2026–2027 Homeschool Laws and Requirements
How to Homeschool in West Virginia
Yes, you can homeschool your child in West Virginia. You do not need a teaching license; a parent with a high school diploma, its equivalent or a post-secondary credential teaches, and you choose your books and your methods. West Virginia asks for one notice of intent to your county superintendent, five subjects, and an assessment of progress each year, whose results you send in at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11.
Updated 9 October 2026 · Sources read 9 October 2026
Free printable guide
The West Virginia homeschool quick reference, 2026–2027
Two pages to keep: what West Virginia requires, the dates, and the official links, checked for the 2026–2027 school year. Open it here first, then download it.
What West Virginia homeschool law requires
The whole list for the 2026–2027 school year, from West Virginia Code §§ 18-8-1 and 18-8-1a and the Department of Education's homeschool page:
| Requirement | What West Virginia asks | Where it says so |
|---|---|---|
| Notice of intent | One notice to your county superintendent before home instruction begins, with the name, address and age of each child of compulsory school age and your assurance that the child will be taught reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies. Not renewed each year; tell the superintendent when home instruction ends, and the new county when you move. | W. Va. Code § 18-8-1(c), Exemption B; WVDE |
| Instructor | Satisfactory evidence of a high school diploma or its equivalent, or a post-secondary degree or certificate from a regionally accredited institution. | W. Va. Code § 18-8-1(c) |
| Yearly assessment | One of four: a nationally normed standardized achievement test given by a qualified person, the state's public school test, a portfolio of your child's work reviewed by a certified teacher (who notes any area needing remediation), or an alternative assessment of proficiency agreed with the county superintendent. | W. Va. Code § 18-8-1(c); WVDE |
| Sending in the results | To the county superintendent at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11, by June 30. Where an assessment shows no acceptable progress, you start a remedial program; after a second consecutive year, you give additional evidence that appropriate instruction is being provided. | W. Va. Code § 18-8-1(c) |
| The other route, ages, diploma | Instruction approved by the county board, by an instructor the superintendent and board find qualified, for a time equal to the public schools' term, with the records on attendance, instruction and progress the board asks for. Compulsory attendance begins with the school year in which the sixth birthday falls before July 1 and runs to the seventeenth birthday. The home school administrator may issue a diploma, which the Department calls legally sufficient; county classes, including career technical and virtual courses, are open by board approval. | W. Va. Code §§ 18-8-1(c) and 18-8-1a; WVDE |
WVDE: homeschool and the state code W. Va. Code § 18-8-1, exemptions from attendance
How to start homeschooling in West Virginia
- Send one notice of intent to your county superintendent before home instruction begins: the name, address and age of each child of compulsory school age, your assurance that the child will be taught reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies, and satisfactory evidence of a high school diploma or its equivalent, or a post-secondary degree or certificate from a regionally accredited institution. It is not renewed each year.
- Withdraw your child from the public school.
- Teach reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies. Faith Schooling covers the first three; you add science and social studies. West Virginia counts no days or hours on the notice route and approves no curriculum; the free Homeschool Rhythm Builder turns your week into a printable plan.
- Keep the portfolio as you go. A certified teacher's review of your child's work is one of the four yearly assessments; set a few dated pages aside from each subject every month.
- Complete one assessment each year: a nationally normed standardized achievement test given by a qualified person, the state's public school test, a portfolio reviewed by a certified teacher (who notes any area needing remediation), or an alternative assessment agreed with the county superintendent. Send the results to the superintendent at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11, by June 30; keep them in the other years. Tell the superintendent when home instruction ends, and the new county when you move.
How Faith Schooling covers West Virginia's requirements
West Virginia sets no days or hours for the notice route; only instruction approved by the county board is held to the public schools' term. A year of 36 weeks with four or five mornings a week is the common shape, and it is yours to set.
West Virginia's five subjects are the shape of a Faith Schooling year, and one of its four assessments is a portfolio reviewed by a certified teacher. Three of the five are ours in full: reading is Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency, language is Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency and Grammar Garden, mathematics is Building Number Sense, each a sequenced textbook with a teaching guide for every grade from Kindergarten to Grade 5, and their dated, finished pages are the portfolio a certified teacher reviews. Science and social studies are yours to choose.
West Virginia asks for the yearly assessment, sent to the county superintendent at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 and kept in the other 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
- Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency and Grammar Garden reading in Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency; grammar, writing and composition in Grammar Garden
- Mathematics
- Building Number Sense K–5 mathematics textbooks; Kindergarten to Grade 2 add practice workbooks and teaching guides
- Science and social studies
- Your choice Faith Schooling does not publish these subjects; choose what fits your family
- Bible
- The Apostolic Academy not something West Virginia 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 West Virginia homeschoolers
West Virginia's Hope Scholarship, run by the State Treasurer's Office, opens to every student eligible to enroll in a West Virginia public school in grades K–12 from the 2026–2027 school year, including existing homeschool students, who could apply from March 2, 2026; the scholarship is expected to be $5,435.62 for 2026–2027. Applications filed March 2 to June 15, 2026 received the full amount; later filings in the year receive 75, 50 or 25 percent.
