State requirements › Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
A Pennsylvania home education program is governed by 24 P.S. § 13-1327.1. The year turns on one document: the portfolio, reviewed by an evaluator of your choosing whose certification goes to the district by June 30. Summary checked against the statute on September 13, 2026.
What the statute asks for
| Requirement | What it means | In Schoolhouse |
|---|---|---|
| Notarized affidavit | Filed with the district superintendent before starting and by August 1 each year: the supervisor's name and qualifications, the children, the address, an outline of proposed education objectives by subject, immunization and health records, and a statement that the program complies. | Not a report; the affidavit is your own document. Course names from the Plan tab make a quick outline of objectives. |
| 180 days, or 900 hours (elementary) / 990 hours (secondary) | Either measure satisfies the requirement. | Attendance counts the days and Hours by subject the hours; the evaluator summary shows both. |
| Portfolio of records and materials | A log, made contemporaneously with the instruction, listing the reading materials used; samples of writings, worksheets, workbooks, and creative materials; and the results of the required tests. | Reading list is the log of reading materials; the Portfolio book gathers the work samples with dates and subjects; Assessments holds the test results. |
| Standardized tests in grades 3, 5, and 8 | Nationally normed tests in reading/language arts and mathematics, or the statewide assessments, administered by someone other than the parent. | Record them under Assessments as standardized tests; the evaluator summary flags the testing grades. |
| Annual evaluation and certification | A licensed clinical or certified school psychologist, a Pennsylvania-certified teacher, or a nonpublic school teacher or administrator with the required experience reviews the portfolio, interviews the student, and certifies in writing that an appropriate education is occurring. Due to the district by June 30. | Evaluator summary: days and hours, the required-subject checklist, the reading log, the work samples, the tests, space for the evaluation narrative, and signature lines for you and the evaluator. |
Required subjects
- Elementary (through grade 6): English, to include spelling, reading, and writing; arithmetic; science; geography; history of the United States and Pennsylvania; civics; safety education, including regular and continuous instruction in the dangers and prevention of fires; health and physiology; physical education; music; art.
- Secondary (grades 7–12): English, to include language, literature, speech, and composition; science; geography; social studies, to include civics, world history, history of the United States and Pennsylvania; mathematics, to include general mathematics, algebra, and geometry; art; music; physical education; health; safety education, including regular and continuous instruction in the dangers and prevention of fires. A high school program must also satisfy the graduation requirements in the statute (four years of English, three of mathematics, three of science, three of social studies, two of arts and humanities).
Schoolhouse matches your subject and course names against the list and shows the coverage on the evaluator summary.
A Pennsylvania year in Schoolhouse
- Set the home state to Pennsylvania. Fill in the program name and the evaluator's name and credential under Report details; they print on the summary.
- Add each book to the reading log as you start it (scan the barcode). That is the contemporaneous log the statute wants.
- Photograph work samples from Today as lessons finish; they land in the portfolio filed by date and subject.
- Record the grade 3, 5, and 8 tests under Assessments.
- Before the evaluation, print the Evaluator summary, the Reading list, and the Portfolio book. The evaluator writes their evaluation on the summary and signs.
- Send the evaluator's certification to the district by June 30.
Verify with your evaluator and district. Evaluators differ in what they like to see, and the statute changed in 2014 so that the evaluator's certification, not the whole portfolio, goes to the district. This page summarizes the statute and is not legal advice.