California umbrella and cover schools for homeschoolers
What the route is, what it changes about filing, and what to ask before you join. We name no schools and recommend none.
Private school (including a home school). Education Code 48222 exempts children taught in a private full-time day school by persons capable of teaching. The Department of Education says this can be a parent teaching their own child at home if it meets the criteria for other private schools, and the school files the affidavit.
Checked October 27, 2026 against California's statute and education department. Information, not legal advice: they are the final word.
What it changes about filing
Homeschooling on your own in California: California has no separate homeschool law. Most home-teaching families are exempt by running a private school at home, and a private school files a Private School Affidavit each year with the state Department of Education between October 1 and October 15. The state's filing system is open from August 1 to June 30 for new schools and home schools. A credentialed private tutor is a different route and has no affidavit in the statute.
Through the route above: the record's words for it are in the box at the top. Where they do not say who files what, ask the school before you join; the rule can differ from one school to the next.
- The Department of Education says it has no authority to regulate or monitor private schools, and that no state agency licenses them.
In the law's words
“EC Section 33190 requires all private schools to file an Affidavit or statement each year between October 1 and October 15, however, the PSA filing system is open throughout the school year beginning August 1 and ending June 30 to accommodate new schools and home schools.”
“A full-time private school may include a parent instructing his or her own child at home if the home school meets the criteria applied to other private schools. All private schools must file the Private School Affidavit annually as required by EC Section 33190.”
What it costs
Fees vary; ask. We list none: they differ by school and change from year to year.
Ten questions to ask before you join
- What do you file for us, with whom and by when, and what do we still file ourselves?
- What must we send you (attendance, grades, work samples), and how often?
- Do you require a test or an evaluation, and who gives it?
- Who chooses the curriculum? Do you require or approve any?
- What does a year cost, and what costs extra (testing, transcripts, a diploma)?
- Do you issue report cards, transcripts and a diploma, and will you send records after we leave?
- What happens to our records if you close?
- What do you ask a family to sign when it enrolls?
- How do we leave, and what do you tell the district when we do?
- Does enrolling change our access to sports, dual enrollment or state scholarship money here?
Keep your own records anyway
If the school closes or you leave, your own copies are what you have. The free Record Book keeps attendance, hours, the reading log, grades and work samples on your device, and exports every list.