How To Homeschool in California 2020 (Explained)

How To Homeschool in California 2020 (Explained)

Sample. letter to withdraw your child from school
homeschoolstatelaws.com/2019/01/29/official-stu…

File a PSA
cde.ca.gov/sp/ps/affidavit.asp

How to Homeschool in California
-Enroll in Charter School with a home study program
- File a PSA
- Enroll in a PSP

In this video, I talk about the different options you have available to homeschool in California.
You can homeschool by enrolling in a Charter School that provides a home study option. The benefits of enrolling your child in a charter school are that you have access to a teacher who can answer your questions and also that you have access to educational funds. If this is your first homeschooling you might be interested in having that connection to an actual teacher who can guide you to resources and provide guidance if you are unsure about what to teach your kids. The charter school would provide a list of vendors for you to choose the curriculum your child will be using. You would also have access to educational funds since a charter school is part of the public school system. You can use these funds to purchase textbooks, school supplies, and field trips. You would also have to meet monthly with your assigned teacher and show work samples from your child that demonstrates your child's progress and that they are meeting the state's learning standards. At the end of the year, your child would also be required to do state testing if they are 3rd grade or above.

If this is something that you are interested in, then I highly recommend that you apply for a charter school that offers a home study option ASAP because law SB98 has recently been signed by Governor Newsom. SB98 describes how the money will be allocated for the next school year. Public schools will receive the same amount of funding based on the number of students enrolled in the last school year. The way that this affects us new homeschoolers is that there probably won't enough funds to accept any new families into the charter school programs. It is predicted that for the 2020-2021 school year, many families will choose to homeschool but there won't be enough funds to let them enroll in charter schools. It used to be that if more families joined charter schools, then the school would simply hire more faculty to accommodate for that increase, but with SB98 there would be a limit. So, if you are interested in homeschooling through a charter school then apply ASAP, hopefully, there's still space for you, and if not then you'd be put on a waitlist.

If you can't enroll in a charter school, you can still homeschool by filing a PSA. Also, maybe you're not interested in checking in with someone or being monitored and you simply want to homeschool on your own then filing a PSA is right for you. PSA stands for Private School Affidavit. You would have to go to the California Department of Education website and file a PSA, which is that you are creating your own private school and its location in your home. The application is free. The filing period starts in October, but you don't have to wait until then to start your homeschool, you can start whenever you'd like. You'd also be in complete control of everything regarding your homeschool. You get to choose your own curriculum and design what your homeschool is going to look like. You would also have to keep attendance records, a course of study, and a list of what curriculum you are using. All these records are for you because there won't be anyone to whom you'd be reporting to.

Lastly, you can also enroll your child in a PSP, which stands for Private Satellite Program. These are private schools that offer this program and you can homeschool your child and the school would be responsible for all the recordkeeping. Since a PSP is part of a private school you would have to pay the fees that go with the program. Also, some of these private schools might offer in-person instruction for a day or two a week.

These are the 3 most common ways to homeschool in California. You have to decide what option best works for your own family.

If your child has been previously enrolled in school, then first you'd have to send a letter of withdrawal to your school district or school principal so your child isn't marked truant when the next school year begins. If you have any questions or need more clarification, ask me in the comment section. I'm a mom new to homeschooling too and I want all of us to have a successful start in homeschool. Thanks for watching and let's homeschool together!