Romeschool

Missouri homeschool requirements

Missouri: No state notification. Offer at least 1,000 hours of instruction a year — at least 600 of them in the core subjects, and at least 400 of those 600 at the regular home-school location — and keep a plan book or log of subjects and activities, samples of the child's work, and evaluations of progress, or other written or credible evidence equivalent to all three (RSMo 167.012.2). The statute does not name an hours log among the required records, but the daily log that gives a family a defense if it is ever challenged has to show a course of instruction meeting those hour requirements (RSMo 167.012.4) — which is why most families track hours anyway. Those hour and record rules stop at 16, though instruction must continue until the district's compulsory attendance age. No state testing.

Last reviewed June 5, 2026 · corrected September 23, 2026 · Sources below

Minimal regulation Instruction time set
Another state:

Missouri homeschool requirements at a glance

Notice
Not required
Required subjects
Reading, Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies/History, Science
Instruction time
1,000 hours1,000 hours/year; at least 600 hours in core subjects; at least 400 of those 600 at the regular home location. These hour requirements stop applying once a student turns 16 (RSMo 167.012.3), though you must still provide instruction until the district's compulsory attendance age.
Testing or evaluation
NoThe 'evaluations' in RSMo 167.012 are parent-maintained progress records, not a mandated external test. The one exception is MOScholars: a student on that scholarship is tested in the grades Missouri's statewide assessment covers (RSMo 135.714.2), which is testing no other Missouri homeschooler faces.
Records
Yes — activity log, work samples, evaluations
Parent qualifications
Not required
Compulsory attendance ages
7–17Instruction runs from age 7 to the district's compulsory attendance age. Outside a metropolitan school district that age is reached at 17, or on the student's successful completion of sixteen credits toward high school graduation, whichever comes first; for a home school or FPE school a completed credit is 100 hours or more of instruction in a course (RSMo 167.031.4,.5). Stopping on the credit count is a claim a family has to be able to show — home-school records are reviewable by the local prosecuting attorney (RSMo 167.012.4) — so keep the hour records behind the credits. In a metropolitan school district the statute sets the age at 17 where the school board has adopted a resolution, and lets that board then lower it to 16; it does not say whether the sixteen-credit exit applies there, so ask your district. Before age 7 nothing is required: a five- or six-year-old already enrolled in a public school program comes off the rolls on the parent's written request (RSMo 167.031.1). The 1,000-hour and record-keeping rules separately stop at 16 (RSMo 167.012.3); the duty to provide instruction does not.
Ways to homeschool
Two pathways
Law
RSMo § 167.031; § 167.012
Official source
dese.mo.gov ↗

Do I have to notify anyone to homeschool in Missouri?

No. Missouri does not require homeschooling families to file a notice. No notice to any authority required; the state cannot dictate a statewide curriculum (RSMo 167.031).

What subjects does Missouri require homeschoolers to teach?

Missouri requires instruction in Reading, Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies/History, and Science. At least 600 of the 1,000 hours must be in these five core areas, or in academic courses related to them and consonant with the child's age and ability (RSMo 167.012.2).

How many days or hours of instruction does Missouri require?

Missouri's rule: 1,000 hours/year; at least 600 hours in core subjects; at least 400 of those 600 at the regular home location. These hour requirements stop applying once a student turns 16 (RSMo 167.012.3), though you must still provide instruction until the district's compulsory attendance age.

Is standardized testing required to homeschool in Missouri?

No. Missouri does not require standardized testing for homeschooled students. The 'evaluations' in RSMo 167.012 are parent-maintained progress records, not a mandated external test. The one exception is MOScholars: a student on that scholarship is tested in the grades Missouri's statewide assessment covers (RSMo 135.714.2), which is testing no other Missouri homeschooler faces.

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

Missouri requires these records: plan book/diary/log of subjects and activities, samples of the child's work, and evaluations of academic progress. How long, or where they go: No retention period is set by statute; families commonly keep them two years or more, and longer for high school. Producing a daily log showing the required course of instruction is a defense to a truancy prosecution or an educational-neglect charge (RSMo 167.012.4). RSMo 167.012.2(1) gives two ways to meet the record rule: keep those three records, or keep other written or credible evidence equivalent to all three — a family who has kept different but equivalent evidence has met it. It is an alternative form of evidence, not an exemption: something written still has to exist showing the child is receiving regular instruction. The FPE school rule in RSMo 167.013.2(1) is worded identically, so the same two ways apply on that pathway. Records are never submitted; the 'evaluations' are parent-kept, not an external test. Both the record-keeping and the hour requirements stop applying once a student turns 16 (RSMo 167.012.3) — instruction must still continue until the district's compulsory attendance age. Many families keep logging past 16 anyway: a home-school credit is 100 hours or more of instruction in a course (RSMo 167.031.5), and sixteen credits is one of the two ways compulsory attendance ends.

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

No. Missouri does not set a general qualification for homeschooling parents.

What ages does Missouri's compulsory attendance law cover?

