Registering and Rules for Home School
Registering for Home School
Please remove your pop up blocker prior to submitting the Declaration of Intent. It is very important to save and print copies of your Declaration of Intent form immediately after you submit it because you will not be able to retrieve it from the website at a later date.
CLICK HERE to Submit an Online Declaration of Intent Form
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Dexter Mosely Act
Information regarding the new law that authorizes home study students in grades six through 12 to participate in extracurricular and interscholastic activities in the student's resident public school system.
Georgia Home School Information
Georgia’s home study
law (O.C.G.A. §
20-2-690) requires homeschool
parents/guardians to provide a basic academic educational program which includes
the five content areas below. You may also teach other content areas.
Mathematics,
English Language Arts,
Science,
Social Studies, and
Reading
After you decide to begin a home study program,
the most difficult decision is deciding which curriculum to use. The Georgia
Department of Education does not endorse, promote or provide a curriculum for
your home study program. Each parent/guardian must decide which curriculum is
best for their child and then purchase the curriculum on their own. You may
search the Internet for “homeschool curriculum reviews” and read what other
people are saying about each curriculum so you can make an informed decision. It is advisable to choose
your home study curriculum prior to registering your child/children by
submitting the "Declaration of Intent" online. You must submit a declaration of Intent by September 1st or within 30 days after
a home study program is established. You may employ a tutor. Parents must have a
high school diploma or GED.
Please note that the Georgia Cyber Academy and the Georgia Connections Academy are online public charter schools and are not
affiliated with the home study program. If you are interested in these schools
you must contact them directly.
The Georgia Department of Education has a very limited role related to home school. The Georgia Department of Education is only responsible for maintaining the Declaration of Intent records.
Completing the Online Submittal Form
Declaration of Intent forms must be submitted by the parent or guardian only. The GaDOE will not accept third party DOI submissions. The DOI should be
submitted electronically If possible. However, you may also submit the DOE by mail,
email or fax. Please note when mailing, emailing, or faxing, it may take
several weeks to input your DOI into our database. After the Declaration of Intent form is submitted electronically you will be prompted to save and print a copy of the form for your records. However, you will not receive any confirmation from the GaDOE that your Declaration of Intent form was received.
CLICK HERE to Submit an Online Declaration of Intent Form
Fields with a red asterisk (*) are required fields.
"Signature" and "Date Submitted" is not required on the online electronic submittal form.
"The school year for this home school study program"- The law requires 180 instructional days. Please use the actual date you begin teaching your child/children at home as the beginning date and count forward to the 180 instructional days limit. If your child/children began the school year in a public or private school, that time can be included as part of the 180 instructional days requirement. You can teach more than 180 days if you desire.
"Submit Your Declaration of Intent" button located at the bottom of form. After you click the submit button, you will receive a screen that shows a 36 unique character parent signature line as well as the date of submittal.
Print and save a copy of this form for your records. This is the only document you are required to submit to the Georgia Department of Education. The Declaration of Intent form represents confirmation that your child/children are officially registered in Georgia's home study program. Your Declaration of Intent form with the digital signature on the parent/guardian signature line is the official document of the Georgia Home Study Program. This document should be used to obtain driver's license/permits, work permits, post-secondary admission, military enlistment, and for all other entities that require proof of educational enrollment for homeschool students.
Once the child/children are officially registered as a home school student, you as the parent have similar rights and responsibilities of the Local Education Authority (District office). The parent is considered the superintendent, principal, teacher, and you can create and sign any document that relates to the educational needs of your child/children.
If you wish to return your child to public school, you may do so at any time. You can create a withdrawal form and give it to the local school. The local school must validate each content area your child/children took while being enrolled in a home study program. This validation process is unique to each district. If you have questions related to this process, please contact your local school district.
Testing
Students in home
study programs shall be subject to an appropriate nationally standardized
testing program administered in consultation with a person trained in the
administration and interpretation of norm referenced tests. The student must be
evaluated at least every three years beginning at the end of the third grade. Records of such tests shall be retained by the parent/guardian. Please note that the Georgia Milestones,
End-of-Grade and End-of-Courses Assessments are not nationally standardized
tests. You
can search “nationally standardized tests” on the Internet and contact the
testing vendor directly or you can contact a home school association in your
area to obtain information on test times and test locations.
Attendance Forms
You are no longer required to submit attendance forms to the Georgia Department of Education.
Driving Permit or License
To obtain a driving permit or license, a copy of the electronically submitted Declaration of Intent to the GaDOE website with a 36 unique character digital parent signature is all that is needed.
Work Permits
Work permit forms required by the Department of Labor in accordance with the law O.C.G.A. § 39-2-11 provides in part: § 39-2-11. Employment certificates -- Required; requirements for issuance. GaDOE is ONLY responsible for issuing the Declaration of Intent (DOI) for the work permits. On receipt of your DOI, please access the Georgia Department of Labor for instruction on obtaining the Home Study Program Employment Certificate.
Pursuant to Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 20-2-690), the following are requirements for home study programs:
- Parents or guardians who wish to teach their children at home in a home study program must annually submit to the Georgia Department of Education a Declaration of Intent to Utilize a Home Study Program by September 1 or within 30 days after a program is established. The Georgia Department of Education will provide for electronic submittal of the Declaration of Intent. Please see the information below on how to submit the Declaration of Intent and the attendance reports.
- The declaration must include the names and ages of the students, the address where the program is located, and the dates of the school year.
- Parents or guardians may teach only their own children in the home study program provided the teaching parent or guardian possesses at least a high school diploma or a general equivalency diploma (GED). Parents or guardians may also employ a tutor who holds at least a high school diploma or a GED to teach such children.
- The home study program must include, but is not limited to, instruction in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science.
- The school year must include the equivalent of 180 days of at least 4-1/2 hours of instruction per day unless the child is physically unable to comply with this requirement.
- As of July 1, 2013, you are no longer required to submit attendance to the Georgia Department of Education. For driving permits or licenses all that is needed is the Declaration of Intent with a 36 character parent signature. This document replaces the Certificate of Attendance and should be submitted with all other Driver Service's required documents to obtain a driving permit or license.
- Students in home study programs shall be subject to an appropriate nationally standardized testing program administered in consultation with a person trained in the administration and interpretation of norm referenced tests. The student must be evaluated at least every three years beginning at the end of the third grade. Records of such tests shall be retained.
- The instructor shall write an annual progress assessment report in each required subject area for each student. These reports shall be retained for at least three years.
How to Submit the Declaration of Intent form
Online Submittal
Parents/guardians are encouraged to submit the Declaration of Intent and attendance reports online using the Georgia Department of Education’s online web application.
Click here to Submit an Online Declaration of Intent Form.
Paper Form Submittal
Parents/guardians will find it much more efficient to submit their homeschool documentation electronically using the Georgia Department of Education’s online web application. However, parents/guardians that do not have access to a computer may submit hard copies of their homeschool documentation by mail or fax using the contact information at the top of this page.
Withdrawing from Home School to Obtain a GED
If you are wishing to withdraw from home school to obtain your GED, download and print the two documents below.
How to Request a Certificate of Attendance
For driving permits or licenses all that is needed is the Declaration of Intent with a 36 character parent signature. To request a Declaration of Intent for homeschool students, please email homeschool@doe.k12.ga.us.
Forms and References
Laws impacting homeschool in Georgia (Georgia Codes 20-2-690 and 20-2-690.1) can be found on the Georgia General Assembly's website. Select "Georgia Code" on the left of the homepage, and enter the code numbers to search for the laws.
Home School Students and Governor's Honors
Home school parents and students interested in the Governor's Honors Program (GHP) should contact the Governor's Office of Student Achievement, the agency tasked with the administration of this program.
Learn More
