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West Virginia homeschool law

Notice, days or hours, subjects, testing and records, in plain words, with the source for each.

This is general information, not legal advice; check your state's own page. Laws change, and West Virginia's own statute and education department are the final word. The links below go straight to them.

Checked on against the sources linked on this page.

What to file in West Virginia

File
A notice of intent, once, with each child's name, address and age and your assurance of instruction and yearly assessment. §
To
County superintendent or county board. §
By
When you start; for a child in public school, on or before the day home instruction begins. §
Keep
Copies of each year's academic assessment, for three years. §
Test
A yearly assessment, four ways allowed; results to the county superintendent for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 by June 30. §
Starting this year
  • When you start (for a child in public school: on or before the first day of home instruction): Give the county superintendent or county board a notice of intent, with evidence of your high school diploma or equivalent.
  • By June 30 (results for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11): Get an academic assessment each year; send the results for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 to the county superintendent.
Already homeschooling
  • By June 30 (results for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11): Get an academic assessment each year; send the results for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 to the county superintendent.
Leaving a school mid-year

The notice of intent is due on or before the date home instruction begins when the child is in a public school. Notify the county superintendent when home instruction ends for a child of compulsory age.

Open your attendance recordWrite the letterStart the Tap Clock, if you want to

What West Virginia's law asks you to keep, as tools: Evaluation packet. The same rows for every state: what to file, by state.

Checked . § = source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature). Information, not legal advice.

Quick answers

Notice
One-time noticeWhen you start home instruction, give the county superintendent or county board a notice of intent with the name, address and age of each child of compulsory age and your assurance of instruction in reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies and yearly assessment. The WV Department of Education calls it a one-time notice. If your child is in public school, give it on or before the day home instruction starts. Tell the county superintendent when home instruction ends. If you move to a new county, notify the old county superintendent and send a new notice to the new one. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature), WV Department of Education: Homeschool State Code
Days or hours
No number givenOn the notice-of-intent route, the law names no number of days or hours, and the WV Department of Education says families do not have a set instructional year. Only the other home route, where the county board approves the home instruction, says it must run for a time equal to the instructional term, which the school calendar law sets at at least 900 instructional hours. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: WV Department of Education: Homeschool State Code, W.Va. Code 18-5-45, school calendar (WV Legislature)
Subjects
The notice of intent must give assurance that the child will receive instruction in reading, language, mathematics, science and social studies. The Department of Education says parents may choose any curriculum. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature)
Testing or evaluation
A test or an evaluationEvery year get an academic assessment of the child for the previous school year, in one of four ways: a nationally normed standardized achievement test (acceptable progress is the fourth stanine or better, or improvement), the state public school test taken at a public school in your county, a portfolio of work reviewed by a certified teacher who writes a narrative, or an alternative assessment agreed with the county superintendent. Send the results to the county superintendent for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 by June 30 of the year of the assessment. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature)
Records
A parent or legal guardian keeps copies of each student's Academic Assessment for three years. If the assessment does not show acceptable progress, start a remedial program, and after a second year without acceptable progress, send the county superintendent more evidence that appropriate instruction is being given. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature)
Who must attend school
Compulsory attendance begins with the school year in which a child's sixth birthday falls before July 1 (or when the child enrolls in a publicly funded kindergarten) and continues to the 17th birthday, or longer for as long as the student stays enrolled in a school system (W.Va. Code 18-8-1a). Source: W.Va. Code 18-8-1a, commencement and termination of compulsory attendance (WV Legislature)
Education savings accounts and vouchers
A program exists, and taking the money changes your homeschool statusStarting with the 2026-27 school year, all West Virginia K-12 students eligible for public school can get the Hope Scholarship, including existing homeschool students. Taking it changes the legal route: the child is exempt from compulsory attendance as a Hope Scholarship recipient under 18-8-1(m) by filing a Hope notice of intent, not as a traditional homeschool student. A family moving from traditional homeschool sends a Notice of Termination to the county board; the Hope notice form can serve as that dual notice. Hope Scholarship Program. What taking the money changes, in full. Source: Hope Scholarship Program: FAQ (Office of the State Treasurer), W.Va. Code 18-8-1, compulsory school attendance exemptions (WV Legislature), Hope Scholarship Program (West Virginia State Treasurer), W.Va. Code 18-31-7, Hope Scholarship qualifying expenses (WV Legislature)

What to do first

  1. Read West Virginia's own pages, linked under each row below, so you know what applies to your situation.
  2. Notice: When starting; if the child is in public school, on or before the day home instruction begins To: County superintendent (or county board).
  3. If your child is in school now: The notice of intent is due on or before the date home instruction begins when the child is in a public school. Notify the county superintendent when home instruction ends for a child of compulsory age.
  4. Plan the year around the days or hours and the subjects below.
  5. Start your records on day one: a simple attendance log, a list of books read and a work sample or two for each subject.
  6. Put the testing or evaluation date on your calendar.

Other legal routes in West Virginia

  • County-board-approved home instruction. The other home route in 18-8-1(c)(1): instruction at home or another place the county board approves, for a time equal to the instructional term, by a person the county superintendent and board judge qualified to teach the subjects taught in public elementary schools. Those teaching must give the county board attendance, instruction and progress records when the county superintendent asks. The county board must give written reasons if it denies the request.
  • Private, parochial or other approved school. A child is exempt if taught in a private, parochial or other school approved by the county board for a time equal to the instructional term (18-8-1(b)). A nonpublic school that elects to comply with the nonpublic school law in 18-28-1 also qualifies (18-8-1(k)).
  • Hope Scholarship. A child who is an eligible recipient in the Hope Scholarship Program and gives a Hope Scholarship notice of intent to the county superintendent is exempt from compulsory attendance under 18-8-1(m). See the scholarship note below.

Records to keep

A parent or legal guardian keeps copies of each student's Academic Assessment for three years. If the assessment does not show acceptable progress, start a remedial program, and after a second year without acceptable progress, send the county superintendent more evidence that appropriate instruction is being given. Whatever the law asks, many families also keep a simple attendance log, a list of books read and a few work samples for each subject; they cost nothing and help if you move or return to school.

Good to know

  • Who may teach: the person providing home instruction submits evidence of a high school diploma or equivalent, or a post-secondary degree or certificate from a regionally accredited institution or an institution authorized in West Virginia. A parent does not need to be a certified teacher.
  • The county superintendent may ask the circuit court, with probable cause, for an order denying home instruction. The order needs clear and convincing evidence that the child will suffer neglect in education or that other compelling reasons exist.
  • Classes and help: the county superintendent offers assistance such as textbooks and teaching materials, subject to availability. With county board approval a home-instructed child may attend any class the county board offers. The Department of Education says this includes career technical education and Virtual School programs.
  • Home school diplomas: the Department of Education says a person who runs a secondary program in a home school may issue a diploma, and no state agency or higher-education institution may reject it solely because of its source (W.Va. Code 18-8-12).
  • Special education: the state board develops guidelines for home schooling special education students, including alternative assessment measures.

Where this comes from

Checked on October 27, 2026. This is general information, not legal advice; check your state's own page, and confirm with your school district or the department before you rely on a date. Something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.