Missouri's compulsory attendance law covers children from age 7 to age 17. Instruction runs from age 7 to the district's compulsory attendance age. Outside a metropolitan school district that age is reached at 17, or on the student's successful completion of sixteen credits toward high school graduation, whichever comes first; for a home school or FPE school a completed credit is 100 hours or more of instruction in a course (RSMo 167.031.4,.5). Stopping on the credit count is a claim a family has to be able to show — home-school records are reviewable by the local prosecuting attorney (RSMo 167.012.4) — so keep the hour records behind the credits. In a metropolitan school district the statute sets the age at 17 where the school board has adopted a resolution, and lets that board then lower it to 16; it does not say whether the sixteen-credit exit applies there, so ask your district. Before age 7 nothing is required: a five- or six-year-old already enrolled in a public school program comes off the rolls on the parent's written request (RSMo 167.031.1). The 1,000-hour and record-keeping rules separately stop at 16 (RSMo 167.012.3); the duty to provide instruction does not.

What are the ways to homeschool in Missouri?

In Missouri, families homeschool under one of two pathways: home school (no filing) and family paced education (FPE) school (no filing; the designation a family needs to use MOScholars).

Yes. Homeschooling is legal in Missouri, as it is in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Missouri: No state notification. Offer at least 1,000 hours of instruction a year — at least 600 of them in the core subjects, and at least 400 of those 600 at the regular home-school location — and keep a plan book or log of subjects and activities, samples of the child's work, and evaluations of progress, or other written or credible evidence equivalent to all three (RSMo 167.012.2). The statute does not name an hours log among the required records, but the daily log that gives a family a defense if it is ever challenged has to show a course of instruction meeting those hour requirements (RSMo 167.012.4) — which is why most families track hours anyway. Those hour and record rules stop at 16, though instruction must continue until the district's compulsory attendance age. No state testing.

How to get started in Missouri

1
No filing required
Missouri asks for no notice to any authority — you can begin homeschooling without registering anywhere. Instruction is required from age 7; before then nothing is required, though a five- or six-year-old already enrolled in a public school program comes off the rolls on your written request (RSMo 167.031.1).
Official resource (dese.mo.gov) →
2
Provide 1,000 instructional hours
At least 600 hours must be in the core subjects — reading, language arts, math, social studies/history, and science — or in academic courses related to them and suited to your child's age and ability, and at least 400 of those 600 must happen at your regular home-school location.
Official resource (revisor.mo.gov) →
3
Keep the records — or equivalent evidence
Missouri gives you two ways to meet this (RSMo 167.012.2(1)). Keep three things — a plan book, diary, or log of subjects taught and activities done; samples of your child's work; and a record of your evaluations of their academic progress — or keep other written or credible evidence equivalent to all three. The second is an alternative form of evidence, not an exemption: something written still has to exist showing your child is receiving regular instruction. You never submit any of it. No statute says how long to keep it — families commonly keep two years or more, and longer for high school — but producing a daily log showing the required course of instruction is a defense to a truancy prosecution or an educational-neglect charge (RSMo 167.012.4). The statute doesn't name an hours log among the required records, but for a daily log to serve as that defense it has to show a course of instruction meeting the hour requirements, which is why most families track hours anyway.
4
The hours and records stop at 16 — instruction doesn't
Both the 1,000-hour requirement and the record-keeping requirement stop applying once your student turns 16 (RSMo 167.012.3), but you must still provide instruction until your district's compulsory attendance age. Outside a metropolitan school district that age is reached at 17, or on your student's successful completion of sixteen credits toward high school graduation, whichever comes first. Many families keep logging past 16 for that reason: for a home school or family paced education school a completed credit is 100 hours or more of instruction in a course (RSMo 167.031.4, .5), and stopping on the credit count is a claim you have to be able to show — your records are reviewable by the local prosecuting attorney (RSMo 167.012.4). In a metropolitan school district the statute sets the age at 17 where the school board has adopted a resolution and lets that board then lower it to 16; it doesn't say whether the sixteen-credit exit applies there, so ask your district.
Official resource (revisor.mo.gov) →
5
No state testing
Missouri has no standardized testing requirement for children taught at home. The evaluations in your records are your own, not an outside test. The one exception is the MOScholars scholarship, below.
6
If you take MOScholars (the state ESA)
MOScholars is open to a family teaching at home, but only through the 'family paced education' (FPE) designation in RSMo 167.013 — and RSMo 167.012.1 puts an FPE school outside 'home school' status, so taking the money changes what Missouri law calls your family. Students on it must take the state achievement test or a nationally norm-referenced test in the grades Missouri's statewide assessment covers (RSMo 135.714.2).
7
What MOScholars leaves alone, and who qualifies
The rest is the same: no state filing, the same 1,000 hours, and the same record rule — RSMo 167.013.2(1) is worded identically, so the same two ways of meeting it apply. Eligibility is limited, not universal — a student with an IEP, or a household at or below 300% of the free and reduced-price lunch income standard that also meets one of the program's entry conditions — and awards run through a certified Educational Assistance Organization (RSMo 166.700–166.720).
What Romeschool tracks for you: Hour tracking by subject, activity log and portfolio.
If you take an ESA, your homeschool status changes: Participants enroll as a 'Family Paced Education' (FPE) school (RSMo 167.013) — not a traditional MO home school (RSMo 167.012.1); participants take the state achievement test or a nationally norm-referenced test in the grades the statewide assessment covers (RSMo 135.714.2).

Sources for Missouri

Official source (dese.mo.gov) ↗HSLDA's Missouri summary ↗
Statute: RSMo § 167.031; § 167.012
Last reviewed: June 5, 2026
Corrected: September 23, 2026, after re-reading the official source for what changed

Every requirement above comes from our review of Missouri’s rules, checked against these sources on June 5, 2026 and corrected on September 23, 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 Missouri:

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