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JCHAI's desire is to help you homeschool your kids. Here are some things that should help answer most people's basic questions about homeschooling in Florida, and specifically in Jefferson County. Every summer JCHAI hosts a homeschool seminar to get into all the details of how to homeschool and encourage you to keep going! Follow us on Facebook to hear about our upcoming seminar in June!
Withdrawing From Public School
To withdraw your already enrolled child, you must notify their current school with a "Letter of Withdrawl". If you plan to finish the year, do it before the next year begins, but if withdrawing in the middle of the year, do it then. Send "Certified Mail with Return Receipt Requested".
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Sample "Letter of Withdrawl" (may be printed, filled out and mailed.
Moving or Stopping Homeschool
If you move to another school district, are terminating homeschooling one or all of your children, or graduating a student, you must notify your school district with a "Notice of Termination" within 30 days.
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When moving, please repeat the steps for Starting to Homeschool with your new school district. See here for Florida School Districts.
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Sample "Notice of Termination"
Annual Evaluation
Annual evaluation may be satisfied by an evaluation from a:
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FL licensed teacher
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standardized test
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assessment test by your school district
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FL licensed psychologist or school psychologist
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mutually agreed upon evaluation with the district
Sample Evaluation Letter from HSLDA, however, your evaluator will have their own version they provide to you.
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Click HERE for local evaluators.
How to Graduate Your Child
In Florida, children must remain in school until they graduate or age 16. There are no specific requirements for high school graduation. You will tailor their education based on the student's goals after graduation, whether they plan to just work, attend a community college, or apply to a university.
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To see public school requirements, click here and here.
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You will want to make a transcript for your high school student, regardless of their plans, time flies and it will be harder to do later. Here is a sample transcript. Here is one listed by subject, and here is a guide for making one.
How to Legally Homeschool
For children who will be age 6 by February 1st of any year, or a child that has been withdrawn from school, you must submit a "Letter of Intent to Homeschool" to the school district you reside in. Only school-aged children need to be included. Send a new letter when you start homeschooling a new child, but only with they new child's information. See the sample below for an example to copy, as well as instructions for delivery.
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Sample "Letter of Intent"
Maintaining a Portfolio
Students who are homeschooling under a letter of intent are required to maintain a portfolio. By law, the portfolio must contain: work samples that demonstrate progress, a log of educational activities made contemporaneously with instruction, and some titles of reading material. This needs to be retained for two years. There is no need to keep ALL of the work a child does, a sampling from each subject will suffice. The activity log could be as simple as the table of contents for a workbook that's been checked off and dated, a regularly updated calendar that lists activities/lessons, a list of lessons and scores for an on-line program, etc. Regarding titles of reading material, this does not need to be exhaustive. Titles of curriculum, magazines, websites, books, audio books, and articles are all applicable.
Florida Homeschool Laws
For a good summary of the laws regarding homeschooling in Florida in more detail, please visit the HSLDA website. They walk you through the steps as well. Additional information includes:
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Public School access for homeschoolers
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Compulsory school age in FL
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Importance of recordkeeping
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Child labor and work permit laws
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Jury Duty laws
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Students with Disabilities
More resources...
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This section is coming soon! Stay tuned...