Romeschool

Massachusetts homeschool requirements

To homeschool in Massachusetts, submit an education plan to your local school committee for approval before starting, and renew annually. Assessment is locally negotiated (test or portfolio). One of the stricter states, governed by the Charles decision.

Last reviewed June 5, 2026 · corrected September 19, 2026 · Sources below

High regulation Notice required Instruction-time rule Testing or evaluation
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Massachusetts homeschool requirements at a glance

Notice
RequiredWhere it goes: Local school committee or superintendent. When: Before starting; annual renewal.
Required subjects
Spelling, Reading, Writing, Grammar, Mathematics, Geography, U.S. History, U.S. Constitution, Civics/Government, Drawing, Music, Health, Physical Education, Good behavior
Instruction time
No fixed statutory numberTypically 180 days / 900 (elementary) or 990 (secondary) hours, mirroring public-school minimums and included as a benchmark in the approved plan — these are not a statutory floor.
Testing or evaluation
Yes — annualNo statewide grade-pegged test; the method and grade-specific expectations are locally negotiated under the Charles framework.
Records
Yes — plan, progress reports
Parent qualifications
Not required
Compulsory attendance ages
6–16
Ways to homeschool
Approved education plan (local school committee)
Law
M.G.L. c. 76 § 1; Care and Protection of Charles (1987)
Official source
mass.gov ↗

Do I have to notify anyone to homeschool in Massachusetts?

Yes. Massachusetts requires homeschooling families to file a notice. Where it goes: Local school committee or superintendent. How: Written education plan submitted for approval before instruction begins. When: Before starting; annual renewal. Massachusetts requires approval (not mere notice). Under the Charles decision (1987) committees may require comparable subjects, competent teaching, and an assessment method, but cannot impose unreasonable conditions.

What subjects does Massachusetts require homeschoolers to teach?

Massachusetts requires instruction in Spelling, Reading, Writing, Grammar, Mathematics, Geography, U.S. History, U.S. Constitution, Civics/Government, Drawing, Music, Health, Physical Education, and Good behavior. Massachusetts has no separate homeschool subject list. In Care and Protection of Charles (1987) the Supreme Judicial Court measured home education plans against the subjects public schools must teach under M.G.L. c. 71, §§ 1-3: orthography, reading, writing, the English language and grammar, geography, arithmetic, drawing, music, the history and constitution of the United States, the duties of citizenship, health education, physical education and good behavior, with § 2 adding civics, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Massachusetts constitution and local history and government. Science is not on that list, so it is not a statewide requirement — but § 1 also lets a school committee require other subjects it considers expedient, and your plan must equal the public schools in thoroughness and efficiency, and in the progress made therein (c. 76, § 1), so expect your district to look for science and grade-level math. Ask for the district's written policy before you draft the plan.

How many days or hours of instruction does Massachusetts require?

Massachusetts's rule: Typically 180 days / 900 (elementary) or 990 (secondary) hours, mirroring public-school minimums and included as a benchmark in the approved plan — these are not a statutory floor.

Is standardized testing required to homeschool in Massachusetts?

Yes. Massachusetts requires a test or another accepted form of evaluation. How often: Annual (or as agreed). Accepted options: standardized test, portfolio review by a certified teacher/evaluator, progress report or interview, and other method negotiated with the committee. No statewide grade-pegged test; the method and grade-specific expectations are locally negotiated under the Charles framework.

What records do I need to keep to homeschool in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts requires these records: your approved education plan and the district's approval letter; textbooks, workbooks and lesson plans the district may ask to see; and whatever your approved plan uses to show progress — test results, progress reports or dated work samples. No Massachusetts statute tells a homeschooling family what to keep — M.G.L. c. 76, § 1 says only that the instruction must be approved in advance, and the state's student-record regulations cover public schools, not home schools. What you keep comes from the approval itself: under Care and Protection of Charles the superintendent or school committee must have access to the textbooks, workbooks and other instructional aids the children use and to the parent's lesson plans, and may require periodic standardized testing, with progress reports or dated work samples substituted only if you agree. There is no statewide format, so keep your approved plan and whatever that plan's assessment calls for.

