist's evaluation, or another measure you and the superintendent agree on. File it with the superintendent.
How Faith Schooling covers Florida's requirements
Florida sets no days or hours. A year of 36 weeks with four or five mornings a week is the common shape, and it is yours to set.
Florida asks for a portfolio and a yearly look at it. Faith Schooling's programs leave exactly that behind: dated, finished pages of reading, writing, grammar and arithmetic from textbooks that run in sequence, which is what a certified teacher's review or a nationally normed test looks for. Florida names no subjects, so science, social studies and the rest are yours to choose.
Florida asks for a portfolio: a log of educational activities and samples of your child's writings, worksheets, workbooks or creative materials, kept for two years. The dated, finished pages of each program are that record, and a HARVEST report is a placement note for the file.
- Reading
- Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency K–5 reading textbooks in four quarterly volumes a year, with complete teaching guides
- Language arts and writing
- Grammar Garden K–5 language and writing coursebooks, four a year, with Preceptor Guides
- Mathematics
- Building Number Sense K–5 mathematics textbooks; Kindergarten to Grade 2 add practice workbooks and teaching guides
- Everything else
- Your choice Florida names no subjects; science, social studies, health and the arts are yours to choose
- Bible
- The Apostolic Academy not something Florida requires; free: Scripture memory, Bible study and printables for the family
The curriculum map Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency Grammar Garden Building Number Sense HARVEST placement Homeschool Rhythm Builder
Financial assistance for Florida homeschoolers
Florida's Personalized Education Program (PEP), an education savings account under the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship administered by Step Up For Students, is open to K–12 students who are not enrolled full time in a public or private school, at any household income. The amount is set by the student's grade level and county.
It is a different legal status from a home education program under § 1002.41: a PEP family is registered with the scholarship funding organization instead of filing a notice with the district (a family already registered as a home education program ends that status), submits a student learning plan to receive funding, and has the student take a norm-referenced test each year with the results sent to the organization.
- PEP is for students in grades K–12 who are not enrolled full time in a public or private school, open to all families regardless of household income. Source: Step Up For Students, Personalized Education Program, read 9 October 2026.
- FTC-PEP families are registered with an SFO and do not submit a letter of intent to the district; a family previously in home education must end the home education status with the school district. Source: Step Up For Students, PEP Family Handbook, read 9 October 2026.
- A student learning plan must be submitted in order to receive scholarship funding, and FTC-PEP students must take a norm-referenced test annually with the results submitted to the SFO. Source: Step Up For Students, PEP Family Handbook, read 9 October 2026.
- A student's scholarship funding amount is based on the student's grade level and county of residence. Source: Step Up For Students, PEP Family Handbook, read 9 October 2026.
What Florida does not require, and you should still do
- Place your child at the start, not the end. Florida's evaluation comes a year after your notice; HARVEST, the free placement check, tells you at the start where your child stands in reading and math and names the grade and quarter to begin.
- Plan the year. Florida counts no days or hours, but a plan is what makes a portfolio a story rather than a pile; the Homeschool Rhythm Builder turns your week into a printable plan whose record goes in the log.
- Choose your evaluator in the autumn. A certified teacher's portfolio review is the gentlest of the five routes; find one early, and keep the pages dated so the review takes an hour.
HARVEST free placement Homeschool Rhythm Builder The Apostolic Academy
Common questions
- What is required to homeschool in Florida?
- A written notice of intent to your district school superintendent within 30 days of starting, a portfolio kept for two years, and one evaluation a year filed with the superintendent. No required subjects, hours, days, teacher qualification or curriculum approval.
- How do I start homeschooling in Florida?
- Send the signed notice (each child's full legal name, address and birthdate) to the district superintendent within 30 days of starting, withdraw your child, open the portfolio, and plan the evaluation for a year from the date of the notice.
- What homeschool forms must I submit in Florida?
- The notice of intent at the start, the yearly evaluation, and a notice of termination with the final evaluation within 30 days of finishing. The statute bars a district from asking for more than it lists.
- Are standardized tests required for Florida homeschoolers?
- Not as such. Florida requires a yearly evaluation; a nationally normed test given by a certified teacher and a state student assessment test are two of its five routes, and a certified teacher's portfolio review is another.
- Can I homeschool kindergarten in Florida?
- Yes. Compulsory attendance begins at six (a child who turns six by February 1 counts), so the notice is due once your child reaches that age.
- How many instructional hours does Florida require?
- None. Florida sets no hour or day count; the portfolio and the yearly evaluation are the measure.
Official Florida homeschool resources
Read from the state's own statutes for the 2026–2027 school year on the date shown. The statutes and your district school superintendent's office are the final word; this page is a plain-language guide, not legal advice.
- Fla. Stat. § 1002.41 (2026) — home education programs: the notice, the portfolio, the annual evaluation, and the limit on district regulation — checked 2026-10-08
- Fla. Stat. § 1002.41 as published by the Florida Senate (2025 statutes), the same section with its subsections lettered — checked 2026-10-08
- Fla. Stat. § 1003.21 (2026) — compulsory school attendance, age 6 by February 1 to 16 — checked 2026-10-08
- Step Up For Students — Personalized Education Program: eligibility, no income limit — checked 2026-10-09
- Step Up For Students — PEP Family Handbook: registration with the SFO instead of a home education notice, the student learning plan, the yearly norm-referenced test, the amount by grade and county — checked 2026-10-09