Homeschooling Regulations by State: West Virginia

by Christina Yeager

West Virginia’s laws and regulations for homeschooling are very similar to Virginia’s laws. There’s the usual NOI, the parent requirements (not as stringent as Washington), the compulsory age is pretty much the same. The major difference is the standardized testing. West Virginia actually gives parents two options for fulfilling the standardized testing requirement for their child. We’ll cover those options in the standardized testing section of this post. Without further ado let’s jump into the laws and regulations of homeschooling in West Virginia.
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Each state is the U.S. has a very specific set of regulations for homeschooling. If you are thinking about teaching your child at home, you'll need to know the ins and outs of what needs to be done beforehand and during. In this series, Homeschooling Regulations by State, we'll explore information to help with the decision, what to do to get started and what to do correctly to continue.
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The regulations, laws and suggestions in this post may not reflect the needs for your particular situation. Not all apply to each individual family. To learn more about the laws and regulations in this state on homeschooling, click the link at the end of the post! This will direct you to the states’ Board of Education or government education site.

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Compulsory School Age
The compulsory school attendance age for West Virginia is between the ages of six and sixteen. Unlike the previous states, West Virginia only requires a one time filing of the NOI to participate in homeschooling. This is done with the superintendent of the county’s board of education.

Necessary Paperwork
To legally withdraw your child from public school to homeschool parents have to fill out the one time notice of intent. They must also get any additional paperwork from the public school.

Curriculum
Required curriculum for the State of West Virginia for every home-based education is:

• Reading
• Language
• Math
• Science
• Social Studies

Assessment
Part of the paperwork requirements for West Virginia is that parents must keep records of their child’s academic assessments for three years. In grades three, five, eight, and eleven, parents have to submit the results to the county’s superintendent. This is due by June 30th of the year the assessment was completed. Parents can also have their children complete the annual assessment where they are tested every year for a progress report.

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For more detailed information on enrolling and instructing your child in the State of West Virginia, visit the West Virginia Department of Education. 

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Are you a homeschooler (new or veteran) seeking to share insight? Read our guidelines and then reach out introducing yourself to obtain blogging credentials! And if you're a homeschool parent, be sure to follow the Homeschooling Heroes page on Facebook for tons of resources and insight, and join the Unschool Homeschool group to expand your horizons as to what homeschooling is/can be. And finally, if you're looking for activities to join, we have a group with New Orleans-based activities, which will be expanding to an area near you - so join our group! And be excited about that, because we offer tons of exceptional educational and extracurricular activities for homeschoolers and parents, and can't wait to include you.

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