Getting started

This is for informational purposes about home educating under NH RSA193-A. If you need specific legal advice, please contact an attorney such as the Home School Legal Defense Association. If you are accepting EFA funds through the NH Children's Scholarship Fund, you are educating your children under NH RSA 194-F and can find information about complying with that law through the Children's Scholarship Fund.  Each state in the U.S. has its own homeschool laws.  If you reside outside of New Hampshire, find out what your state's homeschool law is here:   https://hslda.org/legal .  If you live in New Hampshire, please read on. Also, see information from the NH Department of Education here.

A child in NH is required to attend school (compulsory attendance) if they have reached the age of 6 years old by September 30th and to continue to attend until they turn 18 years old.  Home education is an alternative to public or private school that can be used to meet compulsory attendance requirements.  “Home educated student” means a student receiving an education provided, coordinated, or directed by a parent for his or her own child under NH RSA 193-A.  A parent has the right to establish a home education program for his or her own child, regardless of the child's ability, disability, developmental status, or educational needs.  Dates, hours of instruction, and academic term are not required to coincide with the public school district calendar. Below are details about how to legally set up your homeschool in NH.  There are other pages about methods and curriculum choices.  New Hampshire law does not require specific  curriculum choices. Some parents choose to use curriculum providers for their many benefits.

To set up a child's home education program:

• If a child is leaving public school or plans to participate in a public school program pursuant to NH RSA 193:1-c Equal Access Law, a parent notifies their local resident district superintendent that the child is home educated under NH RSA 193-A.  The "resident district" is the public school district in which the child resides.  A public school program may be a class or an activity such as sports or band.  The notification sent by the parent must include the name(s) of the student(s) being home educated, their address, and date(s) of birth and be signed by the parent.  The parent may (but is not required to) choose to send the notification via certified mail with return receipt for their records.  The resident district superintendent should send the parent an acknowledgement of this notification within 14 days of receiving it.  

• If a child has never been in public school in New Hampshire and the child is not accessing public school programs, a parent is no longer required by NH law to send notification of home education when home educating their child.  A parent may choose to create an "optional declaration of home education" which is a  written statement that the student is home educated and meets the New Hampshire compulsory attendance requirements, signed by a parent which identifies a home educated student by name, date of birth, and current address. This document is not required to be sent in to anyone, but may be maintained by the parent.  If the parent wishes to show documentation of home education for purposes such as student discounts or other reasons, this written declaration may be useful. 

• Ending a home education program:  A home education program is terminated when a home educated student is enrolled full time in a public school, a public charter school, a nonpublic school, or the education freedom account (EFA) program established in RSA 194-F, or when a parent submits an optional certificate of completion to the NH Commissioner of Education.   If a student who has been accessing public school programs pursuant to RSA 193:1-C Equal Access Law is enrolled in the EFA program, a parent shall notify the resident  district that the student is now participating in the EFA program. 

              Optional Certificate of Completion.  A parent may (but is not required to) certify the completion of a home education program.

I.  A certificate of completion may include the following information:  

(a)  Name and date of birth of the child;

(b)  Names of the parents;

(c)  Date of completion of the home education program; and

(d)  Signature of the parent.

II.  If a parent submits the certificate of completion to the commissioner of the department of education, within 30 days of receipt the commissioner shall issue a certificate of completion which shall include the home education student has completed a home education program in the state of New Hampshire pursuant to RSA 193-A.

• Portfolio/Evaluation:  A parent may choose (but is not required by NH law) to keep a portfolio of student work for each child being homeschooled.  The portfolio may include the titles of books read and samples of work done by the student of writings, worksheets, workbooks, or creative materials used or developed by the child.  These could include materials dated over a period of time which would demonstrate that the child has made educational progress commensurate with the child's age and ability.   The parent may keep this portfolio for their own records or if they choose to obtain a portfolio review from a teacher if they wish to consult with someone regarding their child's learning.   If a parent wishes (but is not required by NH law) to have their child take a standardized test, standardized testing materials can be obtained from the various home study programs for a fee.  No school enrollment is required to order standardized tests from Seton Testing Services.  Spectrum Test Practice Workbooks can be useful for practice for standardized test taking.

For practical help with homeschooling, contact the experienced parents in our support group. 

NH home education laws and rules:   

https://www.education.nh.gov/education-pathways/home-education/home-education-rules-and-regulations 

For specific legal questions: 

Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA).  Lawyers are available who specialize in homeschool law.  HSLDA charges annual membership dues.   https://hslda.org/

Catholic private schools in New Hampshire who may provide classes or activities to homeschool students, sometimes for a fee:

Holy Family Academy

 https://holyfamilyacademy.org/ 

281 Cartier Street

Manchester, NH  03102

Phone:  603-644-7247
Fax:      603-644-1004 

 office@holyfamilyacademy.org 

Mount Royal Academy

 https://mountroyalacademy.com/ 

PO Box 362 (mailing address)

 26 Seven Hearths Lane
Sunapee, NH 03782 

 Phone:  (603) 763-9010

Fax:   (603) 763-5390
Headmaster: Derek Tremblay