Massachusetts Homeschool Laws

Homeschooling within a recognized and/or approved school. This is the only homeschooling option for families in Massachusetts. See below for the steps you need to take when homeschooling your child.

Homeschooling within a recognized and/or approved school. Here are the requirements for homeschooling your child in Massachusetts.

1. Submit an annual notice of intent to the school district at the beginning of the school year, along with a list of materials you intend to use, a brief summary of the curriculum and/or subjects to be taught, and a description of your (or others’) qualifications for teaching. According to state law and court opinions, there are four areas a superintendent or school committee may consider when reviewing a notice of intent:
   • The proposed curriculum and number of hours of instruction
   • The competency of the parents (Parents do not need college or advanced degrees.)
   • Textbooks, workbooks, and other instructional aides to be used
   • The method of assessment used (to ensure educational progress and attainment of minimum standards); the superintendent or school committee can require standardized testing or may substitute, with the approval of the parents, another form of assessment.
2. Teach the required subjects, which include spelling, reading, writing, English language and grammar, geography, arithmetic, drawing, music, United States history and Constitution, duties of citizenship, health (including CPR), physical education, and good behavior.
   • While there are no specific requirements in Massachusetts law for how often each of the subjects must be taught or at what grade levels, HSLDA’s general recommendation is that each of the required subjects be taught at an age-appropriate level every year during the elementary and middle school years, and at least once at the high school level.
3. Keep good records even though there is no legal requirement to do so.
4. Test or evaluate your child as required. A superintendent or school committee may require periodic standardized tests or “other means of evaluating the progress of the children [that] may be substituted for the formal testing process, such as periodic progress reports or dated work samples.” Testing or evaluation must be mutually agreed upon by the parents and the superintendent or school committee.

Here you’ll find websites for any questions you may have about education in the state of Massachusetts.

• Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: https://www.doe.mass.edu/
• Massachusetts Department of Higher Education: https://www.mass.edu/home.asp
• Massachusetts State Government – Elementary and Secondary Education: https://www.mass.gov/orgs/department-of-elementary-and-secondary-education
• U.S. Department of Education – Massachusetts: https://www.ed.gov/category/location/massachusetts
• List of Massachusetts school districts: https://ballotpedia.org/List_of_school_districts_in_Massachusetts

Whether you already homeschool in Massachusetts or are looking to do so, these resources are quite useful if you’re searching for support, co-ops, or answers to questions about homeschooling in your state.

• Attleboro Area Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1629536273993348/?ref=br_rs
• Berkshire Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/303551986495512/?ref=br_rs
• Bridgeways State laws page-Village Homeschoolers (Milford): https://www.facebook.com/groups/villagehomschoolers/?ref=br_rs
• Catholic Homeschoolers in Massachusetts East (CHIME): https://chimehomeschool.com/
• Central MA Homeschoolers and Families: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheHomeschoolingTribe/?ref=br_rs
• MA Home Learning Support Groups & Co-ops: https://www.mhla.org/networking-support/support-groups
• Mass Audubon Homeschool Programs: https://www.massaudubon.org/learn/for-group-leaders/homeschool-programs
• Middle of Nowhere MA Homeschool Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1409376529370748/?ref=br_rs
• Plymouth, MA Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PlymouthMAHomeschoolers/?ref=br_rs
• South of Boston Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2064728677080653/?ref=br_rs
• South Shore Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1504993126465500/
• Village Homeschoolers (Milford): https://www.facebook.com/groups/villagehomschoolers/?ref=br_rs
• Western Mass Homeschoolers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/westernmasshomeschoolers/?ref=br_rs

One of the many benefits of homeschooling is the flexibility to explore! Here are some ideas for amazing–and educational–field trips around the great state of Massachusetts!

• Adams National Historical Park: Quincy, MA
• Amelia Park Children’s Museum: Westfield, MA
• Amherst College Museum of Natural History: Amherst, MA
• Boston African American National Historic Site: Boston, MA
• Boston Children’s Museum: Boston, MA
• Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center & Wildlife Sanctuary: Worcester, MA
• Buttonwood Park Zoo: New Bedford, MA
• Cape Cod Children’s Museum: Mashpee, MA
• Cape Cod Maritime Museum: Hyannis, MA
• Cape Cod Museum of Natural History: Brewster, MA
• Capron Park Zoo: Attleboro, MA
• Children’s Museum in Easton: North Easton, MA
• Children’s Museum at Holyoke: Holyoke, MA
• Clara Barton Birthplace Museum: North Oxford, MA
• Concord Museum: Concord, MA
• The Discovery Museums: Acton, MA
• Dunn Planetarium: Danvers, MA
• EcoTarium: Worcester, MA
• Emily Dickinson Museum – The Homestead & The Evergreens: Amherst, MA
• Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art: Amherst, MA
• Fogg Art Museum: Cambridge, MA
• Hancock Shaker Village: Pittsfield, MA
• Harvard Museum of Natural History: Cambridge, MA
• Hinchman House Natural History Museum: Nantucket, MA
• Hitchcock Center for the Environment: Amherst, MA
• John F. Kennedy Library & Museum: Boston, MA
• Lizzie Borden Museum: Fall River, MA
• Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House: Concord, MA
• LupaZoo: Ludlow, MA
• Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory & Gardens: South Deering, MA
• Maria Mitchell Association – Natural Science Museum: Nantucket, MA
• Mayflower II: Plymouth, MA
• Metropolitan Waterworks Museum: Boston, MA
• Minute Man National Historical Park: Concord, MA
• Museum of Fine Arts Boston: Boston, MA
• Museum of Science: Boston, MA
• Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame: Springfield, MA
• New England Aquarium: Boston, MA
• Old South Meeting House: Boston, MA
• Paul Revere House: Boston, MA
• Peabody Essex Museum: Salem, MA
• Pilgrim Hall Museum: Plymouth, MA
• Plimoth Plantation: Plymouth, MA
• Plymouth Rock: Plymouth, MA
• Southwick’s Zoo: Mendon, MA
• Springfield Museums & The Dr. Seuss Sculpture Garden: Springfield, MA
• Whydah Pirate Museum: West Yarmouth, MA
• Wilbraham Children’s Museum: Wilbraham, MA
• The Zoo in Forest Park: Springfield, MA
• Zoo New England’s Franklin Park Zoo: Boston, MA
• Zoo New England’s Stone Zoo: Stoneham, MA