A Hope homeschool family files a Hope Scholarship Notice of Intent with the county board once the application is in Eligible status and submits a yearly assessment, a nationally normed test or a certified teacher's review of the student's work; it follows the Hope pathway rather than Exemption B's.
- Beginning with the 2026–27 school year, all students eligible to be enrolled in a West Virginia public school in grades K–12 are eligible for the Hope Scholarship; existing traditional homeschool students not previously eligible may apply for 2026–2027 from March 2, 2026. Source: Hope Scholarship, Frequently Asked Questions (West Virginia State Treasurer), read 9 October 2026.
- The scholarship amount is expected to be $5,435.62 for the 2026–2027 school year; applications from March 2 to June 15, 2026 receive 100% of the scholarship, June 16 to September 15 75%, September 16 to November 30 50%, and December 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027 25%. Source: Hope Scholarship, Frequently Asked Questions (West Virginia State Treasurer), read 9 October 2026.
- A Hope Scholarship Notice of Intent is submitted to the county board of education of the student's county of residence after the application is in Eligible status, and the family submits either nationally normed standardized achievement test results or a certified teacher's annual review of the student's academic work. Source: Hope Scholarship, Frequently Asked Questions (West Virginia State Treasurer), read 9 October 2026.
Public school access and other opportunities in West Virginia
West Virginia's county boards can open their classes to a home-instructed student, and the Department recognises the home school's own diploma:
- County classes, including career technical and virtual courses, are open to home-instructed students by county board approval; the home school administrator may issue a diploma, which the Department calls legally sufficient. Source: West Virginia Department of Education, Homeschool State Code, read 9 October 2026.
What West Virginia does not require, and you should still do
- Place your child before grade 3. West Virginia's first submitted result comes at the end of third grade; 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. West Virginia counts no days or hours on the notice route; the Homeschool Rhythm Builder turns your week into a printable plan.
- Keep the portfolio as you go. A certified teacher's review is the assessment many families choose; set a few dated pages aside from each subject every month and the June review is a folder you already have.
HARVEST free placement Homeschool Rhythm Builder The Apostolic Academy
Common questions
- What is required to homeschool in West Virginia?
- One notice of intent to your county superintendent before you begin, a parent with a high school diploma or equivalent (or a post-secondary degree or certificate), instruction in reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies, and a yearly assessment whose results are sent at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11. No days or hours, no curriculum approval.
- How do I start homeschooling in West Virginia?
- Send the notice with your diploma evidence to the county superintendent, withdraw your child, plan the five subjects, and choose the assessment for June.
- Are standardized tests required for West Virginia homeschoolers?
- A test is one of four yearly assessments: a nationally normed test, the state's public school test, a certified teacher's portfolio review, or an alternative agreed with the county superintendent. Results go to the superintendent only at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 11; where an assessment shows no acceptable progress, you start a remedial program.
- How many instructional hours does West Virginia require?
- None on the notice route. The county-board-approved route runs for a time equal to the public schools' term.
- Can I homeschool kindergarten in West Virginia?
- Yes. Compulsory attendance begins with the school year in which the sixth birthday falls before July 1, so the notice is due from that year.
- Does a West Virginia homeschool issue a diploma?
- Yes. The home school administrator may issue one, which the Department calls legally sufficient, and county classes, including career technical and virtual courses, are open by board approval.
Official West Virginia homeschool resources
Read from the state's own pages for the 2026–2027 school year on the date shown. The Code and your county superintendent are the final word; this page is a plain-language guide, not legal advice.
- W. Va. Code § 18-8-1(c), Exemption B — instruction in a home or other approved place: the county-board-approved route, and the home instruction route with its one-time notice of intent (name, address and age, the assurance of the five subjects, notice on termination and on moving to a new county), the instructor's diploma, equivalent or post-secondary credential, the four assessment options, the results submitted in grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 by June 30, the remedial program and the second-year rule (last amended 2025, HB 2777) — checked 2026-10-09
- W. Va. Code § 18-8-1a — compulsory attendance begins with the school year in which the sixth birthday is reached before July 1 and continues to the seventeenth birthday; kindergarten at five counts, and a parent may withdraw a child from it (amended 2026) — checked 2026-10-09
- West Virginia Department of Education — Homeschool State Code: the one-time notice before home instruction begins and its contents, the instructor's qualification, the five subjects, the assessment options and the June 30 submission in grades 3, 5, 8 and 11, county classes by board approval, diplomas, the Promise Scholarship — checked 2026-10-09
- West Virginia State Treasurer — Hope Scholarship, Frequently Asked Questions: all K–12 students eligible from 2026–27, existing homeschool students from 2 March 2026, the expected amount, the application windows, the Hope notice of intent and assessment — checked 2026-10-09