NYS Home School and Educational Resources - Newburgh Free Library: Home
New York State Homeschooling- Where to Start
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NYS Department of Education Home Instruction"Parents of, or persons in parental relation to, compulsory school age children have the legal right to instruct their children at home. If a child is being educated at home, the local school district must be assured that the child is receiving instruction in certain required courses/subjects...
Contact your school district to learn about any homeschooling tools and support they may offer.
In New York State, the parents/guardians of children 6-18 can legally homeschool if they submit a Letter of Intent to Homeschool to the school district by July 1st for the start of the following school year ***OR***To start homeschooling mid-year, the parents/guardians have 14 days from the beginning of home instruction to have a submitted Letter of Intent. (See a sample letter here.) The next step is to send the district an Individual Home Instruction Plan (IHIP). From the Homeschool Legal Defense Association: "[Homeschooling parents/guardians] must submit an IHIP by August 15 or within four weeks of the receipt of the IHIP form from the school district (whichever is later). The IHIP form requires you to submit your child’s name, age, and grade level; a list of your syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks, or plan of instruction; dates for submission of quarterly reports; and the name of whoever is giving the instruction." See "How to Comply with New York Homeschooling Laws" - from hslda.org.
The school district does not need to be notified of a child homeschooling preschool or kindergarten if 5 or under, but for six-year-olds the Letter of Intent should be submitted by July 1st of the year the child turns 6, regardless of his/her birthday. (Ex. If a child turns 6 on September 8, 2024, the Letter of Intent is still due July 1, 2024). Again, to start homeschooling mid-year, the parents/guardians have 14 days from the beginning of home instruction to have a submitted Letter of Intent and 4 weeks to submit an IHIP.
Students in grades 1-6 are required to complete 900 hours of instruction in a calendar year (July 1 - June 30). Students in grades 7-12 are required to complete 990 hours in a calendar year. Instruction given at any time of day, any day of the year can be counted, not just instruction that happens during "regular" school hours. Online classes, outside-taught classes (ex. dance lessons for gym), and instruction through hands-on skills (ex. learning to cook) can all be included in the 900 or 990 hours under the relevant subjects.
The school district will review the IHIP and notify parents/guardians if the planned instruction is deemed to cover the required subjects. The district cannot require specific textbooks, etc. as long as the subject areas are deemed covered and the home teachers send in quarterly reports and complete a year-end assessment. There are various methods of end-year assessment accepted by the state.
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Homeschool Academy: LEAHLEAH (Loving Education at Home) provides a good overview of the paperwork needed to homeschool in NewYork State.
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Home School New YorkAnother good resource from LEAH with sample documents.
CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR 2025-2026
Homeschooling methods
- Styles of Homeschooling...with links to further resources for each one. A through overview.
- How to Homeschool: 8 Methods for Your Classroom"This guide provides an overview of various different homeschool methods and helps parents implement their chosen homeschool method in their classrooms."
- The Principle ApproachA homeschooling method not covered in the above lists and also known as an “American Classical Education.” From the website: "The Principle Approach seeks to teach by using the Bible as the textbook and relating and applying Biblical principles to all areas of education." It is drawn "from the methods of education used by our founding fathers."
- RoadschoolingAn introduction to schooling and learning while traveling full time. (Roadschoolers can apply other homeschooling philosophies as they travel, but this lifestyle will likely influence methods used.)
NYSED.gov
Home Instruction
October 4, 2019
- Additional Frequently Asked Questions About School Vaccination Requirements
from the New York State Department of Health
August 16, 2019
- Emergency regulations to conform to recent amendments to the Public Health Law
- Additional Guidance About Vaccination Requirements
July 19, 2019 - Frequently Asked Questions About Vaccination Requirements 
June 18, 2019 - Frequently Asked Questions About Legislation Removing Non-Medical Exemptions from School Vaccination Requirements
Part 100.10 of the Regulations of the New York State Commissioner of Education
Key Laws Relating to Home Instruction
Guidelines on Revised Rules and Regulations Relating to Requirements for Conferral of a College Degree and Home Instruction of Students of Compulsory School Age and Full-Time College Study
Additional Resources for Home Schoolers
Helpful Tips
- The Spiral SystemA article on how to use a simple notebook to effectively and efficently assign work to homeschool students.
- How to Use a Loop ScheduleAn excellent summary of how to design a "loop schedule" for homeschooling. Especially helpful for families needing more flexiblity for covering school subjects.
- How to Fail at HomeschoolingA tougue-in-cheek article that actually is very helpful guide in what-not-to-do.
See also the blog this article was taken from, "FiveJs" about socialization.
Helpful Lists
- Homeschooling Blog ListA curated list of top homeschool blogs (available with a free membership account to Hess Unacademy)
- 100 Online Courses for HomeschoolersAn article on ways to use online courses for learners PreK-3 with many examples.