Do parents need a teaching certificate or other qualification to homeschool in Massachusetts?

No. Massachusetts does not set a general qualification for homeschooling parents. No credential requirement (competence is assessed during plan approval; a certificate cannot be required).

What ages does Massachusetts's compulsory attendance law cover?

Massachusetts's compulsory attendance law covers children from age 6 to age 16.

What are the ways to homeschool in Massachusetts?

In Massachusetts, families homeschool under this pathway: approved education plan (local school committee).

Yes. Homeschooling is legal in Massachusetts, as it is in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. To homeschool in Massachusetts, submit an education plan to your local school committee for approval before starting, and renew annually. Assessment is locally negotiated (test or portfolio). One of the stricter states, governed by the Charles decision.

How to get started in Massachusetts

1
Get your education plan approved before you begin
Submit a written home education plan to your local superintendent or school committee and wait for approval before instruction starts — Massachusetts requires approval, not just notice. Resubmit each year. The district may ask about the subjects you'll teach, your ability to teach them, your planned days and hours, and how you'll assess progress, but it cannot impose unreasonable conditions or require a teaching certificate (Care and Protection of Charles, 1987).
Source (doe.mass.edu) →
2
Teach the subjects the public schools teach
Massachusetts has no separate homeschool subject list. Under Care and Protection of Charles a plan is measured against what the public schools must teach (M.G.L. c. 71, §§ 1–3): spelling, reading, writing, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, drawing, music, the history and constitution of the United States, the duties of citizenship, health, physical education, and good behavior, with § 2 adding civics, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Massachusetts constitution, and local history and government. Science is not on that list, so it is not a statewide requirement — but a school committee may add subjects it considers expedient, and your plan has to equal the public schools in thoroughness and efficiency, so expect your district to look for science and grade-level math. Ask for its written policy before you draft the plan.
Official resource (mass.gov) →
3
Plan about 180 days and 900 or 990 hours
Plans typically follow the public-school benchmark: about 180 days, with 900 hours a year at the elementary level or 990 hours at the secondary level. These are not a minimum set by state law for homeschoolers — what you commit to is the plan your district approves, so keep a log of the days and hours it lists.
4
Assess progress the way your plan says
Your approved plan sets the method, usually once a year: a standardized test, a portfolio review by a certified teacher or evaluator, a progress report or interview, or another method you and the committee settle on. Under Charles the district may require periodic standardized testing, and a progress report or dated work samples take its place only if you agree to that substitution. There is no statewide test and no grade-by-grade testing schedule.
5
Keep your plan, your materials, and your results
No Massachusetts statute tells a homeschooling family what to keep — what you keep comes from the approval itself. Hold on to your approved plan and the district's approval letter; the textbooks, workbooks and lesson plans the superintendent or school committee may ask to see; and whatever your plan uses to show progress, whether that is test results, progress reports or dated work samples. There is no statewide format.
What Romeschool tracks for you: Hour tracking, portfolio documentation, annual plan approval reminders.

Sources for Massachusetts

Official source (mass.gov) ↗HSLDA's Massachusetts summary ↗
Statute: M.G.L. c. 76 § 1; Care and Protection of Charles (1987)
Last reviewed: June 5, 2026
Corrected: September 19, 2026, after re-reading the official source for what changed

Every requirement above comes from our review of Massachusetts’s rules, checked against these sources on June 5, 2026 and corrected on September 19, 2026 after re-reading the official source for what changed. Homeschool law changes, and a state can amend its rules between our reviews — read the official source before you file anything or rely on a date here. How we review state requirements.

Nearby states

States that share a border with Massachusetts:

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