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Home Education Requirements

Getting Started

File State of Intent to Home Educate

By September 10 of each school year, the guardian must send a completed Intent to Home Education Form to:

Community High School
311 1st Avenue East
West Fargo, ND 58078

Or complete the form online located at Home Education / Overview (k12.nd.us) . One link is for first year home school parents and the other is for returners.

Home education may begin five days after the Statement of Intent has been filed. The Statement of Intent must be filed every year by September 10 for students aged 7 – 16.

File Required Records

  • Provide the parent/guardian’s proof of qualification:
    • A copy of GED, high school diploma, Advanced Degree, or transcript. If not available, a home school monitor will be assigned to the student.
  • Provide a copy of a student’s birth certificate
  • Provide a record of immunizations (or letter of objection)

Note: If the homeschool student previously attended WFPS, only verification of the guardian’s education is necessary.

Home Education Requirements

Hours & Days of Instruction

The child must receive at least four hours of instruction each day, for a minimum of 175 days each year.

Required Courses

Grades 1 – 8

  • English language arts (including reading, composition, creative writing English grammar, and spelling)
  • Mathematics
  • Social studies (including United States history, United States Constitution, geography, government, and North Dakota studies (grades 4 & 8) with an emphasis on the state’s geography, history, and agriculture)
  • Science (including agriculture)
  • Physical education
  • Health (including physiology, hygiene, disease control, and the nature and effects of alcohol, tobacco, and narcotics)

Grades 9 – 12

  • English language arts (4 credits)
  • Mathematics (2 credits)
  • Science (2 credits)
  • Social studies (4 credits; including 1 credit in world history, 1 credit in U.S. history, 1 credit in world geography, and ½ credit in U.S. government)
  • Health (½ credit)
  • Physical education (1 ½ credits)
  • Elective courses (8 credits)

Each high school credit must consist of at least 120 hours of instruction per school year. Credits for the following courses must consist of at least 150 hours of instruction per school year: natural sciences, agriculture, business and office technology, marketing, diversified occupations, trade and industrial education, technology education, and health careers.
 

Maintain Student Records

Guardians must maintain an annual record of:

  • Courses taken by the homeschooled child
  • The child’s academic course grades or a record of progress
  • Standardized achievement test results
  • Multiple samples of child’s work throughout course(s)

Note: If the child transfers back to a public school district, the guardian will need to furnish these records to the school district superintendent or administrator.

Standardized Testing

While in grades four, six, eight, and ten, each child receiving home education shall take:

  • A standardized achievement test used by the school district in which the child resides OR a nationally normed standardized achievement test if requested by the child’s parent.
  • The child shall take the test in the child’s learning environment or, if requested by the child’s guardian, in a public school. An individual licensed to teach by the Education Standards and Practices Board, or approved to teach by the Education Standards and Practices Board, shall administer the test.
  • If a qualified individual who is selected by the guardian administers the test, the cost of administering the test is the responsibility of the child’s guardian.
  • If requested by the guardian, the WFPS Homeschool Coordinator can provide information on sources of standard achievement tests. Sources of standardized tests and curriculum materials can also be found online. Contact the WFPS Homeschool Coordinator if you want the school district to provide a teacher to administer the test.
  • If the guardian chooses not to test during the fall NDSA testing window, he/she is responsible for the cost of the test, as well as forwarding the test score to the WFPS Homeschool Coordinator.

The requirements of NDCC 15.1-23-09 Subsection 1 does not apply if the guardian notifies the school district in which the child resides that he/she has a philosophical, moral, or religious objection to the use of standardized achievement tests, and the guardian:

  • Is licensed to teach by the Education Standards and Practices Board, or approved to teach by the Education Standards and Practices Board
  • Holds a baccalaureate degree, or has met or exceeded the cutoff score of a national teacher examination given in North Dakota or in any other state if North Dakota does not offer such an examination.

The guardian shall file the notification and necessary documentation required by this subsection with the school district at the same time that the guardian file the statement of intent to supervise home education as required by Section 15.1-23-02.

If the child’s basic composite score on a standardized achievement test is less than the 30th percentile nationally, a multidisciplinary assessment team will assess the child for a potential learning problem.

ACT Information

The state of North Dakota provides all juniors the opportunity to take the American College Testing (ACT) exam each spring. This is done at no cost to the student. If a home education junior student is interested in taking the ACT in the spring, please contact your student's school counselor in your resident school (West Fargo High School, West Fargo Sheyenne High School, and West Fargo Horace High School). The deadline to apply for this testing day is November 1. For more information about the ACT, go to www.ACT.org