Organization
- How to Organize Digital Content in Your HomeschoolOutlines some tools and methods for organizing digital resources so they are not lost/forgotten.
Homeschooling with Babies
- 10 Things I've Learned about Homeschooling with BabiesAn article focused on how to homeschool successfully when you've just added a new baby to the family.
Helpful Websites
- Aurora Institute
The Aurora Institute works to advance student-centered, innovative K-12 education systems toward equitable and just outcomes for all. - Coalition for Responsible Home Education
The Coalition for Responsible Home Education empowers homeschooled children by educating the public and advocating for child-centered, evidence-based policy and practices for families and professionals. - HomeschoolFacts.com
Many parents are concerned about where to begin homeschooling. The Home School Facts team hopes that you will use these pages to assist you in bringing clarity to this task. - Homeschooling-Curriculum.org
Best Homeschooling Curriculum By Grade Level - Cathy Duffy Reviews
This website has extensive reviews of homeschool curricula and "extras." For the author's top picks, see her book under the "Books" tab. - Home School Legal Defense Association
From website: "With 80,000 member families, Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) is the nation’s largest, most trusted homeschool advocacy organization. We’re here to advance and protect your freedom to homeschool."
Includes legal advice, teaching tips, and more. - Khan Academy
Created by experts, Khan Academy’s library of trusted, standards-aligned practice and lessons covers math K-12 through early college, grammar, science, history, AP®, SAT®, and more. It’s all free for learners and teachers. - National Home Education Research Institute
Homeschooling – home education or home-based education – has grown from nearly extinct in the United States in the 1970s to just over 2 million school-age students. NHERI focuses on homeschooling research, homeschool facts, homeschool fast facts, and in-depth scholarly articles. - New York State Curriculum and Instruction
The New York State Education Department is responsible for setting student learning expectations (standards) for what all students should know and be able to do as a result of skilled instruction. Each local school district develops curricula based on these established standards. - New York State Department of Education
The New York State Education Department is part of the University of the State of New York (USNY), one of the most complete, interconnected systems of educational services in the United States. The Department oversees the work of more than 700 school districts with 3.2 million students; 7,000 libraries and 900 museums. Our mission is to raise the knowledge, skill, and opportunity of all the people in New York. Our vision is to provide leadership for a system that yields the best educated people in the world. In addition, New York's unique system of professional regulation, recognized as a model for public protection, has grown to encompass nearly 900,000 practitioners and over 30,000 professional practice business entities in more than 50 professions. - New York State Education DepartmentThe New York State Education Department is part of the University of the State of New York (USNY), one of the most complete, interconnected systems of educational services in the United States.
Our mission is to raise the knowledge, skill, and opportunity of all the people in New York. Our vision is to provide leadership for a system that yields the best educated people in the world. - New York State Next Generation Learning StandardsThe Board of Regents adopted the newly revised English Language Arts and Mathematics Learning Standards on September 11, 2017. The new standards have been the result of over two years of collaborative work to ensure New York State has the best learning standards for our students. Over 130 educators and parents worked together to make recommendations and revise the standards, resulting in a new set of revised English Language Arts and Mathematics Learning Standards. Additional information about the timeline for implementation in schools is available from Standards and Assessment Implementation Timeline.
- NYLearns
NYLearns is a dynamic, online curriculum management and standards-based system. Created specifically for the New York State scholastic community by a team of master teachers and PhDs in the field of education, NYLearns offers educators tools and resources - Smithsonian distance LearningWe've produced 52 Smithsonian Science How webcasts over the last six years. They feature Smithsonian experts, are aligned with standards, and cover specific topics in the disciplines of Earth Science, Life Science, Paleontology, and Social Studies. Since March 2020, we have also produced many Smithsonian Science How video webinars; these recordings are also linked from the Video Archives page.
- Smithsonian Teaching ResourcesFeaturing more than 200 options, our collection includes science worksheets, videos, and literacy resources.
- Time4Learning
A subscription-based homeschool curriculum resource, with tools for pre-k through high school. - Comprehensive Guide to Homeschool Organizations & Groups
An extensive list complied by Study.com. This site also contains many articles on practical homeschooling topics.
Free eMagazines
- Wonderings Homeschool Free eMagazine"Wonderings Homeschool eMagazine is a digital activity guide filled with printables created for homeschool moms by homeschool moms." - from the website
- Let's Teach!A quarterly "eZine designed for homeschooling families offering advice, encouragement, amazing discounts and free printables!" -from the website.
Homeschool Organization Tools
- Academic ChecklistA free, downloadable academic checklist from Homeschool How-Tos. Use as-is or use as a template to create your own, adapted to your